After the Death Curse
by Sheri Contrary
Summary: What woman could walk away from her child? This is what happens to Ayla when she refuses to leave Broud's Clan at the end of The Clan of the Cave Bear. For the most part, this disregards books 2-6...except for customs of the Others. IN PROGRESS (but I have no intention of finishing...sorry).
1. Part 1

**Author's Note**

I've decided to transfer this fic over from another site...just because I want all my fics in one place...but I'm warning readers that it's **NOT "complete**.**"** I started this in 2003 when I was in college—it was my most favorite distraction from homework and writing papers (history majors have to write A LOT of papers)—and it's been ongoing since. I haven't, however, updated it in just over a year (last update was 2 March, 2010)...but that doesn't mean that I'm done with it.

Further, just so you know, though I've liked writing stories for a _very_ long time (since grade school), this was my first attempt at writing fan fiction. I think I did a pretty good job (if the comments on the other site are anything to go by), but there are PLENTY of mistakes...typos as well as just plain poor use of words, punctuation, and overall grammar. Honestly, it's disgusts me! I hope you can get past it all and enjoy the story. =) And I am perfectly open to those who want to tell me where I've made errors (as long as those critiques don't tell me I've made errors with characters I created). :p

**ETA** (16 May, 2011)**:** I've been skimming through some of this and finding all kinds of weird things...like dialogue that ends without an end quote...and spaces lacking between punctuation and the following sentence (or just the next word)...and more. I SWEAR that stuff isn't in my Word doc. WTF! GRR!

* Please note – the first five paragraphs of chapter one (in_ italics_) are a direct quote from the book...and it is afterward that the story becomes mine (though _most_ of the characters remain the property of Jean M. Auel). There are, however, a few places where I quote from the book...they will also be in _italics_ (large bits bits only).

And...again...this was written _way_ back in 2003, so please forgive me (and my possible misuse of words)...I've grown a lot since then...as I writer, I mean.

**Rating:** I'm rating this **M**, because there are sex scenes (and some rape scenes)...but there is no profanity (I don't think), because Jean M. Auel never cursed in her books. =)

I'm having some problems with the **bold** function...I hope I can fix it! And with _italics_ too, apparently. GRR!

* * *

><p><strong>After the Death Curse – Part One (of ten)<strong>

**Character List:**

**Broud** (21) – leader (Wooly Rhinoceros totem)  
><strong>Oga<strong> (17) – Broud's mate  
>-~-<strong>Brac<strong> (8) – Oga's first son  
>-~-<strong>Grev<strong> (4) – Oga's second son

**Vorn** (13) – Broud's second in command  
><strong>Uba<strong> (8) – medicine woman, childless

**Brun** (33) – former leader (Bison totem)  
><strong>Ebra<strong> (31) – Broud's mother

**Zoug** (43) – second in command to the leader before Brun  
>-~-<strong>Grod<strong> (29) – son of the mate of Zoug (Brown Bear totem)  
>-~-<strong>Uka <strong>(27) – Ebra's sister

**Goov** (20) – Mog-ur (Aurochs totem/Ursus totem)  
><strong>Ovra<strong> (18) – Goov's mate, childless (Beaver totem)

**Ayla** (14) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman (Cave Lion totem)  
>-~-<strong>Durc <strong>(3) – Ayla's son, Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)

**Aba** (35)  
>-~-<strong>Droog<strong> (31) – toolmaker, Aga's second mate  
>-~-<strong>Aga<strong> (24) – Droog's second mate  
>-~-~-<strong>Groob <strong>(6) – Aga's son born to Droog's hearth

**Crug** (22)  
><strong>Ika<strong> (20) – Crug's mate  
>-~-<strong>Igra<strong> (6) – Ika's daughter  
>-~-<strong>Baby<strong> (1) – Ika's child

**Borg** (9) – Boar totem  
><strong>Ona<strong> (9) – Owl totem

**XxX**

**Chapter One: Ayla's Defiance (originally posted on 25 July, 2003)  
><strong>  
><em>"I am the mog-ur. You are the leader. You have ordered Ayla cursed with death. It is done," Goov motioned, then turned his back on the leader of the clan.<em>

_No one could believe it at first. It was too fast. That wasn't the way it should be done. Brun would have discussed it, reasoned it out, prepared the clan for it. But he wouldn't have cursed her in the first place. What had she done? She was insolent to the leader and it was wrong, but was it cause for death? She had just been defending Creb. And what had Broud done to her? Taken her child from her and turned the old magician out of his hearth to get even with her. Now, no one had a hearth. Why did Broud do it? Why did he curse her? The spirits had always favored her, she brought good luck, until Broud said he wanted to curse her, until he told the mog-ur to curse her. Broud brought the bad luck on them. Now what would happen to them? Broud had made the protective spirits angry and then unleashed the evil ones. And the old magician was dead, The Mog-ur couldn't help them now._

_Ayla was so lost in her grief, she wasn't aware of the rapid currents swirling around her. She saw Broud order her cursed, and saw Goov tell him it was done, but her grief-filled mind didn't comprehend. Slowly, the meaning impinged on her consciousness. When it penetrated, with all its ramifications, the impact was devastating._

_Cursed? Death Cursed? Why? What did I do that was so bad? How did it happen so fast? The clan was as slow to comprehend as she. They hadn't fully recovered from the earthquake. Ayla watched them with a curious detachment as, one after the other, eyes became glazed and unseeing. There goes Crug. Who's going to be next. Uka. Now Droog, but not Aga yet. There she goes, she must have seen me look at her._

_Ayla wasn't moved into action until Uba's eyes went blank and she began to keen for the mother of the boy she held in her arms. Durc! My baby, my son! I'm cursed, I'll never see him again. What will happen to him? There's only Uba left. She'll take care of him, but what can she do against Broud? Broud hates him because he's my son. Ayla looked wildly around, and saw Brun, but he too could not see her._

Broud stood there with his hands on his hips, seemingly proud of himself. Everyone had complied with the death curse. Why wouldn't they, he thought to himself. I am the leader, they have to, it is the clan way. The men were all watching him to see what he would order them to do next. Brun seemed to be the only hunter having a difficult time, but that will change in time. He must know that what I did was right. Many women stood there shocked, while others looked toward their mates for reassurance. Even Uba was mourning properly. Broud watched his clan with satisfaction.

As Uba stood there shaking, she dropped to the ground in misery, keening her grief and holding Ayla's child. Durc was screaming, "Mama, Maama, Maaama," and struggling to get free from Uba.

It was only the screams of her son that caused Ayla to take in what was happening. Without hesitation, she hurried over to Uba, gently took Durc from her unresisting sister's arms and hugged him tightly. Her eyes began to water, and her mind was racing. What can I do, she thought? I cannot leave my son, my only child, Ayla thought to herself. It was too hard. I never thought my totem could be defeated, and then it was. Then I had the most awful pregnancy, and almost died giving birth. Then I almost lost him because they think he's deformed. I will not lose him now! I won't leave my son! I will stay! I will stay and protect Durc myself, even if no one can see me. I will stay and do everything I can to take care of him…spirit or not!

"Broud!" Ayla growled loudly after she handed her son back to Uba and marched up to the leader. Most of the clan blanched visibly at the sound of the spirit's voice, including Broud.

Broud struggled with the vision he was seeing. He tried not to see the angry spirit of the woman, but he could not miss the tall, blond woman standing just feet in front of him. _I'm not dead, Broud," she gestured defiantly. "I won't die. You can't make me die._ And you can't make me leave either! I will follow you to whatever new cave you find. I will make myself my own hearth within that cave. I will hunt for myself and not just with my sling, and you can't do anything about it. I will stay and you will have to deal with having a 'spirit' amongst you. I am going to stay with this clan wherever it goes until I am good and ready to leave it."

With that, Ayla signaled to Durc that she was going back into the cave to gather their belongings for the move. "Stay outside with Uba, Durc. It's dangerous inside the cave right now."

Durc looked at his mother, "Mama, you're coming back, right?" he gestured to her, and she nodded. Then she turned around to go get their things. Uba just stood there, still not seeing Ayla, as she held onto Durc looking sad and scared.

Broud was furious. His fists clenched and unclenched. She's supposed to be dead! Why was that spirit talking to that deformed child, and why was he seeing her? And why isn't Uba doing anything about the child's behavior? Broud was turning purple with rage again and was moving toward Uba and the child. Maybe she needs to be cuffed, he thought. That would show her to do what a woman should.

However, as Broud began to approach Uba, Brun saw what was going through the mind of the son of his mate and stepped in front of him. "I will not let you strike this woman when you don't have reason to."

**XxX**

**Chapter Two: Packing Up (originally posted on 26 July, 2003)**

Inside the crumbling cave Ayla went to the hearth she had always shared with Creb. As she looked around, her eyes blurred with tears again. This is where she had spent her days and nights for almost two hands of seasons. It was hard to believe they had to move.

She didn't know how long she had been standing there, but a slight movement beneath her feet, an aftershock, jarred her back to reality. She started for the cave's entrance to get to safety, but the earth's movement stopped as quickly as it had started, and Ayla decided to return to the gut wrenching job of clearing out of the cave.

As fast as she could, Ayla gathered their belongings. She made a pile of hers and Durc's things on the ground, but didn't know how she would get them all out of the cave. Then she thought of something that would help, _she decided to take the hide shelter she used when she went with the men on hunting trips._Technically, it belonged to Creb, but he wouldn't need it anymore, she thought with a glance toward Creb's dead body, which was by Iza's burial cairn in an unused corner of the cave behind her.

Ayla pulled out his hide shelter, spread it on the ground, first putting Creb's, Durc's and her own bedding on the hide shelter. She figured that she would need everything that she could possibly carry. Then she started putting everything else of hers on the shelter one by one, _Her medicine bag, her sling, two pairs of foot coverings, leggings, hand coverings, a fur-lined wrap, a hood…her cup and bowl, waterbags, tools,_ her collecting basket and the hide she used as Durc's carrying cloak. Then, she moved onto Durc's belongings, which wasn't much, only one wrap, a wolverine hood, his old foot coverings, _his_cup and bowl and the little spear Grod had made for him not so long ago.

Ayla's thoughts turned inward again as she thought of the day that Durc had _walked right past Uka...greeted her and called her mother and went straight to Grod and crawled up on his lap._ Ayla couldn't help smiling to herself. Then Durc had grabbed Grod's spear and tried to drag it out of the man's hearth. _When Grod took it away from him, he said, 'Durc hunt like Grod.'_Smiling again, Ayla remembered Grod bringing Durc his own spear just days after that.

Coming out of her daydreaming, Ayla turned back to her work. She still needed to get the food stuffs that would be imperative for survival, _…concentrated, high-energy traveling cakes of dried meat, fruit, and fat…birchbark packets of maple sugar, nuts, dried fruit, ground parched grain, strips of dried meat and fish, and a few vegetables._

After looking over her pile, she decided that was enough. After all, she wasn't actually _leaving_the clan. She could always take food when the hunters returned from hunting, or the women came back from gathering. A glint of a smile crossed her face yet again as she thought to herself, if they couldn't see her, then they couldn't stop her. And besides, she had already decided to hunt more herself. She was going to make herself a spear as soon as a cave was found and she had the time. Glancing around one more time, Ayla grabbed the hide by one end and began to drag it out of the cave.

Ayla stopped once at Vorn's hearth, wanting to help with Uba's things. She even let go of the hide and considered helping, but then she stopped knowing Vorn would never touch their belongings again, except to burn them, if she touched them. Sighing, the dead woman took up the end of the hide once again and started for the cave entrance.

**XxX**

**Chapter Two (continued), (originally posted on 27 July, 2003)**

Not much had changed outside. Broud was still fuming, but he was trying to collect his thoughts, and a few people were moving around. Goov was standing with Broud and they were discussing who should go into the cave for everything. The rest of the men were waiting for Broud to decide. Broud had finally decided that it wasn't safe enough for the women to go back in, but all the men would have to enter the cave to get their things. The women weren't told what to do so they just milled around looking scared and unsure of what lay ahead.

As Broud and the other men reached the mouth of the cave, Ayla was leaving with her hide full of her things. She stopped and stood up tall as they neared, but most of them looked right through her. Only Brun and Broud showed the slightest look in their eyes, one kind, the other malevolent, which said they saw her even though they knew they shouldn't. She knew Broud could hardly contain his fury due to her refusal to leave, but Brun almost seemed amused. Amused at the strong will of the spirit of the woman to stay with her son, yet desperately disappointed in the son of _his_mate, and at the same time somewhat frightened of what was to become of his clan.

Ayla hesitated just a little, watching the men move around in the cave, then continued on her way outside. Obviously they were doing the same thing she was.

When Ayla got herself all the way out of the cave and over to where everyone was standing, she dropped her hide and went back to her son. Uba still had not moved. She was holding Durc and standing motionless. Ayla went up to her and motioned, "Thank you Uba for keeping Durc safe for me. I know I am supposed to leave. I know it is the clan way, but I can't. I cannot leave my son. Creb remembered everything I had said when I was death cursed before, so I know you can see me, and that I am scaring you. I promise not to do anything to hurt you. I'm sure you know I wouldn't hurt you. Uba, Broud is wrong, I am not dead! I am just Ayla, but I will try not to bother you, and I will miss our conversations, my sister."

When she was finished speaking, she put her hands on Durc to take him from Uba, but Uba held fast. Durc looked from Uba to his mother, then back to Uba suddenly understanding the problem. "Uba, it's okay," Durc gestured. "This is my Mama. She won't hurt me. I want to be with my Mama."

Uba wasn't sure what to do, but let go of the child anyway. She knew the spirit of Durc's mother wasn't going to leave and take the boy to the spirit world. Even though they weren't supposed to see her, _everyone_ had seen the spirit say she wasn't leaving. She knew Durc would be safe. She would keep a close eye on him, _and_the spirit of his mother that she wasn't supposed to see.

**XxX**

**Chapter Two (continued), (originally posted on 28 July, 2003)**

Inside the cave, Broud told the men to gather up their own hearth belongings and to leave anything that was broken in the cave. They didn't need to carry broken items as they traveled to another cave. Even _he _knew that wouldn't be fair to the women, as they would bear the burden of carrying most of the cave's contents. Broud noticed that Brun seemed to agree with his decision, and felt good that the former leader was satisfied with him.

What Broud didn't see due to his arrogance was that Brun didn't even see the new leader's instructions, and even if he had, he would not have had a look of satisfaction for the son of his mate. Brun was devastated by the turn of events and as far as he was concerned there was nothing Broud could do to rectify what he had already done.

Brun was instead thinking back to the time of the last earthquake that destroyed his cave, and their desperate search for a new cave. It had taken some time, he thought. It was Ayla that the spirits had shown this cave to first. It seemed like she brought his clan luck, but oh, how unlucky she must be herself. I must be so hard for that woman of the Others. Those Others are so different.

Brun sighed and looked around the cave again. His eyes fell on the son of his mate. How wrong he had been to make Broud their leader. Obviously Broud had been biding his time, silently waiting for the day that he could punish Ayla for imagined wrong doings. Then a thought came into the former leader's large brain…I wish Ayla had been the son of my mate.

Outside the cave, Oga sat with Ovra. Both were watching closely, waiting for the men to come out of the cave. It wasn't long before they came out with their arms full. Each man made his own pile outside so everything wouldn't get mixed up, and then returned for more. Once the items were put down, then women rushed over to begin the task of sorting things out.

When Oga saw Broud she got up, went over to him and kneeled down in front of him, indicating that she wanted to ask him something.

Broud paused, frustrated that she was bothering him when it was clear that he was busy, but he tapped her shoulder anyway, gesturing, "Woman, can't you see I am busy? This leader had much to do. You shouldn't be getting in my way." The leader puffed his chest up with self-importance, and stared at the cowering woman at his feet.

Oga looked at Broud in the way she always did, not wanting to anger him further, and said, "This woman is sorry for interrupting her mate. This woman would like to know if the women should prepare to travel, or set up a camp and start a meal."

Broud grunted. It was clear that he thought she should have known what he would want, but she was too afraid right now to assume anything about her mate.

"You lazy woman! You should be able to anticipate my needs. You should already know what I want…set up camp and fix a meal." With that he turned on his heel, and returned to the cave entrance to oversee the movement of everything.

Broud's blood was boiling. What is wrong with everyone, he thought? I have gotten rid of our biggest problem, and they are acting like the world has come to an end. Then, just before he disappeared into the cave, he glanced over at the defiant spirit and gave it a malevolent look. That spirit would pay, but not yet. Right now he had to empty this cave, and get ready to travel. Then, very soon, he would have to lead his clan off into the unknown wide expanse of land that lay out there to search for a new cave. Yes, she would pay for all that she had done, but not today.

Ayla was watching the exchange between Broud and Oga and shook her head at his meanness. When she saw the leader turn around and head back to the cave, she continued to watch him. When he looked over at her, she could not deny that he had seen her. He looked right at her with murderous eyes. She knew she didn't have to worry for the time being, because he had a lot to do, but she would keep her eye on the man anyway.

**XxX**

**Chapter Two (still continued), (originally posted on 28 July, 2003)**

Ayla had already begun to set up hers and Durc's stuff. She had been pretty sure of what Broud would expect the women to do and had no reason to care if he was upset that she had anticipated wrongly. Shrugging, she got out Creb's bedding, which was a large hide, and she put it on the soggy ground. The weather hadn't been too nice lately. The spring rains had been heavy and _everything _was wet. Then Ayla took everything off of Creb's hide shelter, set it all on his bedding and quickly set up her shelter in front of her pile on the bedding. After that she bought hers and Durc's things into the shelter. She had this done even before the men had taken the second load of things out of the cave.

Durc did his best to help his mother, but at three years old he couldn't really do much and went off to play with Grev as soon as he felt everything was at least going okay. Though he knew instinctively that his world had turned upside down, he also knew that his mother was there to help him and that was all that really mattered to him.

Ayla was watching everyone openly, even though they were all "not seeing" her. Uba was sitting next to her own pile of things, not knowing where to start. It took Ebra and Oga to force her up and get her moving. They had already gotten their own traveling tents set up, so they helped Uba with hers and Vorn's.

Uka and her daughter Ovra were working together to get each of their shelters set up, as were some of the other women. Ebra left Oga to deal with Uba and went to start a fire. That was not an easy task. Getting a fire started on the drenched ground and with saturated wood was proving to be nearly impossible, but just as Ebra was about to give up, Grod came out of the cave with a _bit of burning charcoal_, followed by Goov, who was carrying an arm load of wood to begin their fire. When Ebra saw them coming, she moved out of the way happy to see that she wouldn't have to labor so hard.

Finally, the rest of the men came out with their final loads and joined the women by the blazing fire. The women had set up camp in a generally circular pattern with the fire in the center of them all. It wasn't really planned that way, because the shelters were set up haphazardly before the fire was lit, but it was good all the same, _and _Ayla had managed, accidentally, to place herself very near everyone else, whether they liked it or not.

The sun was high in the sky when the women had the food ready, but the men decided they were going to fast and discuss the day's events. The women were left to eat alone, which would ordinarily be more relaxing for them since they wouldn't have to serve their mates, but with all that went on that day they were extremely nervous, and would have been glad for the presence of their mates. Not to mention the fact that the spirit of Durc's mother was lingering around, watching everything that happened.

Ayla didn't know what to do with herself. She was torn between being with the women, who were always nicer to her than the men, but with whom now she could not converse, and of course being near her son, which she felt could be lost to her at any moment. And then there was the thought that she could follow the men to see what it was that they talked about when they were "discussing" something. She decided to stay where she was for the time being. There would be plenty of times she could invade the men's private times without them being able to stop her.

_So, _she sat on her outdoor hide nibbling on some meat and thinking. It really hadn't taken very long for disaster to tear everyone's lives to pieces just after their morning meal that day, she thought sadly. What was to become of them, she considered. I hope Broud finds another cave quickly. I hope I've done the right thing by staying. Oh, I miss Iza and Creb so much, she thought, and began crying out loud.

Every woman in the camp stopped talking for just a moment, all wondering if spirits felt pain and loss, and in the case of Ayla, as one of the Others, cried out loud. No one could ignore the grief they most definitely heard.

**XxX**

**Chapter Two (still), (originally posted on 29 July, 2003)**

The men of the clan were all sitting out in the practice field, not really discussing anything. No one wanted to talk with Broud, because they all secretly blamed the young, inexperienced and cruel leader. Brun blamed himself more now than ever, but he too sat in silence.

Goov sat just a little away from the rest, trying to meditate. He blamed himself as well for blindly listening to the leader when the leader was so wrong. _But,_he thought to himself, that is the clan way. Who was he to go against their leader? Up until this day, Goov had considered Broud his friend. He pondered this even though he knew that Broud would never be fit to lead. But, what could they do now? It was done. Broud was leader, Ayla was cursed, the spirits destroyed their cave and Creb, the greatest and most powerful Mo-gur, was dead. None of that could be reversed.

Goov was trying to call upon Ursus hoping the great cave bear would tell him what he had to do to take care of the clan in spite of Broud. He was asking for strength to deal with what lay ahead, the unknown. And, he was asking for courage to deal with the presence of the spirit, Ayla, for he too could not deny that he saw Ayla's spirit hanging around and watching everything, _and _talking to her son. He was just the best at hiding it, since he had spent many years training with the Mo-gur.

As it became twilight, the men slowly, one by one, got up and went back to the outdoor camp that the women had created. Brun and Broud were the last to leave the practice field.

As Brun came into view Ebra quickly got up, fixed him a plate of food and at his nod, settled herself down next to him. They were great comfort to each other, they had always been good together, but on this night they really needed to be close.

Oga did the same for Broud, but he claimed the food was cold and tossed his food into the fire. "Get in my shelter woman," he gestured as he pushed her toward it and made the signal. Oga went inside and was on her knees and presenting before Broud could even get into the shelter. He came up behind her and almost with fury entered her and began pumping away. He was holding her hips and thrusting deeply trying to burn off steam, and she was groaning with each thrust, as she wasn't used to such roughness. He wasn't hurting her, she was used to him, but she was more than a little confused by his behavior. He had never been mean to her before, but on that night she knew he wasn't doing this because he cared for her. As he pumped and strained, she began questioning herself. She had always been a good woman, hadn't she? She had brought two fine sons to his hearth. Why was he so upset with her? She was never insolent to him. Well, except for that one time when Ayla needed her to nurse Durc, but that was her right, wasn't it? Even Brun thought Broud was wrong there.

Ayla stared in horror as Broud relieved his needs with his own mate more roughly than when he had shoved her own face into the dirt four years before. Tears came out of her eyes at the thought of her own experience with him then, and now because he was basically doing the same thing to Oga.

Ayla tore her eyes away from the spectacle before her and looked around the camp. Most were getting up to go to their own tents, not wanting to have to avert their eyes any longer. Most didn't even finish their meal.

Ebra was taking care of Brac and Grev. It was obvious her son was busy. Too busy to be thinking about Oga's sons. They would have to sleep with herself and Brun. She knew her mate wouldn't mind at all. Secretly she had always been appalled at Broud's treatment of Ayla, but a good clan woman would never admit that to anyone. Now, he was turning his hatred of Ayla on Oga. If she had been able to, she would have been crying as well.

Now that his playmates were gone, Durc came up to Ayla and crawled onto her lap saying, "Mammm, mammm, mammm." It wasn't something he had vocalized before, but it made her feel good that his arms were around her neck and he was calling her something special. It didn't matter to her what he said, only that he said it to her. She picked him up and brought him into her shelter signing "Durc, you fill me with happiness. Goodnight my son."

When Ayla came out of her tent and sat down again to finish her tea, she noticed that Brun was looking at the ground, drinking his tea and shaking his head at the sounds of Broud pounding his mate wildly. It was obvious by the final loud moan of the leader and the sudden silence of Oga when Broud had finally finished.

Once he was sure they were done, Brun's head came up and he looked directly into Ayla's eyes. He did not even attempt to look away. Brun watched the tears stream down the spirit's face, contemplating the spirit world. That's very strange, Brun thought. Do the Other's _spirits _have watering eyes? Ayla's eyes always watered when she was upset or hurt. Would her spirit do the same thing. I think I will have to talk to Goov sometime about spirits.

When Ebra had gotten the sons of the mate of her son into their sleeping places, she returned to her mate. Age had made them very comfortable together and now that everyone else, less Ayla, had gone to bed, she put her arms around the man that she had spent her life with. They held each other for sometime; taking comfort in knowing the other was thinking similar thoughts. Ayla wanted to hear and see all, but even she knew they needed some time alone and went to her bed where Durc was already sleeping.

The only other people still awake were Uba and Vorn. He too had relieved his needs with his mate, but gently and lovingly, and with no anger. Vorn finish quickly and was holding Uba close, knowing that his mate needed him at that moment. He was also thinking about the next day and what it would bring. Uba was lying there completely still, wishing that this day had never happened. Wishing that she had died along with Creb, or that she could have been cursed with Ayla. At least then she would have her sister.

**XxX**

**Chapter Three: Discovery (originally posted on 29 July, 2003)**

Oga woke early, not remembering where she was, but after glancing around the shelter, memories of the day _and the night_before flooded back to her. She looked to her left, over at Broud, who was on his stomach with his face buried in the furs and sleeping soundly. She grimaced at the thought of him being full with need again.

Slowly, so as not to wake the spent man, Oga climbed out of their furs, put her wrap on quickly and left the tent. It was earlier than she had thought, not really even light yet, but Ebra, Uka and Aga were already up. The three women motioned a morning greeting and Ebra patted the place next to her indicating to Oga to sit there, and Aga held out a cup of tea. Oga went obediently over to Ebra and sat down, frowning down into her tea. The other women knew Oga was confused, but none knew what to say to her. Ebra felt awful. Oga had always been a good woman to her son and hated to see her so upset.

Not much time seemed to have passed when Ika and Igra came out of their shelters, and then Uba appeared, looking as if she hadn't eaten in days. Slowly, one after the other, the clan began to wake up to another day.

When Durc appeared in the opening of his tent and saw Oga, he went over to her to nurse, just because he knew he could. Oga welcomed the child happily even though he was well past his weaning year. And then, just like clockwork, Grev appeared wanting her other breast. She only had to reposition herself to accommodate her son.

The other women looked on with amused expressions as Oga held and nursed both boys at the same time. They played with each other and toyed with her nipples more than actually suckled them. They were milk brothers. They just wanted to be near each other, and have the security of her breasts at the same time. Oga was a good woman, Ebra thought. She always had been.

Oga was hoping that Broud would sleep late, as she had had quite the evening the night before and she wanted to relax just a bit, but she heard him rustling and got up to make her mate some morning tea. She hardly had time to get the tea steeping when Broud made his presence known.

"Oga!" he called. When she turned around, she was disappointed to see that he was making the signal again. Obediently, Oga got up and hurried into the shelter and assumed the position. Broud did not carry on they way he had the night before. Oga didn't know why she thought Broud wouldn't want her this morning, this was how they started almost every day, but Oga didn't feel any better about it. She was just a little sore from the night before, and her moans carried across the encampment.

Ayla was awoken by Broud's shout and listened, without wanting to, to him relieving his needs again and Oga moaning as if she hurt. How can she stand it, she thought? Slowly Ayla sat up, not sure what she should do. She crept over to the tent's entrance and spied on the people. For the moment she was content to listen to her clan busying themselves and watch them talk to one another. She knew as soon as she went outside the air would change.

After a time, Ayla could no longer wait, she had to go relieve herself. When she appeared no one did anything, so she just took care of herself and returned for tea. As soon as Durc noticed his Mama, he came running up.

"Mammaaa," he said and then signed, "I'm so happy to see you. I thought you would sleep all day."

Ayla laughed out loud. "Durc, it's barely light out. Why would you think I'd sleep all day? Now, go play, I have work to do," she said brushing him off, but at his look she smiled. She could not resist her son and scooped him up, tickling him just to hear him laugh. She had never done that when they were around the clan, only when they were out alone, but now she didn't think it mattered. The people of the clan looked uncomfortable, but Ayla didn't really care what they thought. They had better get used to her being there.

Broud had emerged from his tent feeling much better, but scowled at the child for making unnecessary noises and for acknowledging the spirit, then announced that they would leave after the morning meal, "so pack up," he gesticulated angrily.

Goov still had some important things to do in the cave, like Creb's burial. Brun had asked to go with him and witness the burial of his brother, and Ayla decided that she was going too, but no one else went into the cave with the mo-gur and the former leader.

Goov went into the cave with Brun on his right and the spirit of Ayla just behind them. He had already decided that Creb's body wouldn't be removed from the cave. Not only his _position in the clan hierarchy, but_ his _intimacy with the spirits dictated a burial place within the cave._

Goov had started the process of getting the Mo-gur's body ready the evening before while the other men carried out everyone's belongings, but now there was more work to do.

He used a digging stick to loosen the dirt of the cave floor, then began to scoop out a depression in the floor. Afterward, he _sprinkled red ochre dust inside_ making the gestures that consecrated the ground. _He pulled the cover back to reveal the gray naked body of_ the Mo-gur. His _arms and legs had been flexed and tied into a fetal position with red-dyed sinew. The magician made a protective gesture, then lowered himself down and began to rub the cold flesh with a salve of red ochre and cave bear fat. Bent into a fetal position and covered with the red that resembled the blood of birth,_ Creb _would be delivered into the next world the same way_ he _had arrived in this one._

When Goov had finished he and Brun _and Ayla _placed rocks on the dead man in the shallow grave so that no scavengers would disturb the body. Both of the men knew she was there, her eyes watering in grief, but neither of them cared. They were a bit nervous, and wouldn't look at her, but they knew Ayla's spirit loved the man of her hearth dearly.

Brun walk slowly out of the cave and Goov went back to the men's cave. Ayla watched them both leave, but she could not go just yet. This man was like the mate of her mother, even though they were siblings and not mates, and Iza wasn't really her mother. This man had been the man of her hearth for as long as she could remember. This man was the man that all would have to compare to. Ayla looked around at all that was lost and sobbed anew at the loss of Creb.

Goov had gone back to the men's cave so that he could finish up the last of his business in this destroyed cave, but he was completely unprepared for what he saw. There, in the middle of the smaller cave, stood the sacred bones, and though they were all there, the last bone was no longer in the base and through eye socket of the cave bear skull. The aftershocks of the quake had removed them. Had the spirits been that upset with Broud for cursing the woman? Did that mean Ayla was no longer cured?

Goov's mind was reeling at the mere thought that the death curse didn't work. That the woman sobbing on Creb's grave was alive and well, but what should I do, he thought? Broud would just have me curse her again if he knew.

Looking at the bones one final time, Goov got up and left the men's cave. He glanced at the woman as he passed. She was now leaning over the rocks that covered the Mo-gur's head and was sobbing loudly. Goov continued to the mouth of the cave. He had to speak to Brun.

**XxX**

**Chapter Four: The Secret (originally posted on 29 July, 2003)**

Goov blinked as he came out into the sun and looked around for Brun. He did not see him at first, but as he stood there Brun emerged from his shelter. Ebra was helping him to collapse it, but when she saw Goov standing in the triangular entrance of the cave looking around, she said, "Brun. Goov," and pointed.

Brun glanced at the cave's mo-gur and knew that something was wrong. "Ebra," Brun said. "Get one of the women to help you with this. I have to go see what Goov wants." Ebra nodded, but her mate had already turned around and was striding up the small hill toward the cave.

Brun looked at the trouble young man and asked, "What is it Goov?"

"Come!" The man voiced in words. Brun knew it was serious, Goov would never command the former leader if it wasn't serious.

When they got to the men's cave, Goov said nothing, but pointed at the bones instead. Brun just stared at them. Then, using only gestures so that the woman on Creb's grave would not hear a thing, Brun gestured, "Did you move them?"

Goov shook his hear vehemently, "I came back here and that's where they were. Brun, I don't know what this means. Is she no longer cursed?"

"Goov, you are the mo-gur, not I. If you do not know, then I do not know." Both men looked toward the entrance of the men's cave, then Brun made a decision, "Broud must not know about this yet. He would become furious and curse her again. I don't think the clan could take it if the son of my mate did that again. We would be destroyed for sure."

Goov nodded, but frowned, "but what about Ayla? She's not dead. This has got to be awful for her."

Brun breathed an audible sigh, "We will have to tell her, at some point. Soon, but not yet. Hurry, let's pack up the rest of your things Goov. Wrap the bones up tightly in their hide, so that we can go."

After helping Goov, Brun left the men's cave. He stopped and looked at his brother's grave and the woman sprawled across it. Hold on Ayla, he thought to himself. We know you are not dead. Then he sighed again, this time quite loudly. Ayla looked up at him.

When Goov was finished, he too left the men's cave and stopped next to Brun and looked at Ayla.

Ayla's reddened eyes widened, "Brun? Goov?" Then she gestured, "What is it?" They didn't answer her, but something was most definitely different. They left the cave hurriedly, not looking back. Ayla watched them go, then got up and followed slowly. When she saw that their camp was almost broken, she hurried out to pack up her things. She had a lot to carry. How was she going to carry it all?

**XxX**

**Chapter Five: And They're Off (originally posted on 30 July, 2003)**

When Ayla finally got down to her shelter, she wasted no time emptying it and taking it down. She rolled it up and wrapped leather straps around it to secure it. Then, she grabbed her collecting basket and packed it to the brim with all of hers and Durc's miscellaneous belongings, putting traveling food on the top for easy access. And finally, she folded up their bedding and placed it in the center of what _was_Creb's bedding, but was now their outside floor covering. Though Ayla hadn't intentionally put it out as a sort of doormat, that's what it became. It had been nice to have something on the soggy ground outside their shelter to wipe their feet off before entering the tent. She would definitely utilize Creb's hide again for that purpose.

The only items she didn't pack up were her medicine bag, which would hang around her waist, as it always did; her sling, which she would want to have ready at a moment's notice; and Durc's miniature spear, which she knew he'd want to carry himself when he was walking.

Ayla stood up and looked at her things. How could one woman have so much, she thought? And how can I carry all of this, _and _my son when he wants me to? Her mind was racing. She quickly took another leather strap and shoved it through the center of her hide shelter, which was rolled up, and pulled it out the other side. Then she held the strap so that is was about as long as her arms were long, with the shelter in the middle. And finally, she tied the ends of the strap together, so that she could hang is over her shoulder. That left her full collecting basket, their bedding and Durc. Ayla decided to do the same thing to the collecting basket, to be carried on her other shoulder, and she'd just have to carry the bedding and her son. She frowned at the thought of the load, but there was nothing else she could do at that moment, and she needed everything she had.

When Ayla finished getting her things together, she looked around. Everyone else was almost ready as well. She decided to sit down and rest until everyone was completely ready. She knew she would need her strength for their trek.

Most of the children were playing quietly, oblivious to the strain of the group. The women, however, were busily gathering and packing, while the men just sat there and watched. Ayla thought it looked ridiculous. The men should be carrying their fair share of the cave's contents. They were much stronger. They could be carrying more. She shook her head and sipped her tea.

As Ayla saw that they were almost finished, she got up, slung her packs over her shoulders, picked up her bedding and called her son over to her. "Durc, do you want me to carry you, or are you going to walk?"

Durc puffed up his chest and gestured, "I'm a big boy, Mama. I will walk." Ayla couldn't help smiling at her son. "Okay my son." She knew it wouldn't be long before the three year old came running up to her wanting to be carried.

Broud and Vorn were standing in the clearing waiting. Broud looked none too happy at how slow this process was taking. When the women were ready, they herded the children and came up to stand unobtrusively behind the two men. Uba took her place just in front of the Oga, and other women, but behind Broud and Vorn. The older men flanked the women, Brun, Grod and Zoug on one side of them, and Crug and Droog on the other. Then, bringing up the tail end of the lot were the younger men.

Ayla didn't know what to do with herself. As medicine woman, she should be where Uba was. She looked at Brun, who gave her an unmistakable nod, which told her to get to her place. Ayla handed Durc his little spear and went up to stand beside Uba. Uba stiffened up, but kept her eyes on the men ahead of her.

This will be very interesting Brun thought, with a glance back toward Goov. Goov was walking in the rear with Borg, but saw Brun's look all the same.

Finally, Broud made the signal that told them they were off.

**XxX**

**Chapter Six: Traveling (originally posted on 30 July, 2003)**

**Day One and Two**

The clan left their home of nine seasons with great anxiety. Broud had decided that they would travel along the watercourse they had crossed when they had gone on their mammoth hunt seasons before. In order to get there, they had to first travel in a northeastern direction, to skirt the hills that surrounded their cave. _They trooped down the wooded flanks of the foothills and reached the steppes _before the sun was at its zenith. Broud set a fast pace, making it quite difficult for some of the older, and younger travelers. Unlike the time of the mammoth hunt, the women's burdens were extremely heavy. They carried the life of the clan on their backs and shoulders.

Ayla was having a hard time with her load, not to mention that Durc's walking hadn't lasted long and she was now carrying him as well. Not having anyone to talk to while traveling made it all the more onerous, not that she could have lifted a hand to speak.

After a short time, Durc struggle to get down again, and Ayla shook her arms out, knowing that in minutes he would be back. When Grev saw Durc get down, he too struggled to get out of Oga's arms. The two women watched as Durc and Grev followed behind Brac, trying to act older. Ayla smiled and Oga grunted, both happy for the rest, even if only for a short time.

It wasn't long before they had reached the place in which they would turn northwest. Broud decided to stop for a meal. He was hungry. Broud signaled that they would stop. Then signal that they would stay there overnight and leave again in the morning before the sun came up.

Vorn quickly withdrew from his waist thong the long aurochs horn in which he carried a live coal wrapped in dried moss. As Broud's second-in-command, it was his duty to keep the ember burning from fire to fire.

Ayla dropped her things quickly and sat down on a rock.

When a fire was going, the women prepared tea for the men and started a meal. Brun sat thinking about Broud. He should not have stopped so soon. There was still plenty of daylight left in this day. He wondered if he should say something to the son of his mate. Probably not, he thought, he would just get defensive.

While the meal was cooking, the women began to make camp. Ayla decided to only unpack the absolutely necessary items. She set up their tent and bedding, but opened nothing else.

The evening was uneventful. Everyone ate and went to sleep. The people of the clan were exhausted. They weren't used to traveling so much, and certainly not so heavily burdened.

That night, Ayla lay in her shelter trying to think up another way to carry her load. It would be nice to have her hands free when she wasn't carrying her son. She couldn't think of anything and drifted off to sleep.

_It was still dark when the clan got up_ the next day. Broud planned for them to travel from sunup to sun down. They needed to find a cave. _They did no cooking except to boil water for tea, and little was required of the women. No game was hunted along the way; they all ate the traveling food the men usually took hunting: dried meat ground to a coarse meal, mixed with clean rendered fat and dried fruit, formed into small cakes. The highly concentrated traveling food supplied their nutritional needs more than adequately._

During the second day of travel, no caves were found, but they did reach the watercourse they had been looking for. They turned north northeast and followed it until it turned northwest. As the watercourse gave way to a large channel, more of a lake really, the people stared at the majestic beauty of the land, unable to fully enjoy it. When the sun finally went over the horizon in the west and darkness crept over them, they stopped and made camp, most collapsing into the beds as soon as they were ready. Not even Ayla could keep her eyes open long enough to think about the coming day.

**XxX**

**Chapter Six: Traveling (continued), (originally posted on 31 July, 2003)**

**Day Three**

Even before the sun started rising the next morning, Broud was calling for movement, but not before he relieved his needs with Oga. That part of his routine would not be changed, he thought.

Ayla yawned, still very tired, but woke her son and got up anyway. When Durc opened his eyes he signed, "Mama, it still dark. I don't want to get up. And where is Creb. Durc want to walk with Creb today." Ayla sighed and explained to her son that they had to travel so that Broud could find the clan a new cave. "And Durc, Creb walks the next world now. We can't see him anymore." Durc looked curiously at her, hugged her for reassurance and left the shelter.

Ayla thought about her son's wording, _walk with Creb, _he had said. I hope my son will not walk with Creb for a very long time.

They started off again, just before dawn, in the same order as they had the day before, lugging their heavy loads. Broud and Vorn got so far ahead that they were sitting down waiting when the clan came around a corner. Broud wore his usual look of disapproval and Vorn stood by waiting loyally with his leader. As soon as Broud saw the people coming, he picked up his spear and started off again, not giving anyone else a chance to rest.

When Brun came around the corner and saw that Broud was starting off again, he looked around at Broud's clan. They are very tired, he thought. I will go talk to Broud about this.

"Broud," Brun said as he approached the son of his mate. "I think everyone will do better if they have some time to rest. I know you want to find a cave, but we don't want people dying in the process."

Broud considered what Brun had to say. He still had great respect for the man, but he was also hoping that someone _would _"die in the process"—namely Ayla's deformed child. He knew the spirit would go away if the child was dead. "Yes Brun, you are right. I don't want my clan to die. Inform everyone that we travel just a little further, and then we rest for the night."

Brun went back without haste and let everyone know. He was glad Broud had made the right decision, but he knew his son well enough to know he was thinking sinister thoughts even as he agreed to what the former leader had suggested.

The people were happy to find out they would be getting the afternoon off. They had made great process, despite what Broud thought.

It was probably about an hour later when they finally got passed the large "lake" that had been on their left all day. At that point, Broud called for everyone to halt. Fires were lit, shelters were set up, women began cooking, a few men did a little sling hunting and the children began to play.

After Ayla got her things in place, she decided to do some hunting of her own. She pulled out her sling and followed after the men that had walked off into the riparian growth.

Broud watched her go, and scowled once again. Why couldn't that spirit just go to the spirit world? Why was it lingering here? Most of his clan was not seeing her, as they shouldn't, but it seemed as if more and more of them were simply ignoring her, not just _not_seeing her. It made Broud so mad to think they liked the woman so much that they would endanger the whole clan.

Broud couldn't stand it anymore. He grabbed his spear and stormed off in the opposite direction as he hunters had gone.

Ebra and Oga, and many others, watched their leader stalk off, but only Oga became frightened. Now that Ayla was gone, she thought, she would have to deal with the angry man, and she feared that his anger would cause him to want to violently relieve his needs again. She shuddered at the thought.

Brun, Grod and Zoug were aware that the spirit was following. Only Brun knew she wasn't a spirit.

Ayla was thinking about the men ahead of her. Zoug had always thought well of her, he had even said he would have taken her as a mate, had he been younger. And Grod, had always been kind to her and her son, but she knew they were not happy that her "spirit" was following them.

Brun wanted so badly to tell them what he and Goov had discovered, but he wanted to talk to the mo-gur first. They had agreed to keep it to themselves for a while. At least until they had decided what to do about it. Maybe, Brun thought, maybe they should be told so we would have two more men to think about the problem. All he could do right now to reassure the other two men was to tell them he believed the spirit of Ayla meant them no harm.

Ayla watched Brun tell Grod and Zoug that he was sure she would not harm them, and saw them relax. She knew it was the best he could do, and Ayla was grateful, but she sensed that there was something else.

That night, sleep did not come easily, as they were still anxious about finding a permanent home. Many stayed up late by the fire telling stories to distract others from the fear of never finding another suitable cave.

Children fell asleep on the ground by the fire or in their mothers' arms, and were promptly put to bed. Slowly, as a cold breeze began to blow and the fire began to die down, couples went into their shelters to get warm in their beds. Ayla watched as the older couples left, and then the younger ones. Only Oga stayed, thinking that she should wait for her mate.

Ayla didn't want to leave her sitting there alone, but she was so cold. She decided to put another log on the fire and to climb into bed, positioned so she could still see the leader's mate. It didn't last long. Ayla fell asleep fast, and Oga was left alone anyway.

Oga sat by the fire thinking about things she had never thought about before. When the spirit put the log on the fire it scared her, but she had been cold and for the second time in her life she was thankful to Ayla, or rather, the spirit of Ayla.

Oga watched the spirit closely, lying in her shelter, obviously watching over her. When the spirit fell asleep, Oga became fearful again. She was still contemplating the spirit when Broud appeared, but she did not see her mate coming until she felt his fist crash into her face.

"Stupid woman. What are you staring at? That's a spirit! You will bring us more bad luck by seeing it."

Oga looked around. There was no one out there to help her. She got up quickly and cowered at her mate's feet, hoping he would forgive her.

Broud just stared at her, then tapped her shoulder and made the signal when she looked up. That would make him feel better, he thought. Oga started to get up to go to their shelter, but Broud did not want to wait. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her back and shoved her down, mounting her right there. When he was done he just got up and left her there.

Oga stayed where she was, so confused by Broud. She used to be able to please him, but now she couldn't do anything right. The woman wasn't sure what to do, but she didn't want to go into his tent, so she just lay there. Not long after that, she fell asleep.

Ayla started. She wondered how long had she been sleeping? It was freezing outside. The fire had died out, but the embers were still hot. What was that by the fire pit? Oga? Where was Broud? Ayla looked around, then got up, put another log on and touched Oga. She's freezing! What should I do? Uba, I'll go get Uba. No, she won't see me, but, but I have to do something.

The medicine woman looked around wildly. She was desperate. She picked Oga up and carried her to Vorn and Uba's shelter and scratched on the hide. Vorn appeared, but did nothing except for saying, "Uba come!"

Then, rubbing her eyes, Uba appeared as well. "What happened to Oga?" Uba asked Vorn, but he was backing up saying nothing.

"Uba," Ayla said. "Sorry to bother you, I know I promised, but Oga is hurt and cold. I don't know what happened to her, but I'm sure Broud did it. Please help her."

Uba wasn't quite looking at the spirit, but she understood what it had told her. With a clipped nod, the younger medicine woman brought the leader's mate inside her tent and went to work.

**XxX**

**Chapter Seven: Brief Respite (originally posted on 31 July, 2003)**

Oga woke later with a bad headache and shivering with cold. Uba went to her immediately. Vorn was sleeping, but Uba had a patient and couldn't sleep. Uba fixed Oga some tea using a painkilling root, and sat down next to her.

Oga preceded to tell Uba what had happened, everything from wondering about the spirit of Ayla to how scared of her mate she now was. "Uba, I just don't know what's wrong with him. I try and I try, but he's so angry. And Uba, I can't help but wonder about Ayla. I don't think she's a spirit. Do spirits have watering eyes? Do spirits eat meat and drink tea? Do spirits talk to and hold their children? I don't understand." I wish the Mo-gur was still alive to tell us what's happening.

Uba had been wondering the same thing, but only asked Oga if she knew how she got into hers and Vorn's tent. Oga's brow furrowed, and she shook her head. "Oga, the spirit of Ayla brought you here. We were in our sleeping place and Vorn was relieving his needs and we heard someone scratching on the tent. It was Ayla's spirit, and she was carrying you to me."

Oga was shocked. She didn't know what to say, but now, for a third time, she was thankful for Ayla, spirit or not.

The two women got themselves comfortable, Uba in the middle with Vorn on one side and Oga on the other, and slept until morning.

**Day Four  
><strong>  
>When Broud woke up, he rolled over expecting to find Oga with him, but she wasn't there. This was the second morning that he had to go find her and he didn't like that his mate was running off when she knew full well he woke up full with need every morning.<p>

Broud stepped out of his shelter and looked around. _Where is my woman_? She was nowhere in sight. Brun, Grod, Zoug, Crug, Droog and Borg were sitting by the fire working on new spears and talking about hunting. Goov and Vorn seemed to be missing. Where were _they_? All the women were sitting together weaving baskets, which they didn't need at the moment, Broud observed. The children were milling around, doing nothing of use as usual. And the spirit was sitting alone, watching him again. _Rude_, he thought. Rude in life and rude in death. Then he noted that Uba was missing too.

"Brun! Where are Goov and Vorn?" Brun looked up and pointed toward the trees on the other side of the waterway. "They crossed over to look around," Brun gestured.

Broud looked over at the forest and frowned. Then he called on Brun again, "Brun! Where are Uba and Oga?" Brun looked at the son of his mate again, knowing full well what had happened the night before, and pointed to Vorn's shelter. "Oga's hurt pretty badly Broud. Let Uba do her work. We may not be able to travel today."

Broud gazed over at the medicine woman's shelter thinking, I didn't hit her that hard, did I?

"Well, if we can't travel, then we hunt! Get yourselves ready." With that he turned around to go find his spears.

The seven men left on a little hunting foray, leaving Goov and Vorn across the river and the women alone. As soon as the men were gone, the women rushed Uba's tent, wanting to know what was going on. Oga was up and claimed to be feeling better, but Ebra was mortified, she was sure Oga did not provoke Broud. She blushed with shame.

Earlier that morning, Vorn had gone to Goov wanting to talk to him about the spirit, but he claimed he wanted to explore across the river. They slowly waded into the water, testing the depth, as the clan could not swim. When they realized it was fordable, they crossed and walked on the beach on the other side before going into the trees.

Vorn obviously wanted to talk to Goov about the night before, so Goov said, "Vorn, what is it?"

Vorn told Goov his concerns and Goov could tell he was truly petrified that Ayla's spirit would bring disaster. Just like Brun had, Goov too wanted to tell Vorn about the bones, but didn't think the time was right. "Vorn, Ayla's spirit won't hurt you. She just wants to be with her son."

Vorn seemed to want to say more, but refrained and the two young men did a little hunting.

**Day Seven  
><strong>  
>After two days of complete rest, Oga was ready to travel again. The bruise on the side of her face had turned from purple to a deep blue and would soon begin to fade to red then yellow, but her headache was gone, and she went back to sleeping in Broud's furs.<p>

Broud was happy to have her back. In her absence, he had used Ona each morning when he woke up, but he did not like using other women. Though a woman and mated, Ona was too young, and she was not Oga.

That morning before sunrise, Broud woke Oga. She knew what he wanted even before she opened her eyes to see him full, and resigned herself. When he finished, he told her to pack up, "we leave today."

The camp was buzzing with activity. Everyone was somewhat glad to be moving again. The reason for their stop had not been a good one.

The time had been good for rest and good for other things as well. Ayla had created something to put on her back that she thought would carry all of her belongings, a backpack of sorts. It was large and heavy, but it would be on her back, which was stronger than her shoulders and arms, and her hands and arms would be free to do other things. She was quite happy with it and slipped her belongings into it and tied it closed. She was ready!

**XxX**

**Chapter Nine: Oga's Revelation (originally posted on 31 July, 2003)**

Broud's new plan was to cross the river as Goov and Vorn had done, go through the trees and up the steep cliff so that they had a better view of the area. Brun thought it was a good idea, he didn't particularly like being in the canyon unable to see anything due to the dense growth.

After the children were carried across, the men helped the women. Ayla chose to swim across, since she loved swimming and hardly ever had the chance to do so, and nobody was going to help a spirit.

It didn't take long to climb up to the highland, and the people noticed the change in temperature right away. _But,_after that day each day began to blend into the next.

_It was cold on the open windy prairie and got colder rapidly as they traveled north. Even so, shortly after they started out in the mornings, they removed layers of their clothing. Their pace warmed them quickly and only when they stopped for short rests did they notice the frigid temperature. The aching muscles of the first few days, especially the women's, soon disappeared as they hit a stride and developed traveling legs._

The terrain of the northern part of the peninsula was rougher. Broad flat plateaus suddenly disappeared into steep ravines or abutted sheer cliffs.

Brun remembered this landscape from when they had gone on their mammoth hunt. They weren't exactly in the same place, quite a ways east of where they had traveled before, he thought, but everything looked similar. Brun knew by the look of the land and the canyons that there would not be suitable caves in this area.

Broud knew it too, but decided to stay in one of the small caves for the night before they pushed on. A cave was chosen and everyone crowded in. It was cramped, but at least it was warm.

The women put all of the clan's belongings down and went to work on a meal. Ayla decided to work with the women, even if they would not talk to her. It felt nice just to be close to them. The only woman not helping was Oga, but she was sitting on a fur nursing her son and Durc. Ebra had sent her away, knowing that her son's mate really needed a rest, but that proved to be a mistake.

Broud fumed as he watched his woman nurse the spirit's deformed child. He was too old to be nursing anyway. "Oga!" he yelled across the small cave. Oga blanched, knowing Broud was angry again. "I don't want you nursing that child anymore. He is too old!"

Oga couldn't believe they were going to go through this again. "Broud, it's not hurting anything for me to offer my breast him. Grev still comes to nurse."

Broud's face got red and he gesticulated angrily, "I said, no more! He's too old!"

Ayla sat about fifteen feet away watching the scene. She had always been thankful that Oga would care for her son, despite what her mate thought. She too thought Broud was over this, but apparently not.

Oga shooed the boys away, and repeated to Broud that she could suckle whichever child she chose.

Broud could not believe his eyes. He couldn't believe Oga was being this insolent again. It was too much for him to take and he got up to go put her in her place.

Ayla saw what he had in mind and could not stop herself. She jumped up and positioned herself between the fuming leader and his mate.

Broud stopped short, saying nothing and trying desperately to not look at the spirit. Ayla too was fuming, "I have had enough of you Broud. I will not let you hurt Oga again. Mark my words, if you hurt her again, you will have this _spirit_to deal with."

Broud stood his ground for only a moment, then stormed out of the cave in a rage. He could be heard screaming at the top of his lungs and he didn't return to the cave until nightfall.

Later that night, Oga lay next to her sleeping mate, thinking about what had happened. What kind of spirit protected a woman from a man? None that she could think of. As she was drifting off to sleep, she decided that she no longer believed Ayla was a spirit. No one had ever seen a spirit that protected as Ayla did. Oga was sure Ayla was alive and well, and watching out for her.

**XxX**

**Chapter Ten: Oga's News (originally posted on 13 August, 2003)**

The next day, as everyone was preparing to leave again, Oga quietly wandered over to where Ayla's belongings lay, and gathered up as much as she could secretly carry. She knew Broud would be furious if he saw her carrying the "spirit's" things, but she felt it was the least she could do.

Ayla was not when Oga did this, but she immediately noticed that some of her things were missing and looked around the small cave. When her eyes came to Oga, she could tell that the woman was carrying more, and knew that some of her burden had been taken by the leader's mate. Ayla sighed, knowing that Oga too had a lot to carry, but slipped on her backpack and headed out to her place in line. They were off once again.

Slowly, as the days turned into weeks, the group became very travel weary. They stopped periodically at cave sites, but the caves were never good enough to house all their people.

The weather had changed as well. Freezing rain flayed their skin raw as the wind whipped their wraps about them. Mothers held their children tightly, as icy blasts numbed their exposed skin, and the frigid slush soaked through their foot coverings.

The open prairies they traveled through offered no protection from the constant wind. They tried to stay near waterways, where the growth offered them a place to hide from the wind, but this was not always possible.

One afternoon, after a full cycle of moons, the clan stopped for a rest. Shelters were set up again and a fire was made. This time, three fires, as it was very cold. Broud decided they would stay for a few days.

Ayla watched the people of her clan closely. She could tell by the way they held onto their amulets that they were all asking the spirits to guide them. Everyone was afraid that they would wander homeless forever.

The people were not only cold and tired, but hungry as well. They had not been eating properly and it was beginning to show. Resistance was down and many had developed colds, but none so bad as Oga. She just could not continue to travel like this. Ayla desperately wanted to help the woman, but she had to leave it up to Uba. She was a good medicine woman, Ayla thought. Uba knew what she was doing.

Broud decided that they had to stay longer, so that the people could recover. With a week's rest, warmth from the fires and better food in her stomach, Oga began to recover from her cold, but she continued to get sick every morning. Ayla wished that she could examine the woman, but she was sure that Oga was pregnant. Uba too was keeping a close eye on Oga, and recognized the signs of pregnancy as well.

One windy morning Uba questioned, "Oga, when did your totem battle last?"

Oga frowned thinking back, "It was before the night that Broud hit me. Why?"

"Oga, I'm sure you're totem has been defeated. You're going to have a baby."

Oga was pensive. A baby, she thought? "This isn't good Uba. We have no place to live. This is no place to have a baby." Oga was clearly upset. "And Broud, he's not going to be happy about this. It's not the right time."

Uba looked at the scared woman, patted her hand and said, "Don't worry Oga, winter will be over soon and I will talk to Broud. And don't forget that Brun was looking for a cave when Iza was pregnant with me. It will be alright."

Oga still wasn't sure, but she relaxed somewhat. Uba was right, Iza had traveled pregnant too. If Iza could do it, then so could she.

Another baby, Oga thought. It would be a nice change, and maybe Broud would find pleasure in her again. Maybe he wouldn't be so angry anymore if she brought another son to his hearth…maybe.

Oga looked over at Broud, who had practically ignored her since the last incident with Ayla's "spirit." She was still nervous, but she was happy that Uba was going to talk to him for her.

That evening, Uba went to Broud's tent and kneeled down on the ground in front of him, waiting for him to acknowledge her. It took so long for him to tap her shoulder, she was sure he was going to ignore her. She started to become annoyed with him as she kneeled in the snow waiting for him, but she waited silently.

Broud had always felt strangely about Uba. After all, she was Iza's daughter and now she was their medicine woman. She seemed so important, even though she was only a woman.

He tapped her shoulder and signed, "What, Uba?"

Uba looked up at the leader and spoke, "This woman needs to tell the leader that his mate is sick."

"I know that Uba. Why are you telling me something that is obvious?"

"This woman thought that Oga was just sick, but she is not."

Broud frowned. "What do you mean? You just said she is sick and now you say she is not. Speak clearly!"

"What this woman means is that Oga is going to have another baby, and this traveling is not good for her. _And,_she is scared of having a baby while we are traveling."

Broud glanced over at his woman, who was lying down in the medicine woman's shelter, looking anxious about the medicine woman's news. He was not happy, she could tell, but he did not seem angry either and that was good.

"Okay, Uba. Tell her to rest. We travel again when the sun rises." With that he went back to his tent to think. So much was going on, and now Oga is pregnant again.

**XxX**

**Chapter Eleven: The River (originally posted on 22 August, 2003)**

Ayla had watched the scene with interest. Uba had handled the situation very well, and Broud had not become enraged…that was definitely good. He seemed better since the "spirit's" threat, but Ayla knew it wouldn't last.

So, tomorrow we travel again, Ayla thought, looking around at the people of the clan. This traveling has to end soon. We cannot take much more of this.

As it turned out, _winter was gasping its last frozen breath, reluctantly giving way to spring, but the youthful season was a capricious flirt. Amid frigid reminders of glacial chill, tantalizing hints of warmth promised summer heat. In an impulsive shift, the storm broke during the night._

When the people of Broud's clan awoke the next morning and came out of their tents, they saw a cloudless day before them, and spirits of the people rose again. Broud called for everyone to eat hurriedly and be ready to travel. The morning meal was uneventful and the travelers moved on.

Toward the middle of the day the travelers came to another waterway. It appeared shallow enough to ford, but frightened the people all the same. This was the third river they had had to cross since the one after the "lake", and they weren't feeling any better about this crossing than any of the others.

Ayla could see that the people were very nervous, but there was nothing she could do to help anyone. She began to arrange her packs to cross, watching her people nervously as she did so.

The people of the clan had a system of how they crossed rivers. Basically, the men crossed slowly and formed a chain across the water, then the children were carried across, handed from man to man, until they were safely on the other side, and finally the women crossed with the help of the men.

This river, though not too deep, was moving very swiftly. The men braced themselves against the current and began their duty of moving their families across the river. The children were passed across with no mishap, and the women were one by one crossing with the help of their men. Ayla sat watching, she was extremely concerned for everyone, even if they weren't worried about her.

Finally, it came down to Ebra, Uka, Aga and Aba. Aba was encouraging Aga to cross next, so she could get to her son Groob. Aga crossed nervously, but got to the other side, and gestured for her mother to come next.

Aba instead gestured for Uka to go. Uka looked anxiously at Ebra and Aba, but took a step for the edge of the river. When she had crossed successfully, Ebra gestured for Aba to follow, but Aba insisted that Ebra go next. Ebra frowned at the older woman, not wanting to leave her there alone, but when she glanced toward the river, she could see that Vorn was the closest man to their side of the river and relaxed somewhat. He would help his mother's mother across if necessary.

That was Ebra's last thought about the matter of Aba crossing the river, for when she stepped into the water, her foot landed on a slime covered rock, which sent her immediately to her bottom and in a flash she was swept into the current and was dragged down the river quickly.

"Ayla!" Brun yelled. "Help Ebra!" Ayla hardly needed Brun's prompt. She was already in the water swimming with the current as fast as she could in the direction that Ebra had gone.

The women of the clan were screaming and the men just stared at the former leader's mate as she disappeared. No one was capable of doing anything. No one could swim. The "spirit" was their only chance.

**XxX**

**Chapter Twelve: Ebra's Drowning (originally posted on 23 August, 2003)**

Ebra fought hard not to be dragged down river. She tried to grab onto anything that floated by, logs, rocks, even a dead animal that had been sucked into the torrent. She even used her feet to push herself up off the bottom of the river, but it was useless. Her clan bones were just too heavy for even her strong muscles to hold up when rushing water was pulling so hard.

Ebra went under the water again and found the bottom of the river with her feet. She pushed up hard. When she came up, she took a deep breath and saw a large rock out in front of her. She decided to give one last effort to save herself. But, as she approached the rock, a current came in from the right and smashed her up against the rock knocking her out immediately.

Ayla was frantically swimming after Ebra, keeping her eye on her at all times, but never seeming to get close enough to grab the woman. When Ayla saw her go under the first time she thought it was over, but then Ebra popped up again. Ayla couldn't believe how much Ebra was fighting. Then she saw Ebra hit the rock and it was obvious the fight had gone out of her. Ayla fought anew to reach the unconscious woman and within three stokes had reached her.

Ayla turned Ebra over so that her face was no longer in the water, wrapped her arm around her and struggled to pull the woman, and herself, to the edge of the river. When Ayla's feet touched the rocky riverbed, she knew they were almost to safety and she fought harder still. Ayla pulled with all her might and finally managed to get Ebra out of the water.

However, as they reached shore Ayla noticed that Ebra was not breathing. She kneeled over the woman, who was on her back, and guessed that Ebra had swallowed a large amount of water. She didn't know what to do in this situation. She had never helped someone that was not breathing before. Iza had been the one to help Ona all those years ago, and she had been too exhausted from the rescue to watch what the medicine woman did. Ayla looked around. No one was in sight, she would have to do something on her own to help Ebra.

Ayla knew that if there was water inside Ebra that it had to come out, but how could she get the water out. She didn't know. Then a thought came to her, maybe I just need to get air into her body. Ayla tried to blow into Ebra's mouth, but the air didn't seem to go inside, it just came right back out. Ayla lifted Ebra up at the neck, hoping to straighten out the passage within her for the air. That seemed to help, but then the air just came out of her nose. So Ayla tried again, this time pinching Ebra's nose closed. Finally, the woman's chest rose and fell as the air entered her body.

Ayla waited only a moment to see what would happen. When nothing happened, she did it again. Ebra's chest rose and fell again, but still no change in the woman occurred. Ayla tried yet again and this time was rewarded with a gurgling cough as water came out of Ebra's mouth. Ayla turned Ebra onto her side so the water would not go back down her throat, and rubbed her back to comfort the retching woman.

Ayla couldn't believe she had saved her, and sighed with relief, but the look on Ebra's face was unmistakable. She could see Ayla. Ayla smiled, which no longer frightened the people of her clan. They all knew that Ayla did that when she was happy.

Ebra grabbed Ayla and hugged her close. She would be grateful for the rest of her life, however long that might be, no matter what her son said about it.

**XxX**

**Chapter Thirteen: Ebra's Injuries (originally posted on 25 August, 2003)**

Ayla hugged Ebra back, and then pulled away from her. Ebra had other injuries and she needed to assess the damage. The woman had a large gash on her forehead; she would have to do something about that, and it appeared that Ebra's leg was broken; that would have to come second she thought. Bleeding first, then broken bones.

"Ebra," Ayla started out. "This spirit would like to help you. Your head is bleeding pretty badly and you have a broken leg."

Ebra gave Ayla a quizzical look. "Ayla, you know as well as I do that you are _not_ a spirit, and _this_woman would like to offer regret for the failings of her son."

Ayla could not contain her tears and looked down at the ground demurely. "Please do not feel badly about the way Broud treats me. I have a hard time doing what a woman should do. Now please, lie still while I look at you."

Ebra nodded. She would say nothing more at this time about Broud, but she was going to beg Brun to do something about her son's behavior. Not just for Ayla's sake, but for the whole clan.

Back at the part of the river where the clan was, everyone was staring transfixed at the spot that the woman and the spirit had disappeared. Brun was trying very hard to control his emotions, but he didn't care what people thought at that moment, his mate was missing and possibly dead. He had to do something.

He looked at the men that were still in the water. Vorn and Droog were closest to the other side, and Aba was over there alone. There was no way they would get her to cross now that she had seen Ebra go down so easily. Then he glanced at the people on his side of the river. They would have to set up camp there.

Brun signaled to the two men to go back to be with Aba, since they were both related to her in some way. Then he told them to travel downstream on their side while the rest of the clan traveled downstream on the opposite side. He hoped beyond hope that they would find his woman alive. He knew that if Ayla had anything to do with it, Ebra would be fine.

Ayla took off her medicine bag, thankful that it had survived the rapids, then pulled off her wrap and cut a strip of it off that was about four inches wide, but long enough to tie around Ebra's head. Then she cut a few more pieces of leather off, folded them up and placed them on Ebra's head. "Ebra, I want you to hold these on your head for awhile with pressure. We need to stop the bleeding."

Ebra did as she was bid, but lay back on the ground in exhaustion. Ayla continued to cut strips of leather off of her wrap and put them down beside Ebra. The medicine woman tapped Ebra's shoulder, "Ebra, I would like to look at the bleeding."

Ebra nodded and closed her eyes again. Ayla was pleased that the bleeding had slowed. She replaced the old pieces of leather with new and tied the leather strip around the woman's head, so that they didn't need to be held any longer.

"Ebra." Ayla said again. "I need to make a fire, it's starting to get dark and we cannot be without fire." Ebra nodded again and closed her eyes.

Ayla went into the nearby brush and gathered some wood, then went back for kindling. It was hard work starting a fire on her own, but Ayla was driven by shear need at the moment and had a fire going quickly.

After the fire, Ayla decided to get more wood, she needed to set Ebra's broken leg. That too was done swiftly, but it caused Ebra much pain, as Ayla had no way of easing it at the time. Ebra slipped into sleep and Ayla went to work on a basket so she could make some tea.

While Ebra slept Ayla made a watertight basket that she could use to boil water, she wanted to have tea ready for the injured woman when she woke up. She also used her sling to fell a hare, which she spitted over the fire for a meal.

At first Ayla didn't notice when Ebra awoke. She was looking around the area they were camped in, worrying that the clan wouldn't even look for them. They probably thought Ebra was dead, and they don't care if _I_live or die. Then a groan from the hurt woman told Ayla to tend to her patient.

In the mean time, Brun was issuing orders, just like he always had, and Broud was following them, but that was not to last for long. "Brun." Broud called. "It is late, we must stop. My mother is dead, you must know that."

"Yes Broud, we will stop, but only for the night. If Ayla has anything to do with it, your mother is still living." There was a desperate look in the former leader's eyes. He had never shown his emotions so openly.

"Brun, Ayla is a spirit. She cannot save Ebra." Broud was turning red again. "Why does everyone keep turning to that spirit? I am the leader!"

"Broud, you are the leader of this clan, I will not dispute that, but I _will _go looking for Ebra in the morning…and Ayla may be a spirit to you Broud, but she is my woman's last hope, and I will not give up just yet." Brun turned his back on the son of his mate and lay down to sleep for the night.

Broud was furious that Brun would confront him like that, and in front of the clan. He could see that they were trying not to watch, but it was obvious they had all seen the confrontation between the two men. It made him so angry, he could hardly see straight.

**XxX**

**Chapter Fourteen: Uka and Ovra's Discovery (originally posted on 29 August, 2003)**

Ayla didn't get much sleep that night. She spent a good amount of time keeping the fire going, chasing off animals and caring for her patient. Ebra was going to be all right. She was bloody, bruised and broken, but the medicine woman had cleaned her up and made her comfortable. Everything would be fine as far as that was concerned.

What Ayla didn't know was how far the river had taken the two of them, and with Ebra's injuries she wondered how she would ever get her back to the clan. What if the clan moved on without them and they never found them? Ayla was frightened, but she decided that she wouldn't tell Ebra what she was frightened about. Ebra would know something was wrong, but if she didn't ask directly, then Ayla wasn't going to tell her.

Back with the rest of the clan, Broud was trying to regain control. He figured his mother was dead, but if Brun wanted to look for her body, then he could do that.

"Brun, I will stay here with the clan while you go look for Ebra. Who do you want to take with you?"

Brun looked at the son of his mate incredulously, wondering how he could be so unfeeling.

"Goov and I will go looking on this side, and Vorn, Droog and Aba will continue down the river on the opposite side. Everyone else can stay here with you."

"Good. Then we will stay in camp here and wait for you to return."

When Brun started to turn to pack up some belongings, he almost tripped over Uka, who was kneeling at his feet, just to the side of him. He almost ignored her, but she was Ebra's sister, so he tapped her shoulder. "What is it, Uka?"

"This woman would like to come with you to find her sister."

Brun considered. He looked over at Grod, who motioned that he would come too, if Brun thought Uka might be in the way. "Yes Uka, you may come. Grod will come too."

Brun tried to leave again, but then he saw Ovra drop to the ground at his feet. "Ovra, what do you want. I am trying to leave. Can't you see that?"

"I don't mean to cause you delay Brun, but this woman wants to go too. If Goov, Grod and my mother are going with you, then I would like to go too."

Brun took a deep breath and looked around for Goov. He shrugged his shoulders. Brun grunted an affirmative to Ovra and quickly went to collect what he wanted to bring, before anyone else tried to slow him down.

Ayla had been up for quite a long time, but just before dawn she finally drifted off to sleep. When Ebra woke up that morning, she saw that Ayla was sleeping and didn't want to wake her. Ebra looked around the minimal campsite that Ayla had put together, and thought about how lucky she was that Ayla was a medicine woman that could swim and hunt. In no other clan would her life have been saved.

When she was done looking around the camp, she decided to have a look at her broken leg. Ayla had set her leg, which had caused her to pass out. It had been very painful. She could vaguely remember the woman trying to pour something down her throat as she slept. It must have been a datura tea. Ebra wished she had some of that tea at that moment, but when she glanced at Ayla, she decided not to wake her just yet.

Ebra continued to look at her leg. Ayla had used bark from a tree and strips of leather to make her leg immobile. She didn't know anything about healing, but she thought her leg looked good. Then her thoughts turned to the strips of leather, and she looked over at Ayla again. For the first time Ebra noticed that Ayla was naked. She has taken off her own wrap to make bandages for all of my injuries, Ebra thought, and though there were no tears, Ebra was overcome with emotion.

When finally she had to have a drink, Ebra decided to crawl over to the fire that was still going. She threw on another piece of wood, which Ayla had piled close and started water for tea. While that was going, Ebra helped herself to some of the meat that Ayla had made the night before. When the tea was finished, she just sat there drinking it, waiting for the medicine woman to wake.

Brun, along with Goov and Ovra, and Grod and Uka, left the area promptly and headed down river. Brun decided that he and Goov would have to tell Grod that Ayla was not dead, so there wouldn't be trouble if and when they found the two women.

"Grod, there is something we need to discuss." Brun started off unsure of how he should tell the man that had been his second in command. Goov immediately saw the problem and stepped in.

"Grod, I know you have always been uneasy about Ayla, but you need to know that she is not dead."

"What are you talking about? I saw you curse her Goov."

"Yes, I did curse her, as Broud told me to, but when I went back later the bones were no longer set. She is not dead."

Grod was obviously confused, "why did you not tell us all back then?"

"Well, Brun and I decided that Broud would only curse her again if we told him and we think the spirits favor her. We think Broud caused the earth to move, not Ayla. We did not want him to curse her again and cause more devastation."

Grod looked at Brun, then at Goov, then back at Brun. "You are right, she has always made me uncomfortable, but you are also right about her bringing luck to our clan. Zoug has always liked her and so has Droog. I understand why you have done what you have done, but what do we do if we find them alive? What do we tell Broud?"

"We aren't sure about that yet, Grod." Brun said. "Right now I just want to find my mate."

The men continued to walk as they talked, not coming up with a solution. They had forgotten about the two women that followed them. Uka and Ovra had watched the whole conversation. The bones were no longer set? Ayla was alive? What did this mean for the clan?

**XxX**

**Chapter Fifteen: Other Witnesses (originally posted on 2 September, 2003)**

On the other side of the river, Vorn, Droog and Aba were making their trek down river as well. It was much slower going for them for two reasons. First, the terrain was more difficult. It was rockier and hillier on their side, and second; Aba was an old woman who needed a considerable amount of help from the two men. They even carried her occasionally when she didn't seem to be able to go on.

Though many times the river was completely out of their sight, they still managed to come within sight of the other search party at least ever hour or so, and they happened to be near the river while Brun and Goov were explaining to Grod that Ayla's death curse had been broken.

Vorn and Droog watched as the men on the other side discussed the matter, while Aba watched Uka and Ovra talk excitedly about the same topic.

Droog was surprised by the conversation on the other side, but also relieved. The "spirit" had made him nervous, and now he didn't have to be. Then he glanced over at Vorn, knowing that Aga's son would have trouble with this knowledge. Vorn had always stayed away from Ayla to gain Broud's favor, and it had paid off; he was Broud's second in command. Now, he would have to refrain from speaking, or the woman would be cursed again. Could Vorn do it? Droog shook his head. He didn't think so.

**X**

Vorn was torn between being loyal to Broud, their leader, and doing the right thing. He knew that Ayla was a good clan woman, and had only given Broud trouble, but he also knew that Broud hated Ayla. He wanted so badly to stay in Broud's favor, but how could he do it if he refrained from speaking.

Finally, it was Aba's turn to think. She had not always liked the strange girl of the others herself, and many times had wondered why Brun had allowed Iza to keep the child, but she had done a complete about face after the young girl had saved Aga's daughter Ona from drowning all those years ago. After Aba had seen and processed the information, she turned to watch the two men that were walking just in front of her.

Droog was a good man, she thought. He had been very grateful for the life of the daughter of his mate, even though she had been born to another man's hearth. Aba knew that he had even promised Aga that he would name her next daughter Ayla, to honor what she had done. Aba continued to watch the men.

Droog had obviously come to his own conclusions and he was sizing up Vorn. Vorn on the other hand was desperately struggling with the newest piece of information.

Aba sighed, there was nothing she could do. _And, _it might not even matter…Ayla and Ebra could be dead. They would have to wait and see, but she desperately hoped the two women would still be alive when they found them.

**XxX**

**Chapter Sixteen: Ayla's Idea (originally posted on 3 September, 2003)**

When Ayla finally woke up, she was slightly disoriented. She blinked several times at the bright sunlight that shone in her eyes. Then she looked down at herself. Seeing her naked body, she remembered Ebra falling into the river and almost drowning. Ayla jerked bolt upright, upset with herself for sleeping so long.

"Ayla, calm down. I am fine," Ebra gestured reassuringly. "I hurt just a little, but I am fine." Ayla smiled slightly and got up immediately.

"Let me stoke the fire and get you something to eat. I did not mean to sleep so late."

Ebra cocked her head and looked at the younger woman, her clan's medicine woman. She really was a good clan woman, even after everything Broud had done to her. Ebra had never understood what made Ayla do some of the things she did, but she really was a good woman. _And,_a good medicine woman. She may not be of Iza's line like Uba, but she is definitely good. "Ayla, I'm not hungry. I've already eaten. Just come and sit down."

Ayla stopped what she was doing and looked at Ebra. "Ebra, where are you hurting?"

"My broken leg hurts a bit and my head is sore, but I suspect that I will be fine. You did a fine job. Now we have to wait for them to find us."

Ayla's eye twitched at Ebra's last comment, though she hadn't meant it to. She really didn't want Ebra to start asking questions about being found, and she didn't see how they would be able to make the hike back with Ebra's leg the way it was. Ebra didn't miss the twitch, but decided not to question Ayla just yet. It could have been nothing.

As the day pressed on, Ayla decided she needed to make herself something to wear, but she didn't have anything with her to use, so she started weaving with the grasses that were growing on the beach. It wasn't long before she had made herself a grass skirt. She smiled as she held it up for Ebra to see. "What do you think?"

Ebra looked at it strangely and shrugged her shoulders. Ayla put it on and laughed at her ridiculous outfit.

When the five clan members on the Northern side of the river got up, they signaled to the three on the Southern side. They all agreed to eat first, but no one spoke.

After Uka and Ovra had made a very light morning meal for the three men, they set off down river again. Brun was determined to find his mate, either dead or alive.

Across the river, Vorn led the way, still absorbed with his own dilemma, while Droog helped Aba down a particularly steep path. When they were very close to the bottom, Aba slipped slightly and stumbled into Vorn, causing his thoughts to jolt back to the present. They hadn't traveled much, but he could see that Aba, _and Droog_were tired. "Let's stop and rest for a while," he said.

Droog made a fire, so that Aba could make tea, and they rested for a time. As Vorn rested and drank his tea, he wished Ursus would take him, so that he would not have to consider his predicament any longer.

Aba could see her daughter's son's mind working, but what could a woman do, when a man was thinking such things. All she could do was refill his cup.

Ayla, on the other hand, was trying to think of ways to get Ebra back to the clan. "Ebra, let's see if I can carry you on my back. I think we need to try to get ourselves back to the clan."

Ebra shrugged, thinking it might work, but also thinking Ayla wasn't strong enough to carry her.

Ayla heaved the heavy-boned clan woman onto her back, but had only carried her a short distance when she had to put her back down. "I'm just not strong enough, Ebra. I wish I had my large hide, I could probably drag you on that," Ayla gestured almost to herself. Then she frowned. Maybe I could use something else, but what?

Ayla was looking around the rock covered beach. Then she glanced over at the tree line, just twenty or so feet north of them. Then she looked down at her new grass skirt. "I have an idea Ebra," Ayla gesticulated excitedly as she ran off to gather what she needed.

Ebra just stared after her. What does that crazy woman have in her mind now?

**XxX**

**Chapter Seventeen: The Fork (originally posted on 4 September, 2003)**

It did not take Ayla long before she had fashioned a mat out of the grasses lying around, which would be large enough for the injured woman to lie on. She had made the outside edges long enough so that she would have something to hold onto. She knew it was crude, but it just might work.

Ebra looked at Ayla's new mat skeptically when the young medicine woman showed it to her and explained what she wanted to do with it. Then Ebra shrugged her shoulders. Ayla always had strange ideas. Why should this new one surprise her?

Ayla laid out the mat and helped the injured woman lie down on it. Then she went around to the longer end, took up the slack and said, "Are you ready?" Ebra grabbed the edges of the mat and nodded.

Ayla started to pull on the mat, which slid somewhat easily on the sandy beach and off they went. However, though easier than carrying Ebra, it was still hard work and Ayla was dripping in sweat after only a short time, but she pushed on.

When Ayla finally decided to stop for the day, and an evening meal, she looked back at the tracks they had made in the sand, wondering what people would think if they saw them. There was no animal that could make sand flat.

Then, as if drawn by her thoughts, three ptarmigan took flight above their trail, and as quick as a wink Ayla had her sling out of the basket she had made and was throwing stones. Two fell from the sky almost instantly, and it only took her a second to down the third.

Ebra looked at her in amazement. "Ayla, I am so grateful that you are as strange as you are." Ayla smiled and went to work on the birds. At least they had some food now. Ayla gathered some wood, started a fire and made their meal.

For Brun and _his_search party the day had been uneventful. They had walked along the beach, which alternated between sandy areas and packed dirt, with the river on their left and a line of brush and trees on their right, scanning the land for the missing women. The men spoke to each other, as the two women trailed behind collecting anything they thought they may need.

When they had gone several hours without seeing Vorn, Droog and Aba, Brun started to get worried. Where could they be, he thought? _And then,_ when they came to a fork in the river, he was beside himself with indecision. Should they turn with the river and go north? _Or,_ though difficult and scary, should they cross the river and continue in the direction they were going? And what about Vorn, Droog and Aba? Where were _they?_

Goov was the first to make a suggestion. "I think we should go this way," he gestured, indicating that they should follow the river going north. "_But first,_we should wait here for Vorn and the others, so they know where we are going."

Brun frowned and looked down river in both directions. "Yes, they can continue that way," he said pointing west, "while we head down the other river." He nodded and looked at Grod. "Do you have anything to add, Grod?"

Grod also looked down both rivers, then shook his head. The women put their packs down and offered food and drink to the men.

On the other side, Vorn, Droog and Aba didn't rest long. They knew they needed to keep up with Brun, and so, moved on as quickly as they could. When they finally arrived back at the river, it was nearing darkness. Brun signaled the plan to the others, and they decided to camp there for the night.

Ayla and Ebra ate, talking mostly about superficial things. Ayla expressed her worry for her son, but Ebra reminded her that Durc would be fine with Uba. And Ebra worried that Aba didn't make it across the river. Both were frightened, but Ebra trusted Ayla, and Ayla fought hard to be strong for Ebra. Neither wanted to talk about what they would do if they never found their clan, but both of them were thinking about it and the tension was thick.

**XxX**

**Chapter Eighteen: The Shelter (originally posted on 5 September, 2003)**

The next morning, the search parties woke early, wanting to get moving right away. Brun told Vorn and Droog to search for only four moons, and then return to this spot. It was pointless to continue the search after that. If they didn't find them by then, he would accept that Ebra was gone.

"Walk with Ursus," they each signed to the other, and turned and walked away.

Brun took his party and went north, heading away from the lost women, while Vorn took his party westward, heading directly for the women. Unfortunately, due to topography, Vorn's group had to leave the river's edge just before coming to Ayla and Ebra's campsite, and they went right by the two women without even seeing them.

Ayla and Ebra awoke early as well, but they did not leave right away. Ayla thought she needed to look at and wash Ebra's wounds again.

"Ebra, your head looks very good. You are still very bruised, but it is healing nicely. I am going to wash it, then I would like to leave the bandages off for a little while so your wound can get some air." Ebra gave the medicine woman a look that would have been a smile if she were capable of one. Ayla returned the older woman's look of affection, then took all the strips of leather over to the river to wash them out. After scrubbing them clean, she brought them back and laid them on the mat to dry.

Then the medicine woman turned toward Ebra's bound leg. "Now I am going to loosen the bandages around your leg. It seems to have swelled a bit, but that is normal for a break. It will go down in a day or so." Ayla worked quickly, knowing what she was doing wasn't comfortable for the woman, and Ebra gritted her teeth in discomfort.

After working on her patient, Ayla threw sand on their fire, packed up the few things they had, adjusted Ebra on the mat and prepared herself to drag it for as long as she could.

After about an hour, Ayla was exhausted and had to stop. The two women just sat there thinking, Ebra on her mat, Ayla on the sand. Ebra was wishing that she could help Ayla and Ayla kept thinking to herself that there must be a better way to do this. As they sat there, a breeze blew sand all over the two women. Ayla wanted to get clean, so she decided to go for a swim, and excused herself.

Ebra looked at her like she was crazy, but noticed that Ayla was filthy. She had been working and sweating for three moons, and now she was sandy too.

Ayla dived into the river, not at all worried about the current. She was more than a capable swimmer, and this part of the river didn't seem to be that bad. Ebra nervously watched from the beach, wishing Ayla wouldn't go out so far, but knowing that the younger woman really did enjoy being in the water.

Ayla swam around, considering what they should do. They weren't getting very far with her pulling Ebra around on the mat, and she was tiring herself out. That could be very dangerous if she needed her strength for something. What if an animal attacks us? Ayla thought. I won't be of much use to Ebra if I am tired, and Ebra will die for sure if I die.

Maybe they needed to do something else. Maybe they should stay put and wait for the clan to find them. If they were going to do that, then she had some work to do. They couldn't just keep sleeping out by a fire every night. They needed a shelter. Ayla looked around the beach, but the only things she saw were the same things that she had seen all along. Could she make a shelter out of grass like she had a skirt and a mat? Well, she thought, I will just have to.

When she got out of the water, Ayla told Ebra that she thought they'd be better off it they stay put for a while, and that maybe the clan would find them. Ebra didn't dispute that they weren't getting very far. She agreed that they should stay where they were, at least for a few days.

Ayla had a plan in her head, and she went right to work on a shelter. She went to the tree line, and found several fallen tree branches that she was able to carry back to the beach. Then she sat down and stripped the leaves off the branches, leaving one end that forked into two branches and set all but two of them aside.

Then, Ayla began digging in the sand. When she had a hole that was about three feet deep, she stopped, picked up one of the branches and shoved it into the hole in the sand. Ayla then pushed all the sand back into the hole so that the branch was standing about five feet above ground when she was finished. When she was satisfied that it would not fall down, she dug another hole about six feet away from the first and repeated the process. When that was complete, Ayla placed yet a third branch on top of the other two, this time choosing a very sturdy one. Then finally, she took a few branches and leaned them up against the top branch so that she had an A-frame type shelter, and used grass to tie them all in place. The wood frame was quite sturdy.

Now, she thought, it's time to make mats. This would be the easy part. It would take quite a while, but she could sit and relax, _and_ Ebra could help her. Ayla set out to gather grasses and returned with an armload. There was definitely plenty of grass in the area, _that_was for sure.

By the time the sun was at its highest, Ayla and Ebra had made significant progress. Ebra still couldn't see what Ayla was planning to do with the mats, but she had nothing else to do, so she continued weaving and talking with Ayla, just to keep busy. Ayla finished hers first, so she picked it up. She had made it very large, about six and half feet tall by seven feet long. When she brought it over to the frame, Ebra finally saw what the woman was doing. "Ayla, what made you think of that? What an interesting idea."

Ayla shrugged, "I don't know. I've been making everything out of grass, why not a shelter?" Ebra nodded. It was definitely good thinking. Ayla sure was good to have around.

The two search parties continued in their own directions, neither finding a thing. With each step, Brun was becoming more and more aware that it wasn't likely they would find Ebra, and his heart was extremely heavy.

**XxX**

**Chapter Nineteen: The Path (originally posted on 6 September, 2003)**

Ebra and Ayla worked together on their new shelter for several hours. When finally it was lashed together tightly, the two women stood back to admire their handy work. They had covered the other side, just as Ayla had the first. Then they worked on the ends, which were a little more difficult since they were triangular in shape, and finally they made a mat for ground covering. Ebra's current mat would be used outside the new shelter.

Ayla decided to make a fire pit in the sand that they could use for cooking and for heat, and went to work on a meal. The ptarmigan, which was already cooked, would feed them for a few days, but Ayla wanted more than just meat and tea, so she went out with her basket to gather greens. She didn't find much, as she didn't want to go too far away from Ebra, and returned with next to nothing.

Coming upriver, in a generally southeastern direction, was another small band of travelers, three men, two women, four children and one baby. They too had suffered loss in the devastating and far-reaching earthquake, but they did not only lose their Mog-ur and their cave, they had lost _everyone_that had been in the cave during the wrenching of the earth, twenty-eight members in all.

To most other clans they would have been considered strange, they had had quite a mixture of people, clan people, mixed people and even a few of the others. It wasn't much different now, they were just fewer in numbers.

_But,_the make up of their clan was not their only oddity; they were also rather progressive, as some members had obviously been exposed to the others. However, despite their progressivism, the thought of finding another clan was rather frightening to them. They had always been a united group and they did not want to change that aspect of their make up. That was why they did not live near any other clan. That was why they had never ventured out until now.

For weeks they had stayed around the cave that had been their home for many seasons. Indecision had gripped them, as they discussed their options, but they all knew that this great tragedy was not just an opening to search for a new cave to live in, but also to seek out another clan as well. Ten members was too small a number of people to survive for long, especially with only five adults.

The travelers had chosen to go upriver, because their cave had been located very close to a large body of water, which they knew to be near the end of the river and no other clan. The only way they had hope of finding more people was to go upriver. And they were very nervous at the thought of finding more people, even though they knew that was what they needed.

As the small clan came around the tree line and rounded a bend in the river, they came to a place on the beach where there was a strip of flat sand.

"It seems to be a path of some sort," Dorg gestured to the rest. He was not speaking to just the men, but to all that were with him.

Another man came up beside him, carrying a young girl of three years. "Eka," he said. "Take Ada, so I can go investigate."

The woman Eka, who had been standing right next to him bearing another three year old on her hip, took the hand of Ada.

"Aka want Ada," the child in her arms gestured reaching for her sister. Eka put her down, but let them both away from the men.

After Daub had handed the child to her mother, he went to join his brother at the flat path. Another man had come up beside them, a mixed man. "Dorg, what do you suppose it is," the mixed man asked while fumbling with something under his rather large wrap? "I have never seen the sand so flat and straight."

Another woman came up to them. She waited to be acknowledged, but she did not kneel on the ground in front of the men, nor did she look at the ground demurely. The mixed man quickly gestured, "What is it Uga?"

"Grov, Ora needs to nurse. Let me take her while you are busy." The man looked down at the one year old child he held, then handed her to Uga with a grunt of gratitude.

Uga took the child from Grov, collected the other two boys that were standing with the men and sat down by Eka to nurse.

For Ayla and Ebra the day had gone slow. They now had a place to get out of the wind, when it decided to blow, and they had enough food for a short time. Ayla would hunt again the next day. She had seen deer beyond the tree line, and they needed things that a deer could provide.

In the evening, she checked Ebra's wounds again. She was looking much better. Her bruises were turning brownish and the swelling in her broken leg was down. Maybe I could make her a walking stick soon, just like Creb had used, Ayla thought to herself. I could support her on one side and the stick could help on the other. That would definitely get us back to the clan faster.

But, why do I want to get back to the clan? They will just not see me again, and I will be alone. Sadly, Ayla sighed, knowing she had to get Ebra back. She did want to see Durc. At least her son would see her.

When the sun began to set, the two search parties stopped for the night. All in Brun's party, except Brun, went to sleep right away. He sat up drinking his tea and worrying, but still maintaining his stoic dignity.

Vorn, Droog and Aba didn't make it back to the river for the night. They just nestled into the pine needles that had fallen on the ground under the trees. Vorn's thoughts were weighing heavy on him as well, but he drifted off to sleep rather easily. It was more escape than rest, but it was welcome.

_**New**_** Character List:  
><strong>  
><strong>Dorg<strong> (20) – toolmaker  
><strong>Ala<strong> (quake death) – Dorg's deceased mate, was 17, (mixed woman)  
>-~-<strong>Vorg<strong> (7) – mixed child

**Daub** (17) – Dorg's brother  
><strong>Eka<strong> (15) – Daub's mate, daughter of the mate of the deceased second in command  
>-~-<strong>Ada<strong> and **Aka** (3) – Eka's twins

**Dreg** (quake death) – Daub's deceased twin brother  
><strong>Uga<strong> (16) – daughter of the mate of the deceased leader  
>-~-<strong>Breg<strong> (5) – Uga's son  
>-~-<strong>Ega <strong>(quake death) – Uga's deceased 2 year old

**Grov** (16) – mixed man, master hunter  
><strong>Nora<strong> (quake death) – woman of the others, was 18 years old  
>-~-Ora (1) – Nora's daughter<p>

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty: The Encounter (originally posted on 6 September, 2003)**

The small clan had camped on the beach next to the flat path, and awoke ready to move on and find out what had made it. This clan loved to investigate new things.

Each person collected their small amount of belongings and their perspective child or children. Only the three girls were carried, as they were very young. The two boys ran ahead to see what they could see, but never left the sight of their people. When the two boys came to a bend in the river, which limited sight, they stopped and waited for everyone to catch up.

"I'll race you to the next bend," Vorg challenged, and took off before the other boy could even reply. Breg started off the next second, but Vorg was a faster runner since he had straighter legs like his mixed mother had.

When Breg finally caught up to Vorg, he put his hands on his knees, breathing extremely hard and took several deep breaths. "Vorg, you know that's not fair, you are mixed, you are older than me _and_you took off without notice."

Vorg smiled at the other boy, a trait that he had from his mother. This clan knew a smile was something the others did when they were amused by something. "I'm sorry Breg. I was just having fun." Breg couldn't smile, but gave the other boy a look that told him he wasn't upset, and they turned to go on.

However, before they could even take a step, they had to stop. About fifty yards in front of them there was a fire going in the sand and a shelter of some sort. They didn't see any people, but they knew that where there was fire, there had to be people.

The group of adults behind them was immediately aware that the boys had discovered something. Just their stance told them that, and they could tell that they were about to encounter people.

Ayla and Ebra had slept relatively late that morning. The grass mat shelter kept out a lot of the light, which allowed them to sleep longer than they would have if they were sleeping out in the open. Not to mention that there was no one else rustling around, waking them early.

Ayla had gone out once to relieve herself and start the morning fire for tea, but then she had gone back in to lie down in the warm shelter and wait for the water over the fire to boil.

Ebra opened her eyes when Ayla came back in, and motioned a good morning to Ayla. Ayla smiled. "Ebra, you look better every day. Are you in any pain this morning?"

Ebra grunted, "Not from my injuries, but my back is a little achy."

Ayla smile again, "Well then, let me go get you a walking stick and we'll get you out of here," she gestured.

Dorg, Daub and Uga ran forward this time, leaving Eka and Grov to bring up the rear with the children. The youngest ones were their responsibility, they had no problem with staying in the back.

"A single tent," Dorg motioned back to them. "I don't see anyone, but there is a fire."

The other two adults came up next to their clan mates and watched. Then, the shelter flap moved and a blond woman emerged. "Dorg, she is one of the others, just like Nora," Grov gestured.

Ayla did not look around the area, nor did she notice that they were being watched, so intent was she on her task of getting Ebra a walking stick. She went straight to her pile of branches, broke one off and striped it. Then she leaned it against the outside of the shelter and went back inside.

The small group watched quietly, while she did this. Then, when the flap moved again the woman was assisting another woman, a clan woman.

Ayla helped Ebra to sit down on the mat and tried to make her comfortable, but stopped when the woman stiffened. "Ebra, what is it?"

Ebra did not gesture a word, but she pointed to something behind Ayla. Ayla turned around quickly and her mouth dropped open. She counted the people that were standing at the bend in the river staring at them by drawing a line in the sand for each person she counted, then she placed her fingers on the marks; almost two hands of people. _And, _at least two of them were mixed, Ayla observed as she squinted at them in the distance, trying to see them better. Where had they come from, she wondered? And what do they want?

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty (continued), (originally posted on 6 September, 2003)**

Dorg could see the fear in the women on the beach, and didn't want to frighten them, but he didn't know what to do. Then he had an idea. "Eka and Uka, you two should go talk to them. That way they will not be afraid." Eka put Ada down and the women set off across the beach.

Ayla and Ebra watched the group talking, but they didn't understand their everyday language. Then, when two women started to approach them, Ayla stood up in front of Ebra.

Eka and Uka exchanged a glance, but continued on. When they got within about ten feet of the campsite, one of the women made a gesture and said, "Uga."

Ayla didn't understand the gesture, but knew that the woman must have said her name. Ayla gestured in the ancient formal language, "I am called Ayla," she said tapping her chest. "This is Ebra," she said stepping aside and pointing at Ebra.

The other woman stepped up and also using the formal language said, "I am Eka. We have been traveling since the movement of the earth. We are looking for another clan that will take us in. We have lost all except for what you see behind us."

Ayla could see the pain in the women's eyes. "We too have been traveling since the earthquake. Our clan lived quite a distance to the west. We only lost one man in the quake, but our cave was destroyed. We were looking for a new cave as well, but Ebra fell into the river and we got separated from our clan. Ebra has a broken leg so we cannot travel so well right now, but I am one of our clan's medicine women and I have set the break. We will start traveling as soon as Ebra is able. Would you like some tea?"

Eka and Uga accepted the offer, but asked if the others could join them. Ayla didn't understand why the men had stayed behind, but nodded all the same. She was even more confused when Eka gestured "Come!" It seemed more demanding than Ayla was used to women using, but the group approached and the men obviously hadn't taken offense.

Ayla fixed tea for the new people. They had each given her a woven cup. When she had it ready, she went to Dorg first, as he seemed to be the leader, and kneeled on the ground in front of him waiting for him to tap her shoulder.

Dorg knew that this was the way of most clans, even though it had not been the way of his for many seasons. Having mixed people and others living among them had changed their ways significantly. He leaned forward and tapped her shoulder. When Ayla looked up, he took the tea saying, "This man is grateful for the tea."

Ayla was shocked, no man had ever thanked her for doing her duty. "This woman is called Ayla, and I am glad to meet you. This is Ebra."

Then, another man came forward, but when Ayla looked down at the ground again, he knelt down next to her and raised her chin up so that he could look directly into her eyes. "Your eyes are blue," he gestured. "Just like mine, and my mate's daughter." With that, he pulled the small child over for Ayla to see. "This is Ora," he said putting the child in Ayla's arms.

Ayla was shocked by the way this man was touching her, but she was absolutely stunned when he put the child in her arms. _Then,_when she looked down at the child, she gasped. The little girl looked almost identical to herself. She was one of the others.

Ayla forgot herself and asked, "How does a mixed man, living with a clan, come to have a child of the others?"

Grov smiled, which was further shock, but his smile faded quickly as he gestured, "I am Grov, and my mate was one of the others, but she is gone now. She died in the quake. We were mated for four years, before Ora was born to my hearth. She is the daughter of my heart, as well as my hearth.

Ayla could see his pain and she had tears in her eyes. She looked around at all the new people standing or sitting around. Ebra was looking at these people approvingly and nodded at Ayla. Ayla looked back at the people and gestured, "We welcome you to our camp."

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty-One: Storytelling (originally posted on 6 September, 2003)**

Ebra and Ayla were delighted that they were no longer alone. Ebra wished she could get up to serve the men with Ayla. She didn't want them to think she was not a good clan woman, but she couldn't get up yet. Ayla could tell that these people were very different from their clan, and she secretly wondered if they could ever fit in with Broud's clan. Broud was going to resent these mixed people greatly, but Ayla's heart went out to Ora, who he would despise.

The two groups spent the day telling each other about themselves. Dorg was their clan's toolmaker. He showed them some of their tools and even Ebra looked impressed. Droog would be very interested to learn Dorg's techniques. And they learned that Dorg's mate, Ala, had been mixed, and that she had had reddish colored hair. That would explain why Vorg's hair was brown with a red hint to it, Ayla thought. And Vorg must have been started by Dorg, she observed. Though the child is mixed, he has the older man's eyes and general shape of face.

Daub was Dorg's younger brother and he was mated to Eka, who was the daughter of the mate of the second in command, before the earthquake had taken them. Eka held up her twin daughters and explained that Ada was born first, then Aka. The twins were adorable. Both brown haired, but a much lighter brown than the people of Broud's clan. And their eyes were a very light hazel color. Ayla noticed that every one of them had light hazel eyes, except for Grov and Ora, who had eyes the color of the sky.

After Daub told about his hearth, Uga gestured that she had been mated to Daub's older twin brother, but that he had died in the earthquake, along with her youngest child, Ega. She said that she was the daughter of the mate of the leader, who had also perished. "Breg is all I have left now," she gestured sadly. "And you already know Grov and Ora. He is our master hunter, as his mate Nora used to say."

Ayla had tears in her eyes for their loss. Ebra had a deep frown on her face. They had definitely lost a lot. Much more than they.

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty-Two: More Storytelling (originally posted on 6 September, 2003)**

The new group set up their shelters in a circle around Ayla's fire. Ayla was going to gather wood for the night, but Vorg and Breg told her they would do it and ran off to do the chore. Ayla was pleased that she wouldn't have to do it, and smiled at the retreating backs of the boys, wishing her son was there as well.

As they unpacked their belongings, Ayla stared at all they had brought. She couldn't believe that they could carry so much, they hadn't appeared to be so heavily burdened, but then, the men were carrying heavy loads as well. This clan worked together better than Broud's clan, she thought.

Uga was aware that Ayla, and even Ebra though surreptitiously, were watching them. She was also aware that they didn't seem to have much. Their shelter was interesting, but that was about it. When she was finished with her work, she came over to where Ebra was sitting and gestured that they had plenty of hides and gave one to the two women to sleep with.

When the group was finished, they gathered at the fire again. Ayla had worked along side Eka and Uga making the evening meal, and she was very interested in their ways of cooking food, but when they had finished, the women gestured to the men that they were finished and the men simply came up and took what they wanted. Ayla glanced at Ebra, who shrugged her shoulders, then went to prepare their own bowls of food.

After the meal, the other clan wanted to know more about Broud's clan. Earlier, Ayla had only told them how Ebra and she had come to be where they all are now, but she had not told them much else. She dreaded telling them about the death curse that hung over her, but she also knew they could not avoid the topic forever.

"Broud is my son," Ebra motioned, "and he has only been leader for a short time, since just before the earthquake. Before him, the leader was my mate." Ebra looked at Ayla, and then down at the ground. She did not want to speak ill of her son, but she knew he was not fit to lead. Ayla had never liked Broud, but she had her own son and knew it would be extremely hard for her to acknowledge _his_faults.

Ayla looked at the other people, deciding that she should tell them, since it all seemed to be due to her. She started with how the clan had found her, and how Iza, the first ranked medicine woman had adopted her. She talked about Creb, the wise Mog-ur that was known by many clans as Mog-ur One Eye. Ayla saw some stirrings of knowledge when she mentioned the man of her hearth. Then she told of her cave lion totem, teaching herself to hunt and her limited death curse. It was there that she paused, just to see what their reaction was, but there was not reaction at all. Then she moved on to how badly Broud mistreated her, but that she had sometimes defied him on purpose. She blushed at this, expecting one of the men to chastise her, but they did not. Then she told of her son, Durc, and how everyone thought he was weak and deformed when he was born, but how he had thrived and grew. "He is my sunshine," Ayla told them with an unfocused smile on her face. Then she told them of the clan gathering and how she found a mixed baby girl named Ura there that was now promised for her son.

And finally, she told of the changing of the leaders ceremony that had occurred, and about the changes to the hearths within their cave. "I tell you all this so that you may understand me. I know I don't behave correctly for a woman, but I don't know why Broud decided to make me his second woman, he never did like me, but he did it anyway. But the part I never really understood was how he could give my son to another woman, and how he could take away The Mog-ur's hearth."

Ayla was crying as she spoke. She could not stop herself, and these people had obviously seen tears before. She continued. "When he took away Creb's hearth, I could not hold my tongue. I yelled his name and told him what I thought." It was here that Ayla paused again, looking at these new people. "It was then that he cursed me with death."

Ayla stopped there, preparing for them to close their eyes to her. Ebra was watching them too.

"Tell me Ebra," Dorg said, "Are you 'dead' too?"

Ebra shook her head. "I have not been death cursed."

"Then why is it that you are acknowledging a 'spirit'."

"This woman does not believe Ayla is a spirit. This woman doesn't think a spirit would save someone's life. Ayla has always been a good clan woman. She only falters where my son is concerned. She does things that are not clan, but she is not really clan. This woman believes she brings luck to our clan." Ayla smiled with gratitude.

Grov was the next man to speak. "Ayla, we know it is the clan way to curse those that do not follow the clan way, but we believe death curses are too dangerous to the clan as a whole, _and_," he said with a look around at the group, "we do not think a spirit could have saved the life of a drowning clan woman."

Ayla was stunned. They did not close their eyes to her. They were actually going to ignore the custom. When the realization hit her, she began to cry anew.

Brun's search party was making good time in their northward trek. The land had been almost straight, relatively flat and there had been no obstacles to slow them down. They had covered a great distance. They didn't know it yet, but they were almost to the end of the river. It would end shortly, but they still had found no sign of the two women. Brun hoped that Vorn was having better luck.

Vorn's search party had reached the river again at nightfall on the second of four moons. They could not see it yet, but they were just across the river from the flat sand path, and numerous footprints from the other clan—but that would have to be discovered the next morning.

It had been five moons since the two search parties had left Broud where they had crossed the river. He was still fuming that the mate of his mother could take the side of a spirit before the son of his mate, but he was trying to consol himself with thoughts that the death of his mother would at least be the end of the spirit as well.

He had had the clan set up four of their shelters. One for himself, and Oga and her boys. One for Borg and Ona, and her mother Aga and Aga's other son Groob. One for Crug, Ika, Igra and Dorv. And one for the old man Zoug, Uba and the deformed son of the spirit.

Broud hoped Brun and the others returned soon, but started discussing plans to leave if they didn't. They still needed to find a cave. However, this is where he met strong resistance. No one was willing to leave his or her family.

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Grov's Joke (originally posted on 7 September, 2003)**

Morning dawned brightly as the sun shined off the river. Aba rose before the two men, and got up to make a meal. She first stoked the fire, which had burned well the entire night, and then, grabbing a basket, she went to get some water from the river.

Aba only took a few steps into the river, as she had always been afraid of the water, and dipped her basket in. When it had the amount of water she thought was necessary for her purposes, she stood up and turned to walk back to the beach. Suddenly, her eye was caught by something on the other side of the river. She looked across at the sand, which had a different look. Then, she looked down river and noticed that the sand looked the way it usually did. Then, squinting into the rising sun, she looked up river. The strangeness began directly across from where she stood and it went up river. Another thing that was odd was that the sand right next to the flat sand seemed to be more disturbed than usual. Aba decided that this was something the men should see, and went to wake them.

"Vorn," the old woman said shaking the young man gently. Vorn groaned and opened his eyes slightly.

She then went to Droog and called his name, "Droog." He too opened his eyes. Then, Aba just sat there, eyes looking at the ground, waiting to be acknowledged.

Droog looked over at Vorn, who had closed his eyes again, then he sat up and tapped Aba's shoulder. "What is it Aba?"

"This woman was getting water from the river to make a meal, but when I looked across the river, I noticed that the sand looks strange. I wanted you to see it."

Droog sighed, "Okay Aba, I will come look at it."

Droog got up immediately and went over to Vorn. "Vorn, we need to see what's on the other side of the river."

Vorn got up as well and they went to investigate. "How do you suppose the sand over there comes to be so flat, and why is it disturbed on the edge?"

Droog was thinking about the unusual path, and thought that maybe Ebra and Ayla had survived and passed through there. Maybe the disturbed sand was their doing. It was the first clue they had had on their search. When Droog told the younger man what he was thinking, Vorn went on, "I guess we should try to walk up river on the beach. We won't be able to see anything if we go back the way we came.

"Aba, forget the meal. We will drink cold tea as we walk."

When Ayla got up that morning and left her shelter, she stared at the sight of the other clan's tents around her fire, forgetting for a moment that she and Ebra were not alone any longer. Grov was sitting there, drinking his tea, with Ora at his feet. Ayla didn't want to stare, but a man taking care of a child seemed odd to her.

When Ora saw Ayla come out, she pulled herself up, toddled over to her and signed, "Mother."

Ayla smiled, signing back, "Good morning, Ora." When the one year old reached her, she picked her up and tickled her. Ora broke into giggles, which made Ayla laugh and Grov smile.

Just then, Uga emerged from her tent and Ora struggled to get down. She knew who offered a breast and it wasn't Ayla. Ayla scooped up a cup of tea for herself and sat on the mat by the fire. It seemed so strange to not be scurrying around serving the men.

When she looked up, she noticed that Grov was staring at her, and thought that maybe she had done something wrong. She decided that maybe he wanted a fresh cup of tea and got up quickly, got more tea and then sat at his feet and waited for him to acknowledge her.

Grov knew what she was doing and smiled. He tapped her shoulder and said, "Ayla, you don't have to do that. We are not so formal."

"This woman thought you might want another cup of tea. And Grov, if you are going to live with our clan, it might help to act more clan like." Ayla hoped that she hadn't gone too far. Technically, she had just told a man what he should do, but she didn't want this new clan to offend Broud and not be permitted to stay. Chances are though, she thought, it probably doesn't matter, Broud is not going to like them no matter what.

"You might be right," he said. "Maybe I should cuff you for telling a man what to do then."

Ayla looked into the man's eyes and knew he was saying words he did not mean, and it confused her. This was her first experience with a real joke and she didn't know what to say or do. She only blushed and looked down, but when he laughed, she looked up again. "Ayla, I am not going to cuff you. I understand what you are saying."

When everyone else started to rise, Ayla went back into her shelter to get Ebra. She examined the woman's leg again saying, "Ebra, you are healing well. You will be on your feet in no time." The woman was happy about the news. She was getting restless from all the sitting around she was doing.

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Rocky River (originally posted on 9 September, 2003)**

Vorn, Droog and Aba were having a much easier time walking on the sandy beach, than they had walking up and down hills, and through trees and brush. Vorn walked in front while Droog stayed back to help Aba when necessary. The three walked for what seemed like forever to Aba, when Vorn stopped and motioned for them to stop.

"Look Droog," Vorn said pointing to something about fifty yards ahead of them on the other side of the river, "There's a camp down there, but I cannot see beyond the shelters."

Droog came up beside Vorn and looked as well. "That camp is too big, I count one hand of shelters, but maybe they have seen Ebra and Ayla."

Vorn's sharp intake of breath at Ayla's name told Droog that the son of his mate was still struggling with the situation, but they didn't have time for contemplating the problem and started for the area across the river from the camp ahead.

When they arrived at the camp, they still could not see much. The people on the other side had arranged their shelters in a horseshoe shape, with their fire in the middle, but had faced themselves away from the river. It was not intentional, it just happened that way.

However, there was no mistaking the tall, blond woman that stood up and started to walk past a break in the line of shelters, toward what must be her own.

"AYLA!" Droog called over the running sound of the river, and the medicine woman's head jerked up immediately.

"Ebra, it's Droog and Vorn," she said looking through the shelters at the two men. "_And,_ I see Aba too. They are on the other side of the river, and they are calling out to me." Ayla forgot what she had been doing, and ran to the river. She couldn't believe they were really standing there, _and_they were talking to her.

On the other side, the two men were trying to figure out how they could cross. The river was moving much slower at this point, but it had gotten rather deep. There were many large rocks haphazardly situated in the river, but they appeared to be rather close. They could possibly be of use, but how would they get Aba across?

While they were discussing the matter, the people that were with Ayla came into view, three men, two women and one boy. Aba's intake of breath caused the Vorn and Droog to look up again. Vorn signaled a greeting in the ancient language, but didn't know what else to do. Droog also signaled a greeting.

Dorg looked across and knew the problem. "Grov, Daub, we need to help them. We can climb out on the rocks. That old woman will need help."

Ayla watched Dorg, she wanted to help, but didn't want to be in the way. She decided ask, and walking over to him, she gracefully dropped to the ground and waited to be acknowledged.

Dorg didn't even hesitate. He just tapped Ayla's shoulder. This is going to be very difficult for the women of my clan to get used to again, he thought. They have not lived the way most clans do for many years. In fact, he considered, thinking back, we were all children when that tradition was stopped.

"Dorg, this woman would like to swim across to help Aba, if that is acceptable to you." Dorg nodded, and she took off for the river.

The three men had been speaking in their everyday language, but Vorn and Droog had gotten the gist of the conversation, especially after Ayla spoke to them, but Aba had only seen "climb out on the rocks," and she looked away with a terrified expression on her face, and crumpled to the ground in front of Droog, gesturing, "Droog, just leave me here. I cannot cross the river."

Droog looked down at the old woman, who had never shown such a fear before. "Aba, get up. I will not leave you here. If we did, you'd die for sure. We will help you get across, and so will Ayla and the other people."

Aba got up, not looking any better, just as Ayla arrived on their side. It had not taken Ayla very long to cross, because the river was not that wide. She went to Vorn and dropped to the ground. Vorn just stood there. He did not want to acknowledge the woman, even though he knew she was no longer dead. What would Broud say?

Droog watched in frustration and signed, "Vorn, you can to talk to her. Broud may choose to curse her again, but right now she it not dead."

Vorn thought about it some more, and then tapped the woman's shoulder. Ayla's breath exploded, she hadn't known she had been holding it. "This woman is grateful that the second in command has arrived. Ebra is on the other side. She has a broken leg and a bruised head, but she is going to be all right. Is the rest of the clan near?"

Vorn looked at the woman that Broud hated with a passion. She wasn't _that_terrible. She was definitely ugly, but not a bad woman. Was being Broud's second in command that important to him? It always had been. Why was he feeling differently about it now?

"We need to get Aba across the river," was all he said to her.

Then, forgetting her question, Ayla went to Aba and tried to reassure her. "Aba, Dorg, Daub and Grov will help you. See how they are each standing on a rock?" The old woman nodded. "Vorn and Droog will do the same on this side, and I will go from rock to rock with you. They will all be there to help us. Let's go."

Taking a deep breath, Aba nodded again. Ayla did exactly what she said she would, and all the men did their part as well. It did not even take five minutes to get the old woman across. When they got to the other side, she looked back relieved that it was over, but also happy that she could still do it.

Ayla introduced Aba to Eka and Uga, then took her over to Ebra. Ebra was beside herself to see the other woman. She had been beginning to think she would never see her clan again.

The men, on the other hand, exchanged greetings with one another. Grov hung back somewhat, knowing what most clans thought of mixed people. I am not deformed, he thought defiantly. He continued to watch.

Vorn's high status in Ayla's clan was obvious and he did not want to offend, but Dorg would not let him forget his own status and signaled him forward. After all, he _was_their master hunter.

The morning had been a rather easy trek for Brun's party. They had come to the end of the river after just one hour of walking. The river had gotten smaller and smaller with each step, until it became just a small stream.

Brun had called a meeting with Goov and Grod to discuss the situation. All had agreed to turn around. There was no way Ebra and Ayla had come down this fork, and Brun was feeling very lost. Just before they had set off again, Brun grabbed his amulet and sent a silent plea to his totem to bring Ebra back to him.

Goov and Grod watched their former leader with sympathy, both looking back at their women. Neither knew what they'd do if they lost their mates.

Grod continued to think about Uka. He had spent many years mated to her, and she had produced two children for him. True, one had died in the first quake long ago, but Uka still had Ovra. And now, Ovra was grown and mated to Goov.

Goov too was considering the loss of his mate. Ovra still hadn't brought a child to their hearth, but he really cared for her, and wouldn't even consider taking a second woman. If Ovra never had a child it would be hard, but he truly cared for the woman of his hearth, and considered himself lucky to be mated to her.

**XxX**

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Grov's Introduction (originally posted on 11 September, 2003)**

Even though Vorn had an aversion to Ayla, only because of Broud, he did not however feel the same way about her son, Durc, who spent a considerable amount of time at his hearth with Uba. Everyone loved that child, except Broud, which made the introduction of a mixed man much easier.

Vorn could tell the man, Grov, was holding back, but he could see the high esteem in which he was held when their leader, Dorg, brought him forward for a formal introduction.

It was obvious that Dorg was struggling with wording when he introduced the mixed man, "The man is Grov. He was our cave's first ranked hunter."

Vorn watched the mixed man, and said, "I am Vorn, our clan's second in command. We are grateful that you have cared for the mate of our former leader, he will be glad to know she is still living."

Grov didn't know what to say. They hadn't cared for anyone. They had just stumbled onto the two women, who seemed to be caring for themselves just fine. _And,_ was he going to ignore the fact that the woman, Ayla, was there too and perfectly capable of taking care of herself and the other woman, and had done so? _But,_he said nothing. Ayla had warned him that, like most other clans, her clan did not allow women, with the exception of her hunting with a sling, to do anything that was a man's job, and they would frown on him for acknowledging her abilities.

When the introductions were done, the three newcomers were invited to Ayla's fire for tea. Vorn didn't miss that Dorg had said "Ayla's fire." Ayla and Aba exchanged a glance, but nothing was said.

**XxX**

*** Please note - **Apparently I stopped numbering my chapters here...sorry!

**The Broken Spear (originally posted on 11 September, 2003)**

Ayla scurried around getting the men some tea wondering what had changed with the clan and her death curse, because something had most definitely changed. Ayla was afraid to ask and figured she would be told soon enough, but she couldn't get herself to calm down now that Aba was safely across the river and she had the time to think.

The men's conversation went from the earthquake and the loss of their caves and clan members, to Dorg's clan's wishing to join another clan, and then of course to hunting, as it always did.

The women were sitting together talking about what to make for the afternoon meal, but Ayla was having a hard time concentrating. She was alternating between listening to their conversation, watching the men and thinking about her death curse. She was dying to know what was going on. When she couldn't take it anymore, she turned to Aba.

"Aba, this woman would like to know why you are acknowledging a spirit."

Aba looked embarrassed as she gestured, "We were searching for Ebra on this side of the river, and Brun was on the other side searching as well, and we saw him tell Grod and Goov that the bones are no longer set. This woman didn't mean to see, but I couldn't look away."

Ayla nodded, understanding that she was not a spirit to them anymore, and she smiled. Then her mind went back to the day after the earthquake, when Brun and Goov had buried Creb in the cave. They had seen her that day, she just knew they had. Why hadn't they spoken to her then? What was different now?

Grov was talking with the men, but only half paying attention to them, minding Ora and watching Ayla all at the same time, when the child toddled over to Vorn and grabbed his spear. Droog looked angry, but it was Vorn who jumped up immediately, and turned toward the women gesticulating angrily, "Ayla, come get this child! She does not belong with the men."

He was turning back to break the spear in half, but before he could grab it, Dorg picked it up, snapped it in two and gestured that he would make Vorn a new one. Grov only turned toward the bewildered child, picked her up and carried her over to Ayla. Ayla took her immediately and hugged her, smiling sheepishly at Grov, knowing exactly how the child was feeling.

Uga came over to Ayla and Grov. "I will feed her, she needs to nurse anyway," she said taking the child and putting her to her breast.

After that, Grov didn't have much interest in listening to the younger man speak, but he went back over to where they were sitting, not wanting to offend by staying with the women. This clan is going to be very difficult to get used to, he thought.

After their meal, the men discussed the topic of the search once again, and Vorn decided that he should return to the fork in the river. Brun's search party could reach the meeting place any time from that evening to two or three moons later, and he wanted to be there to tell him Ebra was safe, and that they had found another small clan, who wanted to join them.

Droog requested to stay at the campsite, as he wanted to discuss tool making with Dorg. It was not often that he had a chance to talk about what he was most proficient at with another man of his caliber.

Aba would go with Vorn, so that he would have a woman to cook for him should it take a few days for Brun to return to the fork. They started out when the sun was midway between being directly overhead and the horizon.

Brun wanted to get back to the fork quickly, and pushed hard the whole day. They managed to travel the same distance in just one day that they had in the two previous days. By nightfall, they arrived and set up camp swiftly.

He hadn't really expected Vorn, Droog and Aba to be back yet, but he had hoped they would be. Grod and Goov exchanged a look. They could see that he was very disappointed.

"Brun, there's still a chance," Grod gestured.

"Yes Brun, and I have asked the spirits to guide and protect Ebra and Ayla. We must believe that all is well," Goov said to the older man encouragingly.

"It has been many moons since she fell in the river. Do you think Ebra could have survived," Brun asked?

"I don't know Brun, but I have meditated, and the spirits tell me anything is possible." Goov thought about what he had told Brun, and sent another silent plea to the spirits to bring Ebra and Ayla back to them."

**XxX**

**The Wait (originally posted on 12 September, 2003)**

Brun woke up before the sun had risen, but he lay in his sleeping place anxiously looking around their dark campsite for some sign for that his mate was still alive. He looked over at Grod and Uka, who were still asleep, then looked toward Goov and Ovra. They were both sleeping as well. The lonely man grasped his amulet calling on his bison totem to bring Ebra back soon. Goov had said that anything was possible. Was Ebra still alive? He fervently hoped it was so.

When the sun broke the horizon the next morning, Vorn and Aba started out. This time, they weren't forced to leave the river, as they had been before, since they were on the other side. They could see that the sandy beach on the other side had become dirt hills with scrub, which eventually rose up into cliffs that were covered with many trees. Vorn was glad they did not have to travel on the other side while going back upriver. Aba was aware as well that this side was easier for her, but she was getting tired anyway. She wasn't young after all. _And,_she couldn't get her mind off the fork, where there would be another river to cross.

They traveled for what seemed like forever to the old woman, when Vorn said, "Aba, hurry up, we are almost there." Aba sped herself up and when they came to a line of trees. Vorn knew from passing the other way that the fork of the river lay just beyond the riparian growth, and he assisted Aba through the brush.

Brun's mood was getting worse and worse as they sat there with nothing to do, but wait. Uka and Ovra had served the men their morning meal, but they had nothing else to occupy their time, so they all just sat there by the fire, sipping tea and telling stories.

Then, when Brun could stand it no more, he decided to take a walk. His walk, however, was cut short when Vorn and Aga came into view on the other side of the river.

When Brun saw Vorn, he thought at first that he must be seeing things. However, when he focused on the young second in command, he not only knew who he was looking at, but that the man had good news. The experienced former leader also knew that there was something else going on.

"Grod, Goov!" Brun called excitedly. "Vorn has returned."

The four other clan members got up and followed Brun over to the river's edge. Uka too knew that her sister had been found and was overjoyed.

**XxX**

**The Crossing (originally posted on 12 September, 2003)**

When everyone had arrived at the edge of the river, Vorn signed across that Ebra was okay, but she had a broken leg.

"And what about Ayla," Brun asked anxiously, wondering if she was all right as well.

"The medicine woman is with Ebra, and Droog stayed with them. We have also encountered another clan. They number two hands. When we came upon Ebra…they were with them. They lost their cave in the earthquake, and they want to join our clan." Then, Vorn continued with distressed motions, "Brun, some of them look like Durc, and one of their children is a girl of the others. " He hesitated again, then gestured, "Broud will not want them to be part of our clan, but we can't leave them out here alone."

Brun could see how troubled Vorn was. He was too young and inexperienced to be second in command, Brun thought. "Don't worry about it Vorn. Broud won't turn them out. Wait there, we will cross over, so we can talk about this more."

Brun decided that it would be best to go upriver just a bit, so that they could use the rocks that were in the river. The crossing was rather simple and in no time the four men and three women were standing on the same side.

Vorn was became somewhat more relaxed when Brun arrived, and preceded to tell the other three men everything that had happened. Vorn hadn't been with the new clan long enough to know much about them, so it didn't take him long to tell the whole story. And Brun was eager to get to Ebra, so they left promptly.

**XxX**

**Looking back** (this is another side plot)

While all of this was happening, somewhere on the other side of the peninsula, many other caves were in upheaval. One cave in particular was the cave in which Oda and Ura belonged. Oda's mate had been killed in the earthquake along with almost everyone else in the cave. The survivors had managed to survive only because they had been outside at the time the earth began to shake.

When they settled down, and took a look at the damage, the surviving three men decided quickly that they had to move, but none of them knew where they could go, due to the deformed child that lived among them.

Oda knew that her daughter, whom she loved dearly, was the cause of their dilemma, and decided to risk making a suggestion. Handing Ura to the only other woman, Oda approached the men and dropped to the ground at their feet.

Corg looked down at the woman, who despite her deformed child, was a good clan woman, and he tapped her shoulder saying, "Oda, what do you want? The men are having a discussion."

"This woman would like to make a suggestion, if it would not offend the men." Corg grunted assent, as they had not come up with anything yet, _and _because Oda was the daughter of his mother, and he had always liked her.

"This woman's daughter is promised to the son of the first ranked clan's medicine woman. I think we would have a place with them if we travel to their cave. I am told that their cave is just a few days journey from here."

Corg hadn't even considered Brun's clan. I wonder if it's still Brun's clan, he thought to himself. I wonder if they would really take us. Well, we don't really have much choice. "I will discuss it with the men."

Oda excused herself, but was glad she had gotten up the courage to remind Corg of the first ranked clan's agreement. Oda quickly went over to Aza, who had been minding Ura and the other three children, and began helping her with the meal, and the children. The men had much to discuss, and she didn't want to get in their way.

Corg had turned back to Norv, who had a look that immediately told Corg he wanted to give Brun's clan a shot. Nouz, who had only recently become a man, nodded his agreement as well.

So, Corg thought to himself, Brun's clan it is. That will make Oda happy. I hope they will accept us.

It was the day after the earthquake that these nine people set out for the cave of Brun's clan, not knowing that Brun's clan was now Broud's clan, and that the cave was destroyed, and the people had left.

**XxX**

**The Member's of Corg's Clan:  
><strong>  
><strong>Corg<strong> (17) – takes on leadership role after cave's collapse  
><strong>Aza<strong> (15) – Corg's mate  
>-~-<strong>Orga<strong> (5) – Aza's first daughter  
>-~-<strong>Egra<strong>(2) – Aza's second daughter

**Oda** (12) – daughter of Corg's mother  
>-~-<strong>Ura<strong>(2) – mixed child, created by the totem of a man of the others

**Norv** (15)  
>-~-<strong>Nouz<strong> (9) – son of Norv's deceased mate, has been a man for just one moon cycle  
>-~-<strong>Nala<strong>(4) – daughter of Norv's deceased mate

**XxX**

**Who Does Igra See? (originally posted on 15 September, 2003)**

Two moons later, when the small clan of nine members arrived at the trail that they knew led to Brun's cave, they could tell that something was not right. Corg, who was leading their clan, stopped and motioned to Norv. "It appears that many people passed through here recently. Do you suppose it was Brun's clan?"

"It must have been them Corg, but we should still travel to their cave to make sure, and then come back if it was them. At least we can see that they went that way," he said pointing in a northwestern direction.

Corg grunted. He hated to go out of their way, since they had four young girls with them, but it would be terrible if other people had traveled through the area and they missed Brun's clan altogether by not going in the direction of his cave.

Oda watched the men discuss the footprints and held Ura close, still hoping that they would be able to stay with Brun's clan. They had agreed to accept Ura, she was sure it would be all right.

It took them longer to get to Brun's cave than they had anticipated, and when they got there, they were saddened to discover the cave in shambles and completely deserted. The men decided to stay there for the night, but wanted to start out immediately in the morning. If they traveled quickly, maybe they could catch up to Brun's clan and join them shortly.

Corg and Norv were too worried about tracking the Burn's clan, but what they didn't know was that there would be four rivers to cross during their journey, and the crossings would be very treacherous for three men, one of them very young, two women, and four little girls. It would be the rivers that slowed them down considerably, and kept them so far behind those they were following.

Those waiting with Broud were getting rather anxious. With every day that Brun did not return, Broud was becoming more and more upset that he had allowed the mate of his mother to go off to search.

Broud cared for his mother, she was an exemplary clan woman, but this is ridiculous, he thought. Ebra had to have drowned in the river, and now everyone was waiting for nothing. They were never going to find a new cave if they sat around waiting for Brun to return.

He had tried to tell everyone that they would only wait a few moons for Brun's return, but the men had come to him, saying that the women and children would be devastated to leave without at least Brun's return to tell them she was dead, not to mention that Vorn, Grod, Droog and Goov would most definitely be needed if they were to hunt enough meat for the winter.

Broud didn't know it yet, but with each passing day his leadership was slipping away from him.

Corg and his clan had only started off a week's worth of days behind Broud's clan. In the best of circumstances they should have caught up quickly, but the many watercourses had hurt their travel. It seemed like every time they got across a river, another appeared in front of them, but they continued to follow the tracks of Broud's clan, and they were making good progress. The women were becoming weary since they didn't know where they were, or how far behind they were, but they pushed on. Actually, they were extremely close, due to the rests Broud had called and Ebra's near drowning.

Early one morning, when the women of Broud's clan were out making the morning meal, Igra was sent to the river to get water. When she looked out over the water of the river and into the distance beyond, she saw that people were approaching.

"Mother," she said when no one noticed the distant people. "People are coming." Ika looked over the river, then went straight to Broud and sat at his feet.

Broud looked down at the excited woman, knowing that something was up, and tapped her shoulder. "This woman wants to tell the leader that someone is approaching from the other side of the river."

Broud looked up quickly, thinking it might be Brun, but knew immediately that Brun would not be coming from that direction and from that far away. With a grunt, he called the only three men with him to go to the river's edge to wait for the strangers.

**XxX**

**The Meetings (originally posted on 16 September, 2003)**

The group made their way back to Ebra and Ayla very quickly, and it was obvious that Brun was happy to see his mate. She could not kneel in front of him as was their custom, but he did not expect her so.

Ayla, however, dropped to the ground at his feet as soon as he had finished talking to Ebra. The former leader looked down at her and tapped her shoulder, but before she could speak, he cut in. "This man is grateful to the first medicine woman for her bravery and skill. I would be without Ebra if it were not for you."

Ayla blushed at his praise, Iza had always told her that too much praise would make the spirits jealous, and she didn't want to bring bad luck. "This woman is grateful to the former leader for coming after us. May this woman ask if she will be allowed to live?"

Brun considered the woman sitting at his feet, thinking that she would have made a good man of the clan. It's too bad Broud hates her so much. "Ayla, you know I am not the leader of this clan anymore, but if I have anything to say about whether you live or die, you will not be cursed again."

Ayla looked at the man that had accepted her into his clan, and who had protected and punished her on and off throughout the years, and she knew he would do what he could.

After checking on Ebra and talking to Ayla, Brun left the women to join the men. He should have done that first, but he had been so worried about his mate and was so thankful to the medicine woman that he skirted custom for the moment, but now he was ready to meet the strange clan.

He had observed them surreptitiously while talking to Ebra and Ayla. They were an odd bunch, three men, one of them mixed and obviously interested in Ayla, the former leader noted silently. Two women, both clan, he thought looking around. Two male children, one of them mixed, and three female children, two born at the same time, both clan, and the last, a girl of the others. Brun made these mental notes almost without thinking. It came from many years of leading his clan, and it was easy to fall back into the habit with Broud gone.

Droog stepped forward; ready to introduce the man that was acting as leader for this new clan to his former leader. "Dorg, this is Brun," he said in the formal language. They exchanged greetings and Dorg proceeded to name the people in his clan. Brun thought it was rather odd that Dorg told him the names of the women and children, but he supposed knowing everyone's name could be helpful, especially if they were going to be part of their clan.

"Droog expresses some concern about your leader's acceptance of more people. I realized we have an odd make up, but we are clan and we need a place to live. Our men can hunt well and our women are hard working. We could be an asset if to your clan if you will allow us to become part of you."

"Yes," Brun said, "you are a different clan. I am no longer leader, but the clan does not turn out its own if it can be helped. I will speak for you when the time comes." Brun had already made his own decisions about these people. First, they had helped Ebra and Ayla. Second, the mixed man, Grov seemed to be interested in the medicine woman. Maybe they could finally get that strange woman mated. And third, he liked the openness and directness of the man Dorg. It was very different from what Brun was used to, but they were going to need someone like that if they were going to find and establish a cave with so many people.

Brun hoped that Broud would be able to take the changes that were bound to come with so many strangers. He hoped, but he also had doubts.

What Brun didn't know was that Broud was getting his first taste of change even as he himself was meeting Dorg's clan. It only took Broud minutes to realize what clan of people were traveling toward them on the other side of the river. Broud had come face to face, over the river of course, with Ura and her mother, and he was scowling with anger.

He had not even thought about the deformed child that he had promised to accept two years before, but now he was going to have to deal with it. How had they found them, he thought bitterly? This is all Brun's fault, if he had not gone after Ebra, then we would be gone and they would not have found us. His eyes fell on Durc and his scowl deepened.

Corg signaled from across the river, "Are you of Brun's clan?"

This infuriated Broud even more. "No!" He gesticulated rather angrily. "Brun is my mother's mate. I am Broud and I am the leader. What do you want?"

Corg noticed that Broud was not happy. Who wouldn't notice with his angry gestures? He became concerned that he had taken what was left of his clan on a journey for no reason, and he glanced at the women and children that would not be able to take the trip back.

"I am Corg, and this is Oda," he said pulling the cowering woman forward. "Her daughter Ura was promised to the son of your medicine woman at the last clan gathering. We have lost our clan in the quake and we have nowhere to go. This clan would like to join your clan if you would allow."

"That medicine woman is no longer with us," was all that he said.

"And what of the boy, Durc? Is he still with your clan?"

Broud saw no way out of his promise and nodded. Corg repeated his last statement; "This clan would like to join your clan if you would allow."

Broud was not happy, but he knew he had already agreed to the promise and he could see no way out of it, so he acquiesced and sent Crug and Borg to help these people across the river. Maybe they will get swept away like my mother did, he thought hopefully, but they all crossed safely.

**XxX**

**Durc Meets Ura (originally posted on 16 September, 2003)**

Brun and his search party, Ayla and Ebra, and Dorg's clan members set out the next day. Brun wanted to get back to Broud as quickly as possible. Goov had told him that he was sensing trouble.

The men had devised a way to carry Ebra, so that she didn't have to walk at all. Brun watched them construct the strange contraption, which they called a stretcher, and was impressed with their innovation. It's probably something they learned from having the others around so much, he thought as he looked over at Ayla. They sure have some strange ideas.

Ayla seemed to be acting strangely, but that was to be expected. She had no way of knowing what was going to happen to her. Broud was probably going to want to curse her again, but I cannot allow that, he thought. Glancing over at Goov, Brun wondered what the young Mog-ur's thoughts were on Broud cursing Ayla again.

When Brun looked back at Ayla, she was in the medicine woman's customary position, carrying the child Ora, and talking to Grov. The man must like her, even though she's so ugly. I wonder if she is ugly to the others, he thought. And that child…having another Ayla with our clan will be more than the son of my mate can bear I'm sure. What will I do about Broud? Maybe I should take leadership back, but has that been done before? Brun decided that he better discuss the idea with Goov, and gestured the Mog-ur forward.

"Goov," Brun started. "I've been thinking about Broud, and how difficult this all is going to be for him. I do not think he can handle this…_or_being leader." It was obvious that Brun was embarrassed and pained by the realization that the son of his mate was not competent. "I'm wondering if there is anyway to rescind his leadership."

Goov considered what the former leader was saying. He did not want to reply too soon, and he did not have an answer for the man. "Brun, I will search my memories to see if it has ever been done, but if it hasn't been done…for what it's worth, I do agree with you. You should not feel shame Brun. You were a good leader, and you have done what you can for this clan. I have faith that _you_will make the right choice, no matter what it is."

Brun watched as Goov slowed down to assume his place in line, considering what he had said, "…that _you_ will make the right choice…." Does that mean he will stand by me if I choose to _take_back leadership of our clan? He thought it did, but he would still wait for Goov to search his memory.

Broud had stomped off, seething at the prospect of accepting another deformed child into his clan. He couldn't believe they had actually found them. He was heading for his shelter, but changed direction, grabbed his spear and disappeared into the tree line, leaving Crug, Borg and Zoug to deal with the newcomers.

The three men greeted the new clan, and the women got busy making a meal and tea. Uba was extremely curious about Ura. She remembered meeting Oda and Ura at the clan gathering two years before, and she wanted to talk with her. Uba decided to bring Durc with her. "Durc, come with me. I want you to meet someone."

Durc did as he was told. Taking Uba's hand, he followed the young medicine woman toward the stranger, and the little girl that looked like him.

"Oda, Ayla isn't with us, but this is Durc." Uba tried to look at Ura, but he little girl was hiding behind her mother. Experience told her that strangers didn't like her very much and she was scared that this stranger would be like all the others.

"This woman is grieved to hear that Aayghha is not here," Oda said. "Who cares for her son?"

"Well, right now, I do. We have had some trouble. Our former leader's mate fell into the river and was swept away. He and several others have gone searching for her, but they have been gone for a while, and we are getting worried. _But,_for now I would like Ura to meet Durc." Uba tried to look at Ura again, but the little girls was elusive.

Oda wanted her daughter to make a good impression and pulled her out from behind her. "This is Ura."

While the two women had been talking, Grev had approached. He had been curious as to what was going on with his milk brother. "Durc!" He exclaimed. "Ura looks like you." Durc looked at the little girl, but he did not know what he looked like. He knew he looked different, but he had never seen an image of himself to really know.

Grev reached out to touch Ura's hair. "But her hair is different. Uba, why Ura's hair so light? And why are her eyes so light too?"

"I don't know, Grev. That's just the way the spirits mixed," Uba answered. Ura's hair was darker than Ayla's, but still light, and streaked with reddish-brown, and her eyes were hazel in color. The child was definitely different looking, Uba thought.

Durc looked at Ura, but lost interest after his initial inspection of the girl that was to be his mate. He was only three years old after all; he had plenty of time to look at her later.

"Uba, Durc want to play with Grev."

Uba knew the boys wanted to play, and she wanted to let them. Soon enough it would be time to travel again, and there would be no playing. "Go ahead Durc, but take Ura with you."

Oga had been watching the two women. She never did have many friends. She liked Ovra, but Ovra didn't have children and somehow that made a difference. She liked Uba too, but Uba had always been associated with Ayla, and Oga had always tried to stay away from the woman that her mate hated, but things were so different now. When Uba saw Grev's mother watching, she motioned her over.

Oga was pleased to meet Oda, and wanted to make sure Oda felt comfortable here. She knew it was going to be hard, given how Broud felt about deformed children, but she would do what she could to make the young mother welcome. She would do it for Ayla.

When they stopped for a rest and a meal, Goov decided to meditate. He went off alone, just as Creb had always done, and searched his memories for a way to remove Broud from leadership. He did not find anything, but he held his amulet and vowed to keep trying.

**XxX**

**Brun Walks In Front (originally posted on 17 September, 2003)**

After their meal, Brun wanted to be on their way again. Brun was in the lead, with Grod with him, even though Vorn's status as second in command dictated that _he _should have been there instead. Part of it was that Brun was too used to leading, but it was also that Vorn sensed that the end of Broud was coming, and with Broud, him as well. He didn't even care that much. Broud was making life too difficult for everyone.

Ayla walked just behind the two leading men, with most everyone else trailing behind them. Just behind the medicine woman, the men were taking turns carrying Ebra on the stretcher, right now Droog and Goov were doing it. Earlier it had been Dorg and Daub.

Behind Ebra's stretcher was a clump of women and children, with the men walking on either side of them for protection. Grov was the only man carrying a child. Vorn kept looking at him, wondering why a man would want to hold a child, and finally decided to ask. "Why do you carry that child? It's woman's work."

Grov considered the young second in command before answering. He didn't want to offend, after all, it seemed like this clan was having quite the struggle already, without him adding to it. "Ora is the daughter of my mate, and she is dead. She was one of the others and they have very different ways than the clan. Men are expected to care for the children just like anyone else. Before my mate died, she had been with our clan for many years, along with some of her family. They were responsible for much of our change, but then we also had many mixed people in our clan. I think change is easier for mixed people and the others. I am only part clan, as I am sure you can see, and I have changed along with my clan. We have learned this from them, and it is very nice. I am glad that my mate's daughter cares for me. I would be lost now if I did not have Ora."

Vorn had a perplexed look on his face. His mate did not have children yet, but he couldn't imagine carrying them around all the time. That was women's work. "Why would you mate a woman of the others? Don't you find them ugly?" Vorn looked over at Ayla unconsciously.

Grov smiled, which made Vorn even more uncomfortable, then said, "I mated Nora for several reasons. One of them was because neither one of us had anyone else to mate, but also because I cared for her. She was a good woman. She had many skills. She worked hard. She did not see that I am mixed, and no, I did not think she was ugly."

Vorn studied the man, then looked toward Ayla. "What do you think of Ayla?"

"I don't know yet, Vorn. I am still getting to know her. If she likes me, and we can work and live together, then maybe she and I will be good together."

"What does it matter what she wants? She is only a woman. It is the clan way for men to dominate woman. They need it or they become lazy."

"Vorn, I do not see it that way. I want a woman who wants me, not one that is forced to submit to me. I do not want to force a woman to be with me" Grov finished his gesture, and looked over at Ayla. Then he signaled again, "Now, if you don't mind, I would like to speak to our medicine woman."

Vorn watched him go. This man sure had some different ways of looking at women. He could see the attraction that Grov had for Ayla. He could even see a difference in Ayla. She was somehow more enticing now. She seemed to be trying to get Grov to notice her. She had never done anything like that before, in fact, she usually tried to be invisible.

Suddenly, Vorn was missing Uba, and was wondering if things would ever be the same for their clan.

**XxX**

**Broud Returns (originally posted on 18 September, 2003)**

Ayla had been aware that Grov was talking to Vorn, but she had not seen the whole conversation, since she was ahead of them and had to keep her eye on where she was going. She was considering her ugliness when she noticed Grov hand Ora to Uga to nurse, and then set his eyes on her and quicken his step to catch up.

Ayla immediately became nervous when she saw him coming. Not because she was afraid of him, but because he was evoking in her, feelings she had never had, and she didn't know how to respond.

"Hello Grov," she said without kneeling at his feet or waiting for a tap on her shoulder. She couldn't really kneel while they were traveling, and she could tell that Grov didn't want her to do those things. Grov responded with only a grunt, not knowing what to say to her. He just wanted to walk with her.

Ahead, Brun and Grod were keeping a fast pace for the people, but Brun was still watching to see that everyone was keeping up. Aba was having trouble, but the women were helping her along. Vorn was having trouble as well, though it was more that he was _feeling_troubled. Brun understood the thoughts that were going through Vorn's head. He too was wondering what was to become of them; all of them.

Furthermore, he had not missed the conversation between Vorn and Grov, and it worried him that Grov would have difficulty with clan ways. Ayla had not been able to curb some of her behaviors, and it appeared that he might share some of her idiosyncrasies. _But,_ he thought, watching Grov and Ayla walk together, mostly in silence, I now have someone to give Ayla to, _and, _it appears like she would actually be pleased to be his mate.

When the day came to an end, Brun knew they only had one more day of travel left, and he was glad. He wanted so badly to get his people back on track. They needed to find a cave very shortly, and hunt, so they could last the winter.

When Broud returned to where everyone was congregated that evening, he was even more distressed to see Oga associating with the mother of the deformed girl. Why did everyone seem so indifferent, he thought? Broud looked around at the people and his eyes fell on the youngest son of his mate, who was playing with Durc. He was _always_ playing with that deformed boy, _and now, _he's playing with that deformed girl too. Why did Brun let that boy live? If he had not, then Ura would not be here at all. This is all Brun's fault, he thought, his blood boiling.

Uba had seen her mother's sibling's son return, and despite the fading light, she could see the redness of his face, and whom he was watching. She sent a plea to her totem, begging the spirits for the safe return of Brun and everyone else, as she didn't know how much longer it would be before Broud exploded.

Oga also saw Broud return, and she saw his dark look. She had spent many years with him, and had always been happy, until recently. Now, all she felt for him was distrust and fear, and even anger.

**XxX**

**The End Finally Arrives (originally posted on 18 September, 2003)**

The next morning, Brun's group started off at sunrise. As Brun remembered their journey downriver quite well, and decided they should be able to reach Broud's clan in time for the midday meal.

The members of their party were extremely excited that they would be seeing family and fiends, it had had been quite an extended and unexpected trip. Aba was looking forward to seeing her daughter, Groob and Ona. Ayla, though uptight about coming up against Broud, was dying to hold Durc again and see Uba. And though they would not admit it, the men that didn't have their mates with them, were looking forward to seeing them.

The other people were a little less excited. They hadn't missed the fact that everyone seemed uneasy about coming upon their leader again. Grov knew his and Ora's presence would be trouble, Vorn's attitude had told him that. And Dorg was nervous about how the son of his dead mate would be treated.

Brun knew he was going to have to deal with a lot, and he was mentally preparing himself as they walked.

Everyone back at the camp had fallen into a rather lazy routine, if you could even call it that. They woke up and ate. The men hunted after the morning meal, while the women looked after the children. When the men were done hunting they returned and ate again. Then they either practiced with their weapons, made new weapons or talked about weapons until the evening meal. That day was no different.

After eating, Broud signaled Oga to relieve his needs. Afterwards, he told her the men would hunt, and that he wanted her to stay away from Oda and Ura. "Yes, Broud. This woman will do as her mate wishes," Oga replied, even though she was becoming increasingly irritated by his ridiculous demands.

Broud grunted his pleasure with her words, but something didn't seem right to him. He watched her closely, but called the men and they left. Only Zoug and Crug stayed behind to watch over the woman. Zoug was too old to go; his vision was failing him, and Broud had asked Crug to work with Brac and Groob on their bolas.

As the morning went on, not much seemed to be happening, everyone was just doing his or her own thing; the children were playing, the few men were teaching and the women were talking and resting.

Oga had obeyed Broud and was staying away from Oda, but she was closely watching the woman talk with, and enjoy the company of, the medicine woman. Uba noticed Oga's wistful look, and assumed she was staying away for a reason.

Everything was rather quiet when suddenly Ura let out a howl like no one had ever heard before. Everyone jumped up as their gaze was caught by the swift movement of a lynx that had slyly snuck into the camp, grabbed the two-year old girl by the arm and began dragging her away. Zoug, though old and half blind, reached for his sling, and had a stone in the air within seconds. The loud "thwack" that sounded told everyone the animal was dead, but the child's screams did not cease.

Oga, who had experienced the same terror when Brac was young, was the woman who reached the wailing child first. Oda and Uba arrived within seconds. Uba stripped the child to examine her. She definitely had a broken arm, no one could miss the bone protruding through her skin, but other than that, the child seemed unharmed. The other two women, assisted the medicine woman in holding the child for the bone repair. It was going to hard work, but Uba had the memories.

All of a sudden, out of nowhere, Oga felt her head explode with excruciating pain as her body flew back several feet from where she was kneeling down helping Uba and Oda.

"OGA!" Broud yelled with rage, kicking the woman that lay on the ground. "I ordered you to stay away from _that_ WOMAN and _that_CHILD! How dare you defy ME!" He gesticulated in fury. He stopped for only a second to catch his breath from running, but descended upon her once more with more anger than anyone there had every seen. "I am your MATE! I am the LEADER! How dare YOU! He paused again, then was about to go after her again, when Brac stepped up between his mother and her mate.

It looked as though Broud was going to strike the child in his anger, but Crug swiftly charged to the defense of the woman and her son. Broud had finally gone too far, he thought. We do not beat women for helping people and we do not beat children for any reason.

In the commotion, no one had seen Brun and the others approaching until he was on top of them. His heart sank as he saw the son of his mate kicking and beating Oga.

Vorn, Grod, Droog, Goov and Borg ran to help Crug, who was holding off their possessed leader. Corg, Norv and Nouz stared dumbfounded as the scene unfolded. Dorg, Daub and Grov stood by their own women as protection, and Ayla, Uka and Ovra rushed over to help Oga, who lay writhing on the ground, moaning in agony and bleeding profusely.

Brun, as calmly as he could, walked up to Broud and tore the amulet from around the son of his mate's neck, removed the stone that signified his leadership, dropped it on the ground and smashed it into the dirt with his foot. "Broud!" Brun said in a controlled, yet commanding voice. "_YOU,_ are no leader, and _WE_will not stand for your abuse any longer!"

**XxX**

**Ayla's Throw (originally posted on 19 September, 2003)**

The scene that was displayed would have caused past generations of the clan of the cave bear to arrest into coronary immediately. Fortunately, they had come so far as to be willing to end the leadership of the man who should never have been leader.

Ayla had gone to work on Oga right away, but she could not stop the miscarriage that was caused by the severe beating. She was able to get the woman's bleeding under control. She cleaned her up, packed her with absorbent leather and made the battered woman comfortable.

"Oga," Ayla said, but Oga did not respond. The medicine woman glanced around, looking for Brun. He was still standing near Broud, watching the son of his mate struggle against the other men. Ayla got up and ran toward the informally reinstated leader, dropping to the ground in front of him. Brun tapped her shoulder without hesitation, which caused a gasp to circulate around the people that were not aware Ayla was no longer dead.

"Brun," Ayla began. "Oga needs to know that I am not dead. I can treat her better if she can see me." Brun nodded, and called everyone's attention, but it was Goov that spoke.

"I have discovered that the bones are no longer set. The woman, Ayla, is among us again."

Suddenly, as if a veil had been lifted, everyone's eyes focused on the amazing woman that stood before them. She had overcome yet another death curse, and they were awestruck.

Ayla looked around at everyone, and her eyes stopped on Uba, who had been working on something, but had turned to acknowledge her sister before going back to work. Ayla suddenly realized there were other people there besides Brun's clan. Brun's clan, she thought with a smile. I'm so glad it is Brun's clan again.

Then, all of a sudden, Ayla remembered Oga, and ran toward the woman lying in the dirt. Oga had fallen asleep, and Ayla wanted to keep her comfortable. Ebra had insisted on being carried over and put down next to the damaged woman. Ayla made the leader's mate comfortable as well, then left the two women in the care of Uka and Ovra so she could go over to see if Uba needed help.

Uba was overjoyed that Ayla had returned, but she was still trying to stabilize Ura's broken arm, and welcomed the help of the first ranked medicine woman when she arrived. Ayla, on the other hand, was stunned to see Oda kneeling there, and then realized that the child must be Ura, the intended mate of her son.

"Uba, what happened?"

"Ayla," she said. "This woman is so glad you are back. We were just relaxing. Most of the men were out hunting, and all of a sudden a lynx came in and started to drag Ura off. Zoug killed the lynx with his sling. We were helping Ura when Broud came back and beat Oga."

"Oda, it is good to see you. It has been a long time. Maybe you could boil some water, so I can make a sedative for Ura. If we don't set the break properly, then she won't be able to use her arm, and we cannot set it properly if she is awake."

Oda did not need to be told twice. Ura already had her deformity against her, she did not want her to be lame as well.

When the water was ready, the two medicine women administered the drug and repaired the break. They had to push the bone back in, sew up muscle and skin, which Uba had searched her memories to be able to do, then they bound the tiny arm of Ura and lay her down near Oga and Ebra.

It was at that time that Ayla took a deep breath, and turned toward the struggle.

Broud was still struggling. He was throwing punches like mad, and it was taking all the strength of the six men that were holding the incensed man back to hold him. Ayla watched for but a moment, then pulled out her sling and lopped a stone up in the air so that it fell down on the top of the man's head, knocking him out instantly, but not harming him permanently. The men that had been restraining him put him down and stared at the woman who hunts.

Ayla didn't know why she had done what she did, it had just seemed right at the time, but she was unsure now. Brun didn't look too happy, and then there was the shock on the faces of Oda's clan. They didn't know that she was allowed to use a sling. Oda looked terrified, and the other men from her clan looked angry.

Ayla went to Brun and cowered at his feet, hoping he would not curse her for what she had done. He tapped her shoulder and she looked up. "Ayla, I do not want any of us hurting others, but do not worry, it is good that you stopped Broud; he was out of control. This man is grateful that you are back, and that you can help Uba with the injured people. Now, go see if anyone else needs assistance. We need to put our clan back together so we can find a cave to live in."

Ayla was stunned by his praise, and by the information that he had bestowed upon her. This wasn't the first time the stoic leader had been grateful to her. He isn't angry with me, she thought, and hid her smile. I am a good clan woman.

**XxX**

**Ayla's News (originally posted on 19 September, 2003)**

Brun had ordered that Broud's hands be bound behind him with leather straps. He did not have a memory for this, but Grov suggested it, and it seemed like the only way to stop the son of his mate from inflicting more damage on their clan. Though he hadn't thought about it before, Brun could see the advantage, which they gained from having mixed men among them. They had different ideas.

After binding Broud, Brun told Ayla to examine him, just to make sure his injury was not life threatening. Ayla come over to examine him, and had to cringe as she touched the man that so full of hate. He had so much, she thought. Why was he such an angry man? Ayla ran her finger through his hair searching for the spot the stone had hit. She found a bump on the top of his head, but decided that it would not be the end of him.

As the medicine woman did her examination, the man opened his eyes and stared back at her. He noticed that he could not move his arms, and that the woman was examining his head. He tried to move away from her, but with his hands bound behind him, he could do nothing. His eyes blazed with anger.

Brun was aware when Broud came to, but he kept himself busy with matters of the people. He wanted everyone to set up the shelters. It was likely that they would spend some time at this sight; at least a day or so, so Oga could be completely stabilized. Ura could be carried, and Ebra already had her "stretcher." Looks like we need at least one more stretcher, Brun assessed mentally, looking at Broud's woman.

"Daub," Brun called to the young man who had constructed the stretcher. "I need another stretcher for Oga." Daub nodded, and went to work right away.

Ayla and the women gathered around the injured people, and talked about what they had all been going through; both those on the search and those left behind with Broud. Brun let it go on for a short time, and then he chastised them for gossiping.

Meanwhile, Goov had been meditating, trying to find a fitting punishment for Broud's behavior, and asking the spirits to help them find a cave.

When Brun approached the young Mog-ur, he hesitated, not wanting to interrupt if the man was making progress, but Goov gestured him forward.

"Have you found anything, Mog-ur?"

"Yes Brun," he said. "The spirits tell me that we should travel along this river; there will be caves at the end of it."

"And what of Broud's punishment? Have you found a punishment befitting his crime in your memories?"

Goov hesitated, then went on, "Yes Brun, I have."

Sometime in the evening, Oga woke up. Turning her head she saw the child, Ura, lying next to her, bandaged up, but asleep. When she turned her head the other way, she saw Ebra sitting there, propped up against some large rocks, but facing away from her.

Am I dreaming, she thought to herself? Ebra wasn't here earlier, was she? Am I in the world of the spirits? Oga looked around her and was pleased to see that the three of them were not alone. She saw the spirit of Ayla, but remembered that she didn't think the woman was dead.

What had happened to her? The woman had to concentrate hard to remember. Then it came back to her. She remembered the lynx attacking Ura and rushing to help her. Then, all of a sudden, Broud was upon her, yelling at her, and kicking and hitting her. She knew she had disobeyed him, but the child needed help.

Then Oga began to panic, where was Broud now? She looked around, but could not find him. She didn't know that Brun had ordered that he be taken inside a shelter, so that he would be out of sight.

Oga turned back to Ebra and groaned. Ebra looked at her immediately. "Ayla!"

Ayla fixed her gaze on the two injured women, and noticing that Oga was awake, got up and went over to them. "Oga, I am so glad you have woken up. How are you feeling?"

Oga shrugged her shoulders, and grimaced with pain. She was badly bruised all over, and it hurt to even do that.

"Oga, this woman is grieved to report that you have lost your baby," Ayla gestured formally and looked down at the ground. Oga had been scared that being pregnant during their search would be difficult, but she had also been happy about the prospect of having another baby. Now she was devastated. Ebra put her arms around the grieving woman, and felt responsible for not doing a better job raising Broud. Ovra too felt sympathy for Oga, she had miscarried several times herself, and the pain in Oga's eyes was not lost on her.

Ayla watched the heartbroken woman with tears in her eyes. "Oga, I need to examine you. It may hurt a bit, but it needs to be done. I need to make sure you are completely cleaned out, so infection does not set in."

Oga nodded and lay back for the painful exam. When Ayla had finished, she smiled at the grief stricken woman, "Oga, I will want to check on you often, just to make sure, but I think you will still be able to have children. You do not seem to have any permanent damage.

Oga sighed with relief, and hugged the medicine woman, who had done so much for her.

**XxX**

**Broud's Just Desserts (originally posted on 19 September, 2003)**

The clan rested for two days before Brun called a meeting of his people, and this is what he said:

"The clan has suffered much. We have all lost our homes and our loved ones. Now we are on a journey, to find a new place to live; a place that we can _all _live together in the clan way.

Please bring Broud out of the shelter." Grod and Droog got up and went to fetch the restrained man. Brun wanted the son of his mate to bear witness to the rest that he would say.

When Broud was brought out and put before his mother's mate, Brun made eye contact with him and continued. "We have been cursed with a leader that has not served us well. I will take responsibility for that, because I should have seen long ago that Broud was not competent.

Yesterday, I removed the leadership stone from his amulet and ground it into the dirt. I have here," he said holding up a new stone, "another one. I want all of you, women included, to vote now on whether or not you would like me to lead again." The only dissenter was Broud, whose look portrayed his vote.

When it was obvious what everyone wanted, Goov stepped forward, and everyone watched as he _went through the motions that retired_ Broud _and raised_ Brun _to the rank of leader, _just as he had done in reverse not too long ago. Goov then took the stone that Brun held, open the new leader's amulet and placed it inside.

After the changing of leaders, Brun turned toward the assembly again. "The first thing I want to do as leader, is to invite all of our unofficially acquired members to join our numbers. As all of us are part of the clan of the cave bear, we must take care of our own. Will you join us?"

The six men that stood before Brun nodded. Goov came forward again and gave them, and their women and children, a cave bear tooth to put in their amulets. Then the Mog-ur stepped back.

"And now," Brun continued. "We have the matter of Broud's punishment. We have already striped you of your leadership. I am now lowering your rank to the lowest ranked person in the clan, which you will be for _at least_ one cycle of seasons, starting from the time we find a cave. Second, I am taking Oga and her sons away from you for the abuse you have inflicted upon her, _and_ because she should not have to be the lowest ranked female because of you. I have not decided who will be responsible for her right now, but Ayla has agreed to care for her for the time being, as a medicine woman should. Third, until we have found a cave, you will stay completely out of sight. What I mean by this is that you will have to track us, but never come close enough for us to actually see you. I know that you cannot cook for yourself, so food will be set out every day for you. And finally, when we do find a cave, until I see fit, you shall order no one to do anything, including making the signal to the women. You can serve yourself in all ways. _And, _I reserve the right to increase punishments, modify them or end them all together, as I deem necessary. "

Brun watched the reaction that crossed Broud's face. His anger turned to fear, and then to contrite humiliation. It was what Brun wanted to see. This might be a good start, but he wished he had done it sooner.

**XxX**

**They Begin Again (originally posted on 20 September, 2003)**

The next morning, as everyone packed up to leave, the men of Dorg's clan prepared their own loads to carry, causing many curious looks. Their women could have easily shouldered the entire burden, but that's not how they did things. Some of Brun's women cast approving glances, wishing their men would do the same.

Ayla had been doting on their injured for days, and Ebra finally had to shoo the medicine woman away, saying, "Ayla, I am quite fine. I will keep an eye on Oga, and call you if she needs you."

Ayla smiled sheepishly at the leader's mate, knowing that she had been practically on top of the two women.

When everyone was ready, Ayla grabbed her belongings, and ran to her place in line. This time she was far less loaded up since other women were helping the alive and well medicine woman with her things. It is so good to be where I belong, she thought.

Uba came to stand next to her with a twinkle in her eyes. She too was glad Ayla was back. It had not been the same without her strange sister.

Durc, who had spent so much time away from his mother in the last weeks, was ecstatic to have her back, and didn't want to leave her side. Grev tried to entice him to walk back with him, but Durc gestured, "I want to walk with Mama."

Ayla smiled at her son, but encouraged him to walk with Grev. "It will make the walking more fun for you Durc, if you walk with your brother." She hadn't really wanted him to go, but knew she'd be carrying him in no time if he stayed, _and_she wasn't really that far from him if he walked with Grev, who would be with Ebra and Oga on stretchers just behind them.

When everyone was all ready to go, Brun left his place at the front of the line to go talk to Broud. Broud was sitting on a rock, watching everyone prepare to leave. He still couldn't believe he had to remain behind the clan and stay out of sight until they found a cave. That could be a long time. And Oga, he had lost Oga…and Brac and Grev. He wistfully watched the boys standing near the front of the line. He was having such a hard time controlling his thoughts. One minute he was feeling guilt and shame, but the next he was raging inside.

As Brun approached, the younger former leader waited, thinking that this was going to be a tough period of time.

"Broud," Brun began. "You must wait until the sun is high in the sky before you follow. Here is some traveling food to last you until we stop, and here are your shelter, furs, and you spear," he said handing the son of his mate a small package of food and his belongings. You may carry your spear for self-defense, and if you wish, you may hunt with it. If you do choose to hunt, you must figure out what to do with the meat.

Shortly before we stop for the night, I will have one of the women put food out for you again. When you find it, then you may stop for the night. When it is time to leave in the mornings, I will send someone to let you know, or I will come myself. If you want to, you could give me any meat you have hunted, and I will distribute it among the clan. Is there anything you need right now?"

Broud was having a hard time taking it all in. He had never _really _been alone before, and the reality of his predicament struck him like a blow to the face. "No Brun," he said with completely silent gestures. "I will let you know tomorrow morning if I have any thing to ask you."

Brun looked down at Ebra's son with concern. He knew he had done what was necessary for the clan, but that didn't make it any easier; Broud was still the son of his mate. Brun turned to go, but turned back, signing, "Walk with Ursus Broud."

Broud watched the leader retreat, vowing to himself to become the man Brun wanted him to be. Secretly, _he _doubted he could do it, but he wanted to try. He wanted to get Oga and her sons back, and he didn't like it when Brun looked at him with pity. All of this never would have happened if Iza hadn't picked up Ayla, he thought angrily, then chastised himself for immediately blaming the woman that everyone else seemed to like.

When Brun arrived at the front of the assemblage, he gestured their departure. Now, my clan consists of more people than I can even count, he thought as they started out. We're going to have to find a very large cave, or maybe even more than one close together. Did something like that even exist?

**XxX**

**Here is the order in which I have ranked the people of _Brun's_ clan...for now, anyway.**

*** Please note – women fall wherever their mate is ranked. The only females who have some sort of rank of their own are the medicine women.**

**Brun** (33) leader  
><strong>Ebra<strong> (31)

-~-**Zoug** (43)  
><strong>Grod<strong> (29) second in command  
><strong>Uka<strong> (27)

**Goov** (20) Mog-ur status (can walk wherever he pleases)  
><strong>Ovra <strong>(18)

**Ayla** (14) first ranked medicine woman – has her own status  
><strong>Oga<strong> (17) under the care of Ayla  
>-~-<strong>Brac<strong> (7)  
>-~-<strong>Grev<strong> (4)  
>-~-<strong>Durc<strong> (3)

-~-**Aba** (35)  
><strong>Droog<strong> (31) first toolmaker  
><strong>Aga<strong> (24)  
>-~-<strong>Groob <strong>(6)

**Crug** (22)  
><strong>Ika<strong> (20)  
>-~-<strong>Igra<strong> (6)  
>-~-<strong>Dorv<strong> (1)

**Dorg** (20) second toolmaker  
><strong>Uga<strong> (16)  
>-~-<strong>Vorg<strong> (7)  
>-~-<strong>Breg<strong> (5)

**Corg** (17)  
><strong>Aza<strong> (15)  
>-~-<strong>Orga<strong> (5)  
>-~-<strong>Egra<strong> (2)

**Daub** (17)  
><strong>Eka<strong> (15)  
>-~-<strong>Ada<strong>  
>-~-<strong>Aka<strong>

**Grov** (16)  
>-~-<strong>Ora<strong> (1)

**Norv** (15)  
>-~-<strong>Nouz<strong> (9)  
>-~-<strong>Nala <strong>(4)

**Vorn** (13)  
><strong>Uba<strong> (8) second medicine woman – has status of her own (walks with Ayla)

**Borg** (9)  
><strong>Ona<strong> (9)

**Oda** (12)  
>-~-<strong>Ura <strong>(2)

**Broud** (21)

**XxX**

**Who Shall Go? (originally posted on 21 September, 2003)**

The routine had been set that first day of travel. They walked at a slow, but steady pace from dawn until dusk, every day. Brun checked out possible caves, but none had been adequate so far. It had been a week.

Oga was doing much better. She could walk again, but Ayla had requested from Brun that she not be responsible for carrying anything. He had agreed. Ayla had also requested that the woman be allowed to walk with her so she could keep an eye on her. Brun agree to that as well, and Oga was grateful. The two women were enjoying the beginnings of friendship after all the years of ignoring one another.

Ebra was still being carried, but she too was doing well. Ayla and Uba had decided to give her a few more days in the cast before removing it and letting the woman move with more freedom. Ebra was anxiously waiting the day it came off.

As for Broud, well no one had seen him for days. Brun had decided that for a while, he would be the one to go to Broud every morning. It just seemed like the right thing to do.

That morning was like every other morning, everyone was packing up to leave and Brun was trying to decided who would go back to see Broud. He thought it was time to make the change. But whom should he send? He didn't want to send one of the women, for fear Broud would have another episode and hurt one of them, and he knew that none of the men wanted to go help the young man.

Then it came to the leader…I can send Ayla. She can defend herself very well, and as a woman she won't object to doing the task.

"Ayla!" Brun called. "I want you to go back to Broud this morning, bring him food, and let him know we are moving on."

Ayla blanched at the leader's order, but nodded, accepting that she must do as she was bid.

When Ayla was about to start off, Grov signaled her to wait, and went to talk to Brun. "Brun, I would like to go with the medicine woman, if you will allow. I fear for her safety. She is only a woman."

If Brun could have smiled, he would have been. "Grov, Ayla is hardly 'only a woman.' She is quite capable of doing this task," Brun said. "But, if you would like to go, then I will allow it. A woman likes to be protected, after all."

Grov, who was usually more reserved, allowed a smile to cross his lips, and went to walk with Ayla. Brun shook his head; those mixed people are just as strange as the others are.

Ayla didn't know why Grov had ordered her to wait, but it became obvious when left Brun and caught up with her. "I am going with you."

Ayla blushed, "This woman is grateful that you will be there to protect her."

Grov looked at her strangely, and smiled. "This man would like to do more than just protect you."

Ayla blushed again, not quite sure what he meant. She had a good idea, but he hadn't made the signal, so she continued on the path toward Broud, thinking that she must have been mistaken. No one wanted her; she was too big and ugly.

Broud hadn't been up long when he saw Ayla and the deformed man Grov approaching. They were so deep in conversation and didn't notice that he was staring at them.

What does he see in her? She has got to be the most ugly woman I've ever seen, he thought. And what does _she_see in him; the man is deformed? She didn't even acknowledge that I paid her favor when I took her.

Ayla and Grov stopped when they saw Broud. Grov had been carrying Broud's provisions and was about to give them to him, but Ayla stopped him and took them.

Ayla walked up to Broud slowly, and gracefully lowered herself to the ground in front of him. After all the seasons of Broud being the way he was toward her, the woman still just wanted to be accepted by him.

Broud was mystified by her behavior. He figured she would be gloating, but she wasn't. He tapped her shoulder.

Ayla didn't say anything, she just handed Broud his food and backed away to leave. Grov watched the two of them, but when Ayla returned to where he was standing, he possessively put an arm around her, to protect her from the man that had raged only days before.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Accident (originally posted on 21 September, 2003)**

A few more days passed, bringing the day that Ebra's cast like covering would finally be removed. Ayla and Uba made the woman comfortable and cut the leather straps that held it tight. Ayla held the wood that had formed to the shape of the woman's leg, and slowly removed it. Uba examined the leg and nodded. Ayla also poked and prodded, then added her nod to Uba's.

"Now Ebra, you still need to stay off of it," Ayla gestured, wanting the woman to not rebreak her leg. Then, seeing that the woman was going to object, Uba added, "just for a day or so."

Brun had been extremely curious about what the medicine women were doing, but he held back, knowing that they were competent, and that he would be in the way if he were to be there as well. When he saw them help Ebra to her feet, he was as overjoyed as a man of the clan could be.

While they were at it, they also checked on Ura's casted arm. They cleaned her arm up and checked the stitches where the bone had protruded. It looked good. She was younger, and younger bones usually healed easier, but her break had been compound and it would still be a while before her cast was ready to be removed.

Oda was grateful that the first medicine woman was taking such an interest in her daughter.

That day, they had started off after the medicine women had cared for Ebra and Ura.. They traveled in a generally northeastern direction, following the river. They had spent so much time next to the river that some were beginning to think it was endless.

After traveling yet another week's worth of days without seeing a suitable cave, they came across a large body of water. Brun didn't stop then, he was beginning to feel desperate, and quickened their pace.

However, as they traveled, _herbaceous flowers of white, yellow, and purple—more rarely a vivid blue or bright red—filled the land, blending in the distance to the predominant young green of new grass._ Ayla gathered everything she could, putting her medicinal herbs in her carrying basket, and adding a few pretty flowers here and there. _Ayla delighted in the beauty of the season; spring had always been her favorite time of year._

One day, when they had been following the lake-like body of water for several days, Brun finally brought them to a halt. Ayla, who had been so deep in her thoughts about spring, failed to notice that Brun and Grod had stopped in front of her. She was walking slowly, sort of just meandering around, and had accidentally walked right into the leader.

Brun looked up at her with an unreadable expression on his face, and Ayla dropped down in front of him. Brun didn't even bother to tap her shoulder, he just moved away from the careless medicine woman to talk to Grod.

When Ayla realized that no tap was coming, she stood up again and looked around, feeling embarrassed. When she got over the embarrassment, she looked around at their surroundings. The lake was gone; they were following the river again. She wondered how long it had been since they had left the lake, and couldn't believe she had missed the change in scene. Was I really that into these beautiful flowers, she thought looking down at her basket?

The day had been rather warm, but the sun was sinking, and Brun was calling it a day. During that day's travel, their direction had changed from northeast, to north, and then to northwest. The place that Brun had chosen to stop was as good a place as any, Ayla thought. Across the river she could see that the river split in two again. Ayla considered the split, obviously, they would not ford the river; they would travel along the tributary that was closest to them.

When Brun signaled that they would stay there for the night, everyone dropped their belongings and set up their shelters. Fires were set and banked, so as not to go out, and the meal was started. Everyone was exhausted.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Excursion (originally posted on 23 September, 2003)**

The next morning, when all the people had risen and had consumed their morning meal, they packed up once again. Brun went back to tell Broud they were leaving, and when he returned they lined up and left immediately.

The season had warmed significantly, but gale winds still blew, causing the skin of the people to roughen, crack and peel. Everyone was tired of traveling, but fear of winter caused them to continue. _Winter always ruled the land. On the hottest day of summer, the harsh glacial cold was never far from thought. Food had to be stockpiled and protection found to survive the long bitter season._ They _had been wandering since early spring and_ were _beginning to wonder if _they _were doomed to roam forever…._

When it came time to stop for the midday meal, Brun chose to stop by an outcrop of trees that they had seen ahead of them for some time. The people were hot and tired, _wind blown,_, and the shade and protection was welcome.

Ayla ate quickly, since she wanted to do a little gathering before they started off again. She approached the distressed leader to ask for permission, but Brun had seen her coming and signaled her not to kneel.

"Brun," she began. "This woman is low on medicinal herbs. This woman would like to take some time to gather if the leader thinks she has time." Ayla waited watching the man consider her request.

"Humph," he grunted looking around. "Ask Grov to go with you. I don't want you out alone. We don't know the area."

Ayla nodded and went over to Grov. He had seen the conversation, and was already picking up his spear. When Ayla saw him coming, she knew she didn't need to ask the man to come with her.

"Durc, I am going to gather herbs. Do you want to go with me?"

The boy looked to be considering the question. He was sitting with Grev, eating his meal, and wasn't sure if he wanted to leave his friend. Then, thinking about he last time his mother had gone off without him, and the length of time she had been gone, he nodded and got up to follow. A fleeting look of disappointment crossed Grov's face, then he shrugged and went to get Ora.

Ora had been sitting on Uga's lap nursing, while Uga sat with Oda, who was nursing Ura as well. The two young women had much in common, both had lost their first daughters, and both had lost their clans. Uga handed Ora to Grov, watching him walk off to catch up with Ayla. They are a good match, she thought.

Ura, watched Grov leave, carrying Ora, and she wasn't too happy about it. Then when she saw that Durc was going too, she began to wail. "Ura want to go with Ora and Durc!"

Ayla heard Ura's cry and turned back signaling to Oda. "It's okay with me Oda, if she wants to come with us." Oda shrugged and sent Ura on.

Brun had watched the whole scene. There was no doubt in his mind that Grov wanted to be given Ayla, _and_, though it didn't really matter, she really seemed to enjoy his company. It is a good match, he thought.

Grov, Ayla and the three children walked along the tree line, while Ayla gather everything that would fit in her basket. This river valley has so much, she thought.

They came to a small open area, where Grov sat the two girls down and gave them some rocks to play with. Durc had brought his small spear, in imitation of the man, and pretended to hunt.

"Grov, I hunt like a man," he said stabbing his spear into the dirt.

Grov nodded at the boy. "You sure do Durc, but hold the spear like this," he said repositioning the boy's spear. Durc smile up at the man.

While Grov was keeping the kids out of Ayla's hair, she was busily collecting. She hadn't realized she had wandered out of sight until she became thirsty. When she reached for her water bag, she happened to look up, and the sight that was in front of her caused her to drop the water bag.

"Grov!" She yelled.

It did not take the man long to pick up Ora and Ura, signal Durc to follow, and catch up with Ayla.

When he reached her, she pointed up at the mountain that stood in front of them. There was a cave in the side of it, and from what he could see from the outside, it looked like a good one.

The opening was of a decent size, but how big was it on the inside, he thought?

Ayla was certain this was the cave they had been searching for.

**XxX**

**Grov's Furrowing Brow (originally posted on 23 September, 2003)**

Grov took a step forward, ready to check out the cave, but Ayla put her hand on his shoulder. "Grov, this woman would suggest that we go back to tell Brun," she said with an unsure look on her face.

Grov considered her suggestion. He really wanted to explore the cave first, so he would know first hand if it was acceptable, but he knew she was right. "Maybe we could just stand at the mouth and look in," he said, knowing that wouldn't be right either.

Ayla smiled at him. He is very curious, she thought. I really like that. "We can't do that, what about the children. We shouldn't take them up there, nor can we leave them alone here."

Grov furrowed his brow, considering the dilemma and knowing she was right. "You go look at it first, and I will stay with them, and then when you are finished, then I will go."

Ayla cocked her head. "This woman thinks you should go first, Grov. Shouldn't a man see it first?"

"No Ayla, you found it, you should see it first."

Ayla smiled at the mixed man, who was really growing on her, and nodded her head. "I will go, but will you take the children back to the clearing so they are not watching?"

It was Grov's turn to nod. As he backed away with the children, Ayla turned to look at the cave entrance, and started for it with a quickened step.

Ayla carefully made her way up the rocky hill toward the cave. The way was not steep at all, in fact, there was a nice path leading up the hill. Ayla turned and looked behind her when she reached the ledge. She could see everything.

She had not noticed when she was so low, but the river ended here, or rather, probably started here with ice melt, and got larger and larger as it flowed. There was a smaller river, really more of a stream, coming down from somewhere on the hill, and going into the river down below.

On the other side of the river, there was a sparse forest of pines, and if she squinted, she could see another river through the trees. Ahead of her, she could see the more dense forest that she and Grov had come around. He must be right around that bend, she thought, straining to see him. She could not see him.

"And the clan must be over there," she gestured, pointing their direction as if she were telling someone where they were. She caught herself and giggled at the thought talking to people that weren't there. Then, she turned to the cave.

Ayla pulled out her sling and approached cautiously. She took several steps into the darkness of the cave, wishing Grov was with her with a torch. Then, as her eyes adjusted, she discovered that the cave was not entirely dark. Was that light she saw in the distance, she thought. How could it be? It's too far away to be light.

As the woman went further into the cave, she realized that this cave was bigger than any she had ever heard about, and there were niches all around the great room she was in. What perfect hearths, she considered, as she step in even more.

Then she came to a place where there seemed to be three separate passageways. When she looked to her left, she could tell there must be another opening, for the light was unmistakable. When she looked straight ahead, she saw light as well, though it was more diffused, and she could nothing to her right, though it was not completely dark there either. And what is it that I hear, she strained, trying to listen to the noise? That's running water. This cave has it's own spring.

Ayla could not contain herself; she spun around and practically flew out of the cave. She ran down the path and around the trees toward Grov. When she saw him, she was about to explode, but she lowered herself to the ground in front of him like a good clan woman, and waited.

Grov had watched the woman coming, and knew by her body movements that this was it. He didn't tap her shoulder, but took her hand and pulled her up instead "Grov, this woman would tell this man how wonderful the cave is. There are several other openings, besides the main one. This woman did not go in too far, but she can tell you that it is huge."

Grov could feel her excitement as she gestured about the experience, and her closeness was having another effect on him. When she finally noticed his need, she blushed and would have obeyed had he given her the signal, but he did not want to signal her. He didn't want to _make _her relieve him, and he didn't see that she actually wanted to.

Grov blushed as well, and stammered, "Ahh, Ayla!" Then he finished up with, "I will go check quickly, so we can go tell Brun about the cave." She nodded at him, wondering why he hadn't signaled her when he obviously had need. Am I so ugly that not even Grov, who had been mated to an others woman before, would want me?

She cleared the thought away, turning to look at the three children at play; two mixed and one Others. It didn't matter what Grov thought, she had Durc, and Durc now had Ura, and maybe someday she would have a man of her own.

Grov jogged up the path, needing to get away from Ayla. He had wanted to make the signal so badly, but he had heard about what Broud had done to her, and he couldn't do that.

He too cleared his mind, as he reached the top of the path. He slowly entered the cave and was astounded by the size. Ayla had not been wrong about its enormity. He walked in far enough to see the three passageways. He knew he needed to hurry, but he wanted to look around. Grov chose the left passageway, since it was lit up the most, and within moments, he came to another open room with another cave entrance. When he looked out the entrance he could see rolling hills.

He finally turned around, let his eyes adjust and then he realized that there was another passage leading off in a different direction than the one he had come in from. There was light down that way too, so he decided to take a quick look.

He hadn't gone far when he realized it was getting lighter again. He made a right turn, and followed the light. The cave opened up into another huge room. There was an opening in the roof of the cave, letting in light, and there was a large column right next to the opening; just about in the center of the room with water running down over it, and pooling on the cave floor. And there was running water behind the pool.

Grov was as excited as Ayla had been. He had never heard of such a cave, and couldn't wait to show it to Brun. When he looked to his right, he noticed that he was looking back at the main entrance; he had gone a full circle. Grov quickly exited the cave, and ran back to Ayla. They scooped up the children and hurriedly returned to the group.

Brun had been sitting against a rock relaxing. Grov and Ayla had been gone about an hour, and he was starting to worry. He was fairly sure they would be okay, but he was contemplating sending someone out to look for them when they appeared through the trees. Their movements left no doubt in his mind that they had found a cave, and that they thought it had possibilities.

**XxX**

**A New Leader (originally posted on 25 September, 2003)**

Brun watched them approach; they were walking side by side, in a very unclan like way. He was going to have to talk to them, he thought.

Then, there was a slight moment of indecision when Ayla stopped walking, but Grov insisted that she go to Brun immediately. The medicine woman looked as if she was going to argue with the man, but nodded and came forward. She hadn't wanted to be the one to tell the leader, because a man should do it, but she knew Grov wanted her to tell him, because she had found it.

Ayla walked forward with purpose and lowered herself to the ground with grace, waiting for the leader's acknowledgement.

Brun had never wanted to know what a woman had to say so much in his life. He did not want to show this, but he could not avoid it. He leaned over and tapped her shoulder almost before her knees were on the ground.

Ayla's breath exploded, as she pointed and said one word, "Cave!"

Again, if Brun could have smiled, he would have. Wasn't it propitious that this woman of the others had seen the cave first? After all, she always seemed to bring the clan luck. He was almost certain, even without seeing the cave, that it would be right for them. "Lead us to it Ayla," he gestured, finally understanding why Grov walked _beside_this woman, and not in front of her. After all these years, he knew she had been sent by Ursus to guide him and his clan, but was it possible to really accept this, he wondered?

The hands of the clan were flying, in obvious surprise, at Brun's command to the medicine woman. Ayla blanched at the _leader's _words. Lead the clan, she thought, but I am not a man. Brun was pleased that the woman seemed appalled by his suggestion, but decided to stick to his words anyway.

Brun wanted Broud notified so he could accompany the clan to the cave sight. He sent Vorn back to the son of his mate, while the rest of the clan got up and aligned themselves, with Brun, Grod _and _Ayla in the lead.

Vorn ran off, in search of Broud, only to find him just around a bend. Broud had not been staying back as far as Brun wanted him to. In fact, he had been spying on them from only a short distance for days. This isolation Brun had imposed upon him was unjust punishment in his opinion, and he had no intention of hanging back so far.

Broud had not only been watching the whole clan, he had also been keeping track of Ayla; the reason for his punishment. When Grov and Ayla went off on their foray, he tracked them and watched through the trees. He too had seen the cave from the tree line, and he was furious that _that_ woman had found another cave for their clan. At least, _now_he had something to tell Brun; the woman had entered the cave before it had been examined by the leader. This would surely help his predicament, he thought.

Vorn was shocked to see the man so close, but he masked it, and spoke, "Broud, a cave has been found."

Broud grimaced at Vorn's words, "Yes I know Vorn!"

"Brun wants you to join the clan," Vorn stated simply, noticing that Broud was already holding his pack and spear.

Broud only grunted at the man who had been his second, wondering why the young man did not seem troubled about losing so much status when Brun became leader again. Then they left the area to return to the clan.

Vorn had only been gone for minutes when he reappeared with Broud in tow. Brun did not miss the smug look on Broud's face, nor the fact that he had not been far enough back.

Broud's smug look disappeared, however, when he noticed Ayla in the lead speaking to Brun and Grod. Broud fell in line at the end of the clan, as it was his place, but he was red with fury. He had completely forgotten his vow to become the man Brun wanted him to be.

Ayla didn't miss his red face. She had hoped her trouble with him was over for the time being, but she knew now she would have to be watchful of the man that hated her.

When everyone was ready to go, Brun signaled them forward. Ayla felt completely awkward standing at Brun's side, but the leader walked with her, a clear look of excitement on his face. Grod did not look so at ease. He was, without a doubt, uncomfortable with the woman being there.

**XxX**

**The Cave (originally posted on 25 September, 2003)**

Their march to the cave did not take long. Ayla took them there the most direct route she knew of, and pointed up the hill when they arrived.

Brun had not needed the woman to show him the cave entrance when they arrived, it was quite visible from where they stood. The entire clan was gesturing about the sight that lay before them. Everyone was excited about the prospect of the end of travel.

Ayla, who wanted to tell Brun something, dropped to the ground in front of him. Brun impatiently tapped her shoulder, saying, "Ayla, what is it? We need to go see the cave."

"This woman needs to tell the leader that she went against clan custom again."

Brun studied her carefully, wondering what she had done this time. "Ayla, what did you do?"

"This woman could not help herself. I looked at the cave myself. It is huge."

Brun frowned, and was about to say something to her, when Grov approached. "What is it Grov?"

Grov had been watching, and couldn't stand the thought of Ayla getting into trouble, so he decided to back her up. "Brun, this man is afraid it is his fault that the woman, Ayla, entered the cave. I gave her permission, and I went in as well."

Brun grunted, and looked back at the cave. Without looking at them again, he dismissed the two of them with a wave of his hand, and turned to Grod, who held the aurochs horn and burning coal.

Brun did not see Broud throw his pack onto the ground and stab the nearest tree with his spear. He was so angry. He had hoped his tale of Ayla's misbehavior would bring Brun around. He didn't understand that it was _his _own behavior that needed to be changed.

Goov, who had just come up beside Brun, hadn't missed Broud's rage, but decided this wasn't the time to inform Brun that Broud hadn't seemed to learn anything in his absence.

"Ayla says the cave is huge, Goov," Brun gestured. "I think we should have many of us enter the cave for safety." Grod was nodding as Brun spoke to Goov.

"In addition, to the three of us," he continued, "we will take Droog and Crug in as well. "Then," he went on, looking at his 'huge' clan, "we will also take Corg and Dorg…and Grov as well, since he has already been inside.

Grod immediately went to work on torches for all the men to carry into the cave. When each man was holding his own torch, they grabbed their spears and made the trek up the path.

At the top of the path, Brun halted his men. He looked back, down at the people; the woman had started to gather while they waited. That was a good sign that there was plenty to eat. He looked next at the scenery. Water was close, as the river was right at the bottom of the hill, and off in the distance, he could see another river, with horses grazing in the pasture. This could be a good place, he thought, hoping that the cave would be large enough. Ayla said it was huge, but what does a woman know of huge.

The men entered the cave slowly, with their spears drawn, and waited for their eyes to adjust. It didn't take but a second for that to happen; there was so much light within the cave itself. They stepped in further.

Brun looked around, noticing that there were many niches in the wall; niches that were big enough to house full hearths, giving everyone private space. Brun was trying to count them, but he was becoming overwhelmed at the numbers. He was astounded at the size of the cave.

"Goov, how many niches are there?"

Goov started to count, then turned to Brun, "eight."

Then it was Grov that spoke next. "Brun, there are many more of them further in the cave."

Brun grunted, and walked on. When he came to the place where he could see three passageways, he stopped. "Grov, where did you go?"

Grov pointed to the left, "this passageway has many niches, and it leads to another cave opening, then the passage wraps around to connect to this one," he said pointing straight ahead. Then, indicating the third passageway, he said, "I do not know about that one."

Brun considered. "Goov, we will go down the left passageway. Keep track of the possible hearths." Goov nodded.

When they came to the cave opening, Goov said, "eight more." Brun nodded, thinking that that was already enough to house all of them, especially after he made some changes, and mated a few people.

Brun went to inspect the area outside this cave entrance. He noted that it was smaller than the main entrance, but decent, and the people who had hearths in this area could fend off possible invading animals.

The leader stepped out further, and realized there was no ledge; the ground immediately outside was flat, and then became rolling hills. And, he could see another opening to the cave farther down. He returned to the men in the cave.

Grov took them down the 'connecting passage,' and Goov added two more hearth areas to the list. Then the passageway forked. "Brun, I did not go that way," Grov said pointing to the left. They could see a small amount of light.

"That must be the other opening I saw," Brun informed everyone. "Droog and Crug, go check that one out. We will continue this way," he said, very interested in the sound of water he heard up ahead.

As they continued, Goov counted three more niches, bringing their total up to twenty-one spaces. The men then entered the other large room that Grov had said contained a pool of water, an opening in the ceiling of the cave that had light coming through, a smaller passage leading off who knows where, and running water on the far wall. Grov pointed out that the main entrance was back through a passageway to their right.

Brun went to the pool, which was straight ahead, and dipped his hand in and sniffed. The water smelled fresh. He looked up and saw that a steady stream was coming in through the opening in the cave roof, down the column and into the pool. It must be going back out through the cave floor; that's why the water is clean.

By this time, Droog and Crug had returned with news that the passage led off to a hearth-sized room and the small cave opening that Brun had said existed. They were excited about the indoor pool, and well lit up room.

Grov then said that he had not explored to the left, so Brun decided to go that way, indicating that Dorg and Grov should follow him, along with Goov. Everyone else waited.

The first 'room' was large and open, and it had an opening in the back of it; another small passageway, Brun thought. Goov went for a closer look. "Brun, it's another room, up a little higher." The leader nodded, wanting to move on.

As they rounded the corner, they could see another room; it not as big, but decent. The room had a small passageway, just like the last, but the biggest thing about this area was that there was yet another entrance to the cave. Brun went to look at it.

Outside, there was a valley filled with plant-life and animals. In the distance he could see a herd of Megaceros grazing, and beyond them some snow covered mountains. He went back inside, and the three of them joined the others.

Back with the others, they all inspected the walls around the inside river. There was _another_small passage next to the opening that the river entered the cave. The river disappeared through another opening just twenty feet from where it entered, but they could hear it flowing through the underground caves.

There seemed to be another passageway to follow. This time Brun took Corg, Dorg and Grov with him. It just led around to the main cave. They circled back, collected the other men and started to walk back the way they had originally come into the cave.

As they were walking, Goov noticed another passage. Though smaller than many of the others, he wanted to see what lay beyond. What he saw astounded him. It was another room, but within it lay the body of a cave bear. The men were immediately alarmed, and began to back away, but Goov gestured them to stop.

"This bear is no longer living. It has not been dead more than a few days." He approached the dead bear, and saw that it had been fatally injured, but by what he did not know. "Brun, the spirits have disposed of this bear, so that we can occupy the cave."

Brun let out his breath, "we need to go tell the clan an acceptable cave has been found. We sleep outside tonight, and we hunt tomorrow. If Ursus truly wants us to stay, our hunt will be successful."

**XxX**

**Brun's Announcement (originally posted on 25 September, 2003)**

The rest of the clan was waiting, but as time went by, they were becoming more and more impatient. What was taking them so long? Ayla tried to explain to Oga, Uba and Oda, as she had been the only one to see the inside of the cave, that it was extremely large.

The more she thought about being inside the cave, the more she couldn't believe she hadn't gotten into trouble, but knew that was because Grov had stood up for her. She smiled down at Ora, who was sitting next to her and playing with Ura.

The two girls were only a year apart, but they acted far younger than the other girls of the clan ever had. Both sat babbling to themselves, something that the other clan babies never did. Durc had babbled too, but not so much as these two, she observed.

Ayla then looked around for her son, and found him playing with Grev. Of course, she thought, where else would my son be?

Ayla then looked back to the women she was sitting with. Uba was chatting animatedly with Oda, who had been previously starved for friendship. It was good for Uba too, she had only had Ona before, and Ayla was glad her younger sister was so happy. And was that a glint of secrecy she saw in Uba's eyes? Ayla looked at Uba more closely. Was Uba pregnant, she thought? When Uba looked up at her, and their eyes met, Ayla smiled knowingly. Her sister _was _pregnant. They were both overjoyed.

Then she looked at Oga. She's looking much better, the first medicine woman thought. It had been almost two hands of days since Broud beat her, and she was looking good. Her mental status wasn't as good though. She had become very quiet towards many, though she had opened up to Ayla completely. She felt that Ayla was her protector, sort of like a totem, and she was almost unwilling to leave her side if it could be helped.

"Ayla, is the cave really so large," Oga asked?

Ayla nodded, and gestured, "It's huge. I hope Brun likes it, and that the hunt is successful if he does. I have never heard of a cave that is so nice."

Broud sat away from everyone, not even bothering not to stare at Ayla and the other women. Oga noticed his glare and shuddered, knowing that if she was ever given back to him, she would be sorry she had become Ayla's friend, but she didn't care about that right now.

Ayla also noticed Broud watching them. She wanted to be careful; she didn't want to be accused of doing anything wrong, and ruin their chances of moving into this cave, so she ended the cave gossip.

After almost an hour, the men emerged from the cave entrance, and their body language told everyone the cave was perfect. By the time the men got down to everyone, they were all speculating wildly about he cave, and had to be called to order by their leader.

"We camp here tonight! We hunt tomorrow. If the hunt is successful, the cave shall be ours. Now, let's set up shelters and relax for we will have plenty of work to do tomorrow!"

**XxX**

**The Hunt (originally posted on 26 September, 2003)**

That night, Brun decided to restrict the son of his mate further, by not allowing him to hunt with anything other than a bola or a sling, which basically left him out of the hunt. Broud had been shocked when Brun informed him of this, and went to bed immediately, not wanting to take part in the relaxing evening meal or the storytelling.

Brun watched Broud enter his shelter, and shook his head, disappointed in the younger man's attitude. He had been hoping that Broud would respond to his punishments with resolve, and finally grow up, but it was not the case.

The next morning dawned early for the thirteen men that would be going on the hunt. Only two men were left behind, Zoug, who was too old to go along, and Broud, who was under restriction.

The men started out at first light. Brun had decided they would hunt Megaceros, which he had seen in the valley outside the northern cave entrance. The men would have to make the trek around the mountain that contained the cave, because Goov said they must not pass through the new cave in order to get to the valley. _The hunters covered the distance to the steppes quickly._

Leaving the foothills behind, they fell into a ground-eating dogtrot, approaching the herd downwind. As they drew close, they crouched low in the tall grass watching the huge beasts…. The rangy, sweaty smell of the close-packed multitude assaulted their nostrils and the earth vibrated with the movement of thousands of hooves.

Brun, holding up a hand to shade his eyes, studied each individual creature that passed, waiting for the right animals _in the right circumstances. To look at the man, it was impossible to tell the unbearable tension the leader kept under tight control. Only his pulsing temples above locked jaws betrayed his nervously pounding heart and raw-edged nerves._

Like the hunt after the first earthquake, that had allowed his clan to occupy the last cave, this hunt was now the most important one of his life. Even more important this time, because he had so many more people to be responsible for. As was clan custom, _a successful hunt would not only bring meat for the feast that would be part of the cave ceremony, but would assure the clan that their totems did, indeed, favor their new home._

Brun glanced at his hunters waiting anxiously for his signal. Waiting was always the hardest part, but a premature move could have disastrous results and if it was humanly possible, Brun was going to make sure nothing went wrong with the hunt.

When Brun spotted a young male wandering away from the herd, he considered the animal. _The animal was nearly full grown, but still young and inexperienced._ Then, there was also a female close by, and by the looks of her, she carried fetal meat within her. _Brun waited until _they had _drifted farther away from the rest, for a moment when_ they were two creatures _away from the security of the herd. Then he signaled._

The men darted off instantly, fanning out,

Borg leading one group of men toward the buck, and Nouz leading the other group toward the pregnant doe. _Brun watched as they spaced themselves at regular intervals, anxiously keeping an eye on the straying_ Megaceros. _He signaled again and the men sprang toward the herd, yelping and shouting and waving their arms. Startled animals near the edge began to run into the main body of the herd, closing the gaps and nudging the one near the edge toward the center. At the same time, Brun dashed between them and the_ two chosen ones, steering them _away._

While the frightened beasts at the periphery plowed into the milling multitude, Brun pounded after the buck, while Dorg did the same with the doe. The two men _poured every ounce of energy into the chase, driving the_ two animals as fast as their _thick muscular legs could move. The dry earth of the steppes filled the air with fine silty soil, churned up by the hoard of hard-hooved_ animals _as the movement at the edge rippled through the throng._ Both men _squinted and coughed, blinded by the swirling dust that clogged_ their _nostrils and choked_ their _breath. Gasping, nearly spent, _they passed the chase on to the next two ready men.

_The_ buck _veered again at Grod's fresh spurt._ Brun's group of _men was moving in, forming a large circle that would bring the beast back to_ him _as he jogged, still panting, to close the circle._ The doe managed to veer off again, but Daub stepped in as Dorg tired, and took over, bringing her into their circle. _The vast herd was in full stampede, charging across the prairie-their unreasoned fear multiplied by the movement itself._ The two panicked Megaceros were running from creatures with a fraction of their strength, _but with more than enough intelligence and determination to compensate for the difference. Grod pummeled after him, refusing to give in though his pounding heart threatened to burst_, and not too far away, Daub was doing the same thing with the female. _Sweat made rivulets in the film of dust that covered_ their bodies and gave their beards _a dun cast._ Finally, the two men _stumbled to a halt just as Droog_and Corg took chase.

_The hunters' endurance was great, but the strong young_ animals _pushed ahead with untiring energy. Droog, _now the second tallest man in the clan, with legs a shade longer than the rest, urged the animal forward, and _bore down on him with a fresh burst of speed, heading him off when he tried to follow the trail of the departing herd. By the time Crug took over from the exhausted Droog, the young animal was visibly winded_, as was the female when Norv relieved Corg. Crug and Norv were fresh, and the two men pushed the beasts on to exhaustion.

When it was Grov's turn to chase the female, no further chase was necessary, the animal was spent. She hung her head and heaved deep breaths, breaths that would be her last. Grov took the moment and thrust his spear through the doe's ribs and into her heart, ending her life.

In the other circle of men, when _Goov jumped into the relay, the huge shaggy creature was slowing. The_ buck _ran blindly, doggedly, followed closely by Goov, constantly prodding him to drain the last drop of strength remaining to the young animal._ When Vorn ran up beside Goov, they ran after the beat together, but the buck had finally had enough. _He slowed, then stopped altogether and refused to move, his hide lathered, his head drooping, his mouth foaming._With their spears held ready, the two men approached the exhausted buck, pulled back and lunged. Their long heavy spears bit deep into the animal's side; their fire-hardened points piercing the tough hide and cracking a few ribs in the swift, fatal thrust.

When Goov and Vorn looked up, they breathed deeply. It was finally over, and they had managed to get two of them. Brun was extremely pleased; the cave was theirs, _and_they had two Megaceros to show for their hard work.

_Brun's knife was out, ready to slit open the belly and gut the_ buck _before they carried it back to the cave._ Dorg did the same with the female. They _removed the liver, cut it into slices, and gave a piece to each hunter. The choicest part, reserved for men alone, imparting strength to muscle and eye needed for hunting. Brun cut out the_ hearts _of the great shaggy_ creatures and buried them _in the ground…a gift he had promised his totem._

Their trip back to the clan was going to be much slower going, but the weight of the meat did not hamper their steps. Everyone was ecstatic.

**XxX**

**The Men Return (originally posted on 26 September, 2003)**

Back with the rest of the clan, the people were all waiting rather impatiently. Broud had come out of his shelter only three times during the day, one time to eat a meal and drink some tea, which he'd had to serve for himself, and two times to relieve himself and get more tea.

Zoug spent some time working with the young boys and their slings. Brac was getting pretty good at it, much better than the mate of his mother had been at seven years, but Vorg, who was mixed and built differently, was even better. The two of them were trying to show off for Igra and Orga, who were watching from afar. Groob was also practicing, and Breg was trying his hand at the sling as well. Grev and Durc, who weren't much younger, were watching, but both were really playing more the training.

The women were broken up into two groups; Aga, Ebra, Uka, Aga and Ika were sitting off to the side watching the younger women converse about this or that. The younger women; all younger than twenty, were talking about food, and mates, and babies, and different clans…the usual young woman topics, Ebra noticed, thinking about her age.

Ayla and Uba were discussing Uba's pregnancy. "Uba, have you told Vorn yet," Ayla asked.

Uba shook her head. "I was hoping to see if it went well first, and he has been so worried about everything that he hasn't noticed yet. I will tell him as soon as we move into the cave…if the hunt permits us to move in."

Ayla nodded her understanding. She had seen the grotesquely malformed conjoined twin sons that her sister had given birth to the first time, and she was nervous for the woman to have to go through it again. Ayla would be ever watchful of Uba's new condition, and would inform Brun as soon as Uba informed Vorn. Her mate should be the first to know.

And finally, there were the little girls, with ages ranging from six to one, who were doing various things. Igra and Orga were sitting near the women, playing that they _were_women, and watching the boys' training. And, Nala, Ada and Aka were playing with the three youngest girls, Egra, Ura and Ora.

The men had trudged across the rolling steppes on the path in which they had come, but as they neared the backside of their new home, Goov made a suggestion. "Brun, we could go through the cave. It is safe now that we have had a successful hunt, and it will save us much time. _And, _we won't have to carry the meat around, just to carry it up the hill and into the cave."

Brun nodded. He really liked the idea of less work. They'd had a rough morning; there was no reason to prolong it.

The men changed direction and headed for the northern entrance of their new cave.

Once inside, the men dragged their prized hunt in and around the first bend, and put it down. Brun told Grod to light some fires throughout the cave to light it up and get some heat flowing through. It was very cool within the cavern. That would be Grod first task as soon as wood was gathered.

Then, they talked about who should be allowed to come in to get some meat for the feast. "Who will come get meat, Brun? We don't want them all seeing the cave before we move in," Grod asked.

Brun considered, he wanted to decide on hearths before any woman entered the cave, but he hadn't had time to do that yet. He would have to do that first thing in the morning, he thought. "Goov, what do you think?"

Goov considered as well, "Well, Ebra should come to direct the women, since she is your mate. And maybe Uka, Aba and Aga, since they are our clan's oldest women.

"Not Aba, she's too old to be carrying heavy loads," Droog commented, thinking about the mother of his mate.

"Ayla's already been inside, so she should help too," Grov threw in, knowing Ayla would want to be one of the women chosen to come in.

Brun nodded. "All right," he said, "Ebra, Uka, Aga and Ayla, and let's add Ika, Ovra, Oga, Eka and Uga. It will be hard work."

With their decision made, the men marched through the chilled cave toward the main entrance, emerging on the other side. The men stood in the cave opening for many moments, watching the people below, before they were noticed. It was Ora that squealed her delight at the sight of Grov.

"Ooooohh, Groooovv," the one year old baby said. Ayla spun around, surprised to see the men back so soon. She didn't know the herd was on the steppes, just on the other side of the cave, but she was glad the men were back, _and_that they could rest assured that the cave was theirs. Grov's position in front, along with Goov and Vorn, told her that the mixed man had made a kill. She smiled at the man, who was beaming right back at her.

The people jumped up, knowing the hunt had been successful even through there was no evidence. They were all very excited. Brun commanded that wood be collected, and that a feast be started.

Ebra ushered the children, boys and girls, to collect wood, while Aba and Uka started the women going with the cooking. The women were wondering about the hunt, as they didn't have anything to cook yet, but they got to work on boiling water and collecting vegetation for the meal.

When wood was collected, Grod and Droog went back into the cave to light the fires as Brun had instructed them. It did not take them long, and Brun called the woman that would retrieve the meat. "Goov will take you through the cave to get the meat. Do not touch anything, except the meat, until we have moved in. Do you understand?" He said looking pointedly at Ayla.

Ayla blushed, but knew he was only warning her against something she would have done had she not been told.

With Goov and Grov, the women entered the mysterious cave with wideeyed amazement.

**XxX**

**Amazement (originally posted on 27 September, 2003)**

Ebra, Uka, Aga and Ika entered first, and looked around excitedly. Their hands were flying with movement as they speculated where each hearth may be. "We will each have private space," Ebra observed. They had never had real privacy before.

Ayla, Ovra and Oga walked behind the four older women. "Ayla, you said it was big, but I never imagined that it would be _this_huge," Oga gestured, wide eyed at the first medicine woman.

"Yes Oga, it is amazing, isn't it," Ayla replied? Ovra just followed along, completely speechless.

And finally, Eka and Uga brought up the rear. As their eyes scanned the monstrous cavern, with niches large enough to house large families, both women gasped, with downright shock. Their clan had lived in small caves that lay very close together in the sandy banks near the river they had been traveling along. This cave seemed unreal to them. It was unreal to all!

When he woman arrived at the place where the men had stored the animals, they were astounded to find two of the rather huge Megaceros; a buck and a pregnant doe. Ebra, Uka, Aga and Ika went to work on the female, while the others worked on the male.

First, they removed their antlers, setting them aside for other uses. Then they skinned the beasts, and put the hides down to carry the meat. Ebra removed the fetus from the female, gutted it, and placed it on the hide. Fetal meat was always a tender treat.

When they had butchered as much as they would need for the feast, they dragged the hide to the cave entrance, and down to where the people congregated, leaving the rest of the meat where it was until the following day. At a mere 43 degrees Fahrenheit, the meat would keep until the next day.

Down below, the festivities had already begun, but the reappearance of the women loaded up with Megaceros was a welcomed sight.

Zoug had made himself useful by bringing down two ptarmigan, and he received a grateful look from Ayla when he brought her the birds, along with a few eggs. The old man was quite appreciative of the young woman's dish. Because of Creb's liking for the birds, Ayla had perfected Iza's ptarmigan recipe. The birds were _stuffed with herbs and edible greens that nested their own whole eggs, and wrapped in wild grape leaves, the savory fowl were cooking in a smaller stone-lined pit. Hares and giant hamsters, skinned and skewered, were roasting over hot coals, and mounds of tiny, fresh wild strawberries glistened bright red in the sun._

By evening, _delicious smells were drifting away from the several fires where food was cooking, and pervading the area near the cave. Utensils and other cooking paraphernalia that had been salvaged from their former cave and carried in the bundles by the women had been unpacked. Finely made, tightly woven waterproof baskets of subtle texture and design, created by slight alterations in weaving, were used to dip water from the pool and as cooking post and containers. Wooden bowls were used in similar ways. Rib bones were stirrers, large flat pelvic bones were plates and platters along with thin sections of logs. Jaw and head bones were ladles, cups, and bowls. Birchbark glued together with balsam gun, some reinforced with a well-placed knot of sinew, were folded into shapes for many uses._

In an animal hide, hung from a thong-lashed frame set over a fire, a savory broth bubbled. Careful watch was kept to make sure the liquid didn't boil down too far. As long as the level of boiling broth was above the level reached by the flames, it kept the temperature of the skin pot too low to burn.

This time, it was Igra and the new girl Orga that watched Ayla _stir up chunks of the meat and bone from the neck of the _Megaceros_ that were cooking with wild onion, salty coltsfoot, and other herbs._ Ayla tasted it, then offered the girls a sample, _then added milkweed buds, small immature yams, cranberries carried from the other cave, and wilted flowers from the previous day's growth of day lilies for thickening._

The hard fibrous old roots of cattails had been crushed and the fibers separated sand removed. Dried blueberries they had carried with them and parched ground grains were added to the resulting starch that settled in the bottom of the baskets of cold water. Lumps of the flat, dark, unleavened bread were cook in on hot stones near the fire. Pigweed greens, lamb's-quarter, young clover, and dandelion leaves seasoned with coltsfoot were cooking in another pot, and a sauce of dried, tart apples mixed with wild rose petals and a lucky find of honey steamed near another fire.

It was a feast worthy of the occasion

, just as it had been nine years before.

_As the long shadows of the late afternoon sun lay across the red soil that fronted the cave, a hush of anticipation descended on the clan. Everyone gathered around the large pit in which the haunches of_ Megaceros _were cooking. Ebra and Uka began removing the warm soil from the top. They pulled back limp, scorched leaves and exposed the sacrificial beast in a cloud of mouth-watering steam. So tender it almost fell from the bones, the meat was carefully raised. To Ebra, as the leader's mate, fell the duty of carving and serving, _but this time, the first piece would not go to her son. Instead, Goov, Grov and Vorn stood in front accepting their portion, and receiving honor for their kills.

Ovra and Uba's eyes shone with pride for the kills of the mates, as did Ayla's for Grov.

Off to the side, Broud was glowering at the mixed man who had slipped into _his_clan. The former leader did not even see that two other men were receiving honor as well. He only saw Grov, and couldn't stand that they would be living with these deformed people among them. What kind of status will we have at the next clan gathering, he thought disgustedly? Having Ayla was bad enough!

She was the real problem, he thought. If only she would have stayed dead. What kind of spirit keeps returning after a death curse?

**XxX**

**Hearth Decisions (originally posted on 27 September, 2003)**

That night, the clan stayed up very late; later than ever before. They ate and drank and told stories, and speculated on where their lives would go from then on. That was actually quite the miracle; for the clan had made an extreme change. No clan before thought so far into the future. Everything they knew was in their memories.

The next morning Brun and Goov rose early, so that they could go inside the cave and make plans for their new cave. The two men lit torches and entered the cave to begin their discussion.

"We must have a mating ceremony before we move in. I want to give Uga and her son to Dorg; she was previously mated to his brother, so I think it is a good match," Brun said. "Then, I will give Oda to Norv, since they come from the same clan. Speaking of their clan, Nouz is a man, I am told, but we have no young women yet. Maybe Igra will be a woman soon."

At this point, the leader paused, looking worried.

"What is it Brun," Goov asked.

"I would like to give Ayla to Grov. That medicine woman has been alone for too long, but that is just the problem. Is it better that she only concentrate on her medicine? What if she is unhappy as his mate and we are all hurt by her unhappiness? Could that happen? I mean, she is just a woman; it doesn't matter what makes her happy, does it?"

Goov considered the leader's questions, then replied, "Brun, you are right, she is just a woman, but it is good to consider her feelings as well. Take Ovra, for instance, I would not want to take a second mate, just to have a child at my hearth, because it would wound Ovra so, but it _is_ time to mate Ayla to someone, and Grov seems interested. _And, _I believe Ayla is interested in him as well. I will work.

Brun was relieved that they had the mating plans out of the way. Then they moved on to the hearths. "So, I want to keep the older members of our clan together," he gestured indicating the far right-hand wall. "And then, Vorn and Borg, on this side," he said pointing to the opposite wall. Goov was nodding in agreement.

"And where would you like your hearth to be Mog-ur?"

Goov walked down the western corridor, taking in the niches as he went. "I believe I should be between the main cave of people and the area where the others will be. I will take this one," he said indicating the second hearth on the left side of the passageway.

Brun grunted, thinking that the Mog-ur had made a good choice. "All right, I will put Corg next to you, and Norv across from him, since they are from the same cave. Sometimes changes are easier if there is something familiar."

Goov was nodding at the leader's insight. That was what made Brun a good leader, he thought.

Then they continued down the passageway into the next open area. "We will put Dorg, Daub and Grov in here, for the same reason. Grov and Ayla will take this hearth," he gestured, pointing at the largest one, which connected to another hearth. "The first ranked medicine woman should have space to work her magic, and house her patients. Oga can stay with them too, after their initial separation time, of course. Until then, Oga and the boys can stay at my hearth. That will make Ebra happy."

Goov grunted, he had always considered the needs of their medicine woman important. Then it struck him, "Brun, what about Broud?"

The leader frowned at the Mog-ur. "If I give him his own hearth, then who will cook for him? If I place him in someone else's hearth, then they have to deal with him."

Goov looked thoughtful, "well, I think he should have his own hearth. There is always plenty of food to go around. I think he will do fine."

Brun nodded, his indecision gone, "we will place Broud between Borg and the main cave entrance." _And, _he thought further, that way I can keep an eye on him.

As the two men exited the cave, the leader felt great relief. He had placed everyone, and mated everyone. Well, everyone except Oga, but he had come up with a temporary solution for her as well.

"Dorg, Norv and Grov," Brun called as soon as they joined the clan again, gesturing that they should follow him up to the cave. The three men followed their leader into the cave.

"Norv, I will be giving Oda to you, and this will be your hearth," he said coming up on the man's new hearth. "You may go back out now." The young man left promptly.

"Dorg, I will be giving you Uga, and this will by _your_hearth. You may leave the cave now." The man glanced at Grov as he left, knowing that his friend would be getting the woman he wanted as well.

"And Grov, Ayla will be yours, and this hearth belongs to both of you." Grov did not miss that the hearth was not just his, he knew that the first ranked medicine woman had status of her own, and he didn't care. "Grov, understand that Ayla has never had a mate before, she may need to be reprimanded often until she knows her place. You may go back out now."

Grov walked back out slowly. Reprimand Ayla, he wouldn't dream of it, he thought. She was just the way he wanted her.

**XxX**

**The Mating Ceremony (originally posted on 28 September, 2003)**

When Brun returned to the clan, he called them to order. They all knew what was coming; the move into the cave, but only Brun, Goov and the three men that were to be mated, knew that there would be a mating ceremony first. However, when Goov came up behind Brun, dressed in Creb's ceremonial bearskin cloak, the people suddenly understood what was to happen.

_For this ceremony, and this one alone, yellow ochre was used in the sacred ointment._Goov stood waiting with Dorg, while Brun went to retrieve Uga. She figured that she would be given to him; after all, she had been mated to his brother, and the two of them had become very close since Dreg's death in the earthquake. Uga walked closely behind Brun, and sat down cross-legged in front of Dorg, keeping her eyes down.

_With silent formal gestures, Mog-ur again addressed the spirits, then de dipped his middle finger into the bowl of dun –yellow paste and drew the sign of_ Uga's _totem over the scar of_ Dorg's _totem mark, symbolizing the union of their spirits. Dipping again into the ointment, he painted_ Dorg's _mark over hers, following the outline of the scar and blurring her mark, showing his dominance._

"Spirit of Red Tailed Hawk, Totem of Dorg, your sign has overcome Spirit of Lark, Totem of Uga," Mog-ur gestured. "May Ursus allow that it will always be so. Dorg, do you accept this woman?"

Dorg answered by tapping Uga shoulder, and the woman jumped up, readily accepting her mate, as if she had a choice. They left immediately and went into the cave to their new hearth.

Next, Goov turned to Norv, and Brun turned to go back for Oda, but Corg stepped up. She was, after all, his sibling. Brun retreated, accepting the man's feelings for his sibling. Oda came forward and sat down cross-legged, just as Uga had.

Again, the Mog-ur addressed the spirits, dipping his finger in the yellow pasted, and drawing the sign of Oda's totem over the scar of Norv's totem mark. Then, in reverse, he painted Norv's mark over hers, again blurring out her mark to show his dominance.

"Spirit of Moose, Totem of Norv, your sign has overcome Spirit of Hamster, Totem of Oda," Mog-ur gestured. "May Ursus allow that it will always be so. Norv, do you accept this woman?"

Norv also answered with a tap on Oda's shoulder, and they retreated to the cave.

And finally, Grov came forward and waited with the Mog-ur, while Brun made his way through the crowd toward Grov's intended mate. Everyone seemed to know who he was walking towards, except the one that was being given to him; Ayla. When Brun stopped at the woman, she blanched, completely unaware that she was finally going to be a mated woman. She smiled, despite her anxiety and fear, and followed behind the leader. When they arrived at the Mog-ur, she dropped into the customary cross-legged position and waited, wishing Creb and Iza were there to see her becoming a mated woman; a single tear slide down her cheek.

Mog-ur went through the same motions establishing dominance of Grov over Ayla, quietly thinking that no one could dominate this woman, no matter their totem.

"Spirit of Leopard, Totem of Grov, your sign has overcome Spirit of Cave Lion, Totem of Ayla," Mog-ur gestured. "May Ursus allow that it will always be so. Grov, do you accept this woman?"

Grov had tapped Ayla's shoulder before the Mog-ur had completed his gestures, and took Ayla's hand to lead her toward the cave and their new hearth.

Ayla stared at the man as they walked, scrutinizing him for the first time. She had known he was mixed, but she hadn't really thought of it much. She knew he had blue eyes; that had been the first thing she had learned about the man. She knew he smiled, just like her, and that he had brown hair, though lighter than the rest of the clan. She looked at the man very closely, and she decided that he definitely looked more like her than he did Durc. He must have more Others in him than clan, she thought. And finally, she noticed for the first time that _this_ man, _her _mate, was not shorter than her, he was at least a whole hand's length taller.

The three couples _would remain isolated, confined to the heath for fourteen days, during which time they would sleep separately. At the end of the isolation, a ceremony would be held_ by the men in the men's ceremonial cave _to cement the union._ The children of the mated couples would be allowed to come and go, but everyone else was to stay away.

* * *

><p><strong>End of Part ONE!<strong>

As stated at the top of this page, there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is unfinished...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry!

Further, it took me over an hour to transfer part one from the site where I originally posted it to here, so it might be a while before I transfer parts two through ten (as most of them are longer than part one). I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	2. Part 2

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – any large portions that appear in _italics_ are quoted directly from books and belong solely to Jean M. Auel.

And again...I **apologize** for the _possible_ lack of scene divisions. They were there when I uploaded this document, I swear! But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write. However, though I said (in part one) that I wouldn't edit them back in, I have tried...might have missed some though...sorry. So aggravating! *sigh*

**ETA: **Looks like my "chapter" divisions have disappeared as well (at least in the "Document Manager"). How _annoying_!

Further, I decided not to give you the **"original post date"** (as I did in part one)...it was just too time-consuming to include and...do you _really_ care? I didn't think so! =)

* * *

><p><strong>After the Death Curse – Part Two (of ten)<strong>

**Ayla's First Day at Grov's Hearth**

Due to the fact that the cave was their new home, and it was not fully stocked, the newly mated couples were given two days to clean and organize their hearths, and hunt food to keep them through the fourteen day period.

Ayla was greatly pleased with the hearth that was Grov's as it was very large, and had a great many shelves to put all of her medicinal herbs and medical paraphernalia. Grov even helped her organize everything, before he went hunting.

When the time came for the three men to go hunting, Ayla watched them leave, with a wistful expression on her face. Grov turned back one last time, saw her watching and wondered. He had heard of her skill, but he had not seen it as of yet. Ayla's new mate turned and left the cave with the other two men.

As the men came to the rolling hills, Grov glanced back once again to see Ayla standing in the small mouth of the cave, with her sling in her hand, obviously wishing to go with them, and he frowned.

"Grov, what's the problem?" Dorg asked, seeing his friend's hesitation and look back at Ayla.

Grov didn't know what to say, he wanted to invite his woman to join them. Dorg probably wouldn't mind, but Norv was another story. Though he was mated to a woman with a mixed child, he expected a woman to be a woman. "I would like to see Ayla's skill with the sling, but I guess now is not the time."

Norv grunted, "I'm not watching a woman hunt! I woman isn't supposed to hunt."

As the men walked out of sight, Ayla pouted, then decided to hunt for herself. I will hunt on my own, she thought indignantly. I don't know why I thought it would be different.

Ayla took Ora over to Uga, who would have to nurse the child soon anyway, and told Durc to go find Uba and stay with her. _Then, _she flung her sling over her shoulder and headed off the opposite direction that the men took.

The woman entered the line of trees that was not too far away, hoping to find small game there. She wasn't disappointed. In fact, there was an abundance of small game that was just waiting for her there.

Later that day, when the men returned, Ayla had been back for sometime. She had a fire going within Grov's hearth, a hare spitted over it, and a cup of tea ready and waiting for her mate.

As he approached _their _hearth, he couldn't mistake the smells of a good meal. He was definitely impressed by his woman's ability to hunt her own meat, cook it, and have tea ready when he returned. How had she known he was coming?

Ayla smiled as he came in. Her cross attitude had evaporated as she hunted. The man handed her his catches, which were less than hers had been in a shorter time period, and she went to work gutting, skinning and storing the meat. The man watched his woman very closely.

Durc, who had been off playing with Grev, came walking in saying, "Mama, I'm hungry!"

"Durc, go get Ora, she's at Dorg's hearth nursing," she said to her son. "And hurry back, I have our evening meal ready."

Grov watched her for a few minutes longer. "Ayla, how did you hunt all of this," he asked gesturing towards her own gutted, skinned, and stored meat, "and still have time to cook a meal, fix tea, and then take care of the animals I brought back?"

Ayla looked around at the hearth, and all that she had done, and said, "I guess anger kept me going." It was only after the words left her hands that she considered what she said and she blanched. _But,_Grov was not mad at her, he was more upset that he may have angered his mate.

"Ayla, why were you angry," he said knowing full well that she had wanted to go hunting with them.

"Grov, I know it is not the clan way for women to hunt, and I do not expect to be allowed to hunt with you, but I really wanted to go with you." Ayla looked down at her hands, as tears slid down her cheeks.

"Tomorrow Ayla. I will go hunting with you tomorrow. I'm not sure we need any more meat for our days of isolation, but we can hunt anyway, and cure the meat for later."

Ayla looked at Grov strangely, then smiled widely and threw her arms around his neck. She was glad she had been given to this man, for he really seemed to understand her.

Grov blushed at his woman's hug, but he did not pull back. It felt so good to be touched. It felt like it had been a very long time since Nora had died, though it really hadn't been, and he was starved for affection.

"Groovvvv," Ora squealed delightedly as she entered the hearth with her new sibling, Durc.

**XxX**

**A Peaceful Interlude**

That night, Ayla and Grov ate in relative silence, staring at each other from across the fire, and thinking about the hug they had shared earlier. Grov was dying to signal the woman to his furs, but they were supposed to sleep separately for the days of isolation. Did that mean not _sleep _together, or not…? Grov did not know; his clan had not practiced many of the clan customs, and he did not know if he could hold back.

Durc, at almost four, watched his mother and Grov and could tell something was different between them. He understood that they were living at Grov's hearth now, and that it was very different than it had been when they lived at Creb's hearth.

Ora had fallen asleep, and the boy moved to help his mother, knowing that she was busy in thought.

"Mama, I will put Ora in her sleeping place, and then I am going to sleep too," he said in what Ayla thought was a mature way. Grov smiled at Ayla's son with gratitude, and moved to sit closer to the woman that was his mate.

Ayla stiffened as he sat down just behind her, with one leg on either side of her, and placed his hands on her back. He pulled his hands back as she stiffened, but only slightly. His light touch sent a shiver down her body, and she closed her eyes. She had never seen a man of the clan touch a woman as Grov touched her, and it felt nice.

Grov, who had been mated to a woman of the others before, had learned that a woman could be, and wanted to be, pleasured too. He wanted Ayla to know she could enjoy this, unlike her experience told her. Grov was aware of Broud's harsh treatment of her and _he _wanted to show Ayla only love. For though it had only been a very short time, he was sure that he loved this woman.

Grov gently eased his woman back so that she lay against him, and wrapped his arms around her. Caressing her thighs. Ayla could feel his need against her back, and wondered why he did not make the signal.

Grov decided that he would take it slowly with her, and not push her that night. He held her into the night, with his arms still around her until she fell asleep. Then he carried her to her furs, pulled them up over her and went to his own.

The next morning, Ayla awoke to find her mate lying in his furs staring across at her. She smiled sheepishly over at him and sat up, "I will make tea; you must be thirsty. This woman is regretful she wasn't up early enough to have it ready for you when you woke up."

"Ayla, that is okay," he said, and then changed the subject. "When do you want to go hunting?"

Ayla stopped. Was he really going to go hunting with her? Apparently so, she thought, as she looked at him. "We can go as soon as we are ready."

Before the two of them left the cave, they brought Durc and Ora over to Uga. She would nurse Ora, and keep an eye on Durc while his mother was gone, but they would have to stay with her, since she too could not leave her hearth due to isolation.

As the pair left the cave through smaller cave entrance near their hearth, one pair of eyes watched them go. Broud had left the cave by way of the northern entrance, had hiked off to a secluded place, and was angrily flinging stones with his sling, when the couple exited the cave. He could see the difference in them immediately. He could not understand what they saw in each other, but he did not like that she seemed so happy, or that the deformed man was making her that way. Broud decided to follow them.

**XxX**

**The Pleasurable Hunt**

Ayla and Grov walked side by side as they approached the tree line. Grov kept glancing over at the woman as she walked. When they entered the trees, he saw her body movements visibly change from a casual walk to one of more stealth. He allowed her to move ahead of him, so he could keep her in his sights.

They walked through the trees for a short time, both thinking their own thoughts. Grov was watching Ayla move, and admiring her strength and beauty; she was beautiful to him. Ayla, on the other hand, was considering the night before; still wondering why he did not make the signal, but still feeling pleasured that they had shared a nice moment.

Then, she caught the movement of a roe deer through the trees, she turned and gestured, "I want to hunt him." Grov nodded, thinking they were probably too far away, and that more than a sling would probably be necessary, but he didn't know how skilled Ayla was with her sling.

She crept a little closer, picking up a hand full of round stones, then stood up and let them fly. "Thwack, thwack," was all Grov heard. When the man looked toward the deer again, he saw it fall. Ayla turned to him and smiled. She knew she could get the deer, but she was happy that he had been there to see her do it.

Grov looked back at his woman with a new respect for the Woman Who Hunts. He had heard the stories, but he would never have guessed that she was that good.

The two of them made their way through the trees, so that they could secure her kill. Grov noticed that both of her hits were to the deer's temple, probably killing it instantly. He was very impressed.

"That was a great kill, Ayla," Grov complimented, causing her to blush. She looked down demurely, but he reached over and raised her chin, wanting to look into her eyes. Ayla shivered, as she had the night before, and he leaned closer to caress her face, bringing his mouth to hers. The touch of his lips sent sparks through her, as she had not felt before, and she melted into him.

The man was having a difficult time, not taking her on the spot, but he wanted to use everything Nora had taught him about pleasuring a woman.

Grov eased Ayla down onto the leafy forest floor, so that she was on her back with her kneels raised, and then positioned himself beside her, caressing her breasts and stomach.

Ayla lay there shivering, watching him touch her, and wondered if this was how other men of the clan treated their women, and she just hadn't noticed. She didn't think so.

As she watched him, he moved his hand from her stomach to her thighs, and reached through her legs, easing them apart, to touch her mound. As he did this, she gasped with unexpected pleasure, and closed her eyes. He took this as a sign that she was ready for more and with the next caress of her mound; he entered her with his fingers. As he pushed his fingers in and pulled them out, he found the small node that would bring her pleasure and he worked it gently. Grov was rewarded with Ayla's quiet gasps of pleasure, as she arched her back wanting more.

When he was sure that she was ready, he got up and moved his wrap aside, exposing his rigid organ. When Ayla opened her eyes and saw him there, full of need, she rolled over, kneeled and presented, as she knew she was supposed to. Grov hadn't wanted to take her this way, but her naked backside turned him on even more. He ran his hand along her buttocks as he positioned himself behind her, and entered her slowly. As he did this, she gasped, and he held her firmly still so that he would feel her moist opening surround him for just a moment. Then he reached around to find her special spot again, and rubbed it while he pushed himself inside her further, and pulled himself back. The pressure was building for both of them, but Ayla released first, with him following suit within seconds.

For a moment, she just knelt there, gasping for breath, and quivering all over. He had his arms wrapped around her middle, and he was still in her. When he realized that her legs were shaking, he rolled over, pulling her with him, so that they lay with her back to his front, and him still inside her.

Ayla's mind was reeling. She didn't know those feelings were inside her, just bursting to come out, but she shook with pleasure, happier than she had ever been.

Broud had followed the couple into the trees, and saw the woman kill the deer with her sling. He had to admit she was good at it, but that just served to remind him that she had witnessed him shove Zoug all those years ago, and that she should be dead for touching the weapon, not standing there hunting with it. Broud was about to turn back; he had seen enough of her sling hunting display, when he realized what they were about to do.

Grov did not give her the signal, Broud realized, but she kneeled and presented anyway. And then, she moaned as if it hurt her, but the look on her face told him she was enjoying Grov's penetration. That was so unlike how she had reacted to _him_ years before; she had been disgusted with him, he thought. Broud was not capable of seeing that she had not been disgusted with him, but terrified of him instead.

**XxX**

**Oga's Move**

Grov and Ayla lay as they were for quite some time. Long enough for them to fall asleep, but Ayla sat bolt upright at the sound of snarling around her deer. Grov was up in an instant, chasing the scavengers away, and going to work on the animal.

Ayla slit the animal's throat, bleeding it out, so that is would be lighter to carry, then gutted it, knowing that the animal's innards would be of use. Then, they lashed the deer's legs together, and used a small fallen tree, which they slid between the deer's legs, to hoist the animal up, making carrying easier. When all was complete, Ayla and Grov walked back the cave with Ayla's deer slung between them.

As they neared the cave, Dorg came out to assist them. Ayla skinned the deer, and then butchered it, giving a third of the meat to Uga, since they too would be in isolation for another twelve days. Grov took their third into their hearth, and Ayla prepared the final third, to bring to Norv and Oda.

This would be the last time she could leave the hearth for any reason other than to obtain water or pass her water for the remainder of the isolation, so she hurriedly walked down the passageway to Norv's hearth, heavily loaded with meat.

When she arrived there, Oda looked up surprised to see her, but Ayla went to Norv and kneeled on the ground like a proper clan woman. Norv considered the woman at his feet, knowing that she was bringing him _her_kill. He had already told Dorg and Grov that he didn't think a woman should hunt, but he didn't really have much meat. Could he feed his hearth of five until the isolation was over? He could probably send Nouz out, if they ran out of food, but it seemed a shame to not take meat that was being given to them. The man considered refusing the meat once more, but instead tapped Ayla's shoulder, accepting the proffered food.

For the next twelve days, Grov and Ayla did not sleep together, but they shared each other often, enjoying their new found affection for each other. Grov found that Ayla was very different from his first mate. Nora had been much more like clan women than like a woman of the others, in that she did not hunt, but only maintained the hearth. Ayla did it all.

Ayla found out that Grov was interested in her cooking; he was actually good at making a few things, but that was the part of him that was others. He also expressed an interest in her medicine, and wanted her to teach Ora the healing medicine as well. Ayla agreed, "Grov, she is the daughter of my hearth now, I will teach her anything she needs to know," Ayla said smiling, on the final day of their isolation.

The next morning, before dawn, Goov and Brun came through the cave to collect the three newly mated men for the consummating ceremony. All the other men waited in the men's ceremonial room. They stopped at Norv's fire first, then Dorg's, and finally Grov's.

Brun watched the mixed man for a moment, as he got up and put on his wrap. He saw Grov look toward the sleeping woman of his hearth with affection, and knew immediately that they were suited for one another. He could tell that the man had taken his mate physically, and that Ayla had not been afraid of or harmed by the man. It was good to see their first medicine woman happy.

The five men left quickly, and joined the others for their ceremony.

When Ayla woke up not too much time had passed from the time the men had left, but Ora was stirring. She could see that Eka and Uga were sitting together at Daub's hearth having a morning meal and tea. She decided to bring Ora to Uga to nurse and was invited to sit down with the two women. She was so glad she could walk about freely again.

When Durc woke up, he came over to Daub's hearth, and cuddled with his mother. After eating, he wanted to go find Grev, so Ayla picked up Ora and excused herself to go with her son.

As they walked through the passageway, passing hearths, it seemed strange to only find women and children. Ovra was visiting with Aza, and playing with the woman's two daughters. Ayla gestured a hello as she went by, but continued on.

When she came to Vorn's hearth, she stopped to talk to her sister, while Durc went off to find Grev.

"Uba, have you told Vorn yet?" Ayla asked her sister. When Uba nodded, Ayla smiled.

"Yes, Ayla. He was so happy. He said he asked Goov to make a plea to the spirits for me," Uba gestured with hope.

"I am so glad for you Uba. I will talk to Brun as soon as I can. I do not want you doing any hard work. And I will be keeping a close eye on you as well."

"What about you Ayla," Uba inquired. "How is your mating going?"

Ayla smiled at Uba's questions. "Uba, he is wonderful. He really likes me."

"I am so happy for you Ayla. Maybe you will get pregnant soon, and we can have our children close together. Wouldn't that be great."

Ayla nodded, with a thoughtful look on her face. She had been taking Iza secret medicine, every morning, but now she didn't really have to, did she? She was a mated woman now, her child would not be unlucky. "Yes Uba, it would be nice."

The two women had been talking for a while, watching several of the children playing in the central space, when Oda, carrying Ura, and Oga came by to chat as well. Oga was looking more and more withdrawn everyday. Ayla was worried about her, and by Uba's look, so was she.

Oga had been staying at Brun's hearth, but she wasn't happy there, because Broud was always staring across at her. His looks made her remember how happy she had been before, but at the same time she felt like she needed to run away from him. She didn't know what Brun planned to do with her, and that uncertainty made her nervous.

The women were still sitting there talking when the men emerged from their ceremony. Broud was walking with Vorn and Borg, but stopped in his tracks when he saw Oga sitting there with Ayla, Uba and Oda. Oga did not look at the man that had been her mate, but Ayla saw how hard it was for her to avoid his gaze. When Ayla looked up at Broud she could see the desire he had for his former woman. Though she did not like the man at all, she felt sympathy for Oga, who obviously didn't like being away from him.

Brun, just behind Goov and Grov, was the last man to leave the ceremonial cave. "Oga!" he called over to the medicine woman's hearth. Oga got up quickly and went to the leader, not knowing what he wanted. She kneeled down in front of him, and he tapped her shoulder.

"Oga, I have decided that you shall stay at Grov's hearth. They have much space, and two hunters to provide for more people. Gather your belongings so that you can settle in today."

Oga nodded, and scurried around Brun's hearth, picking up Brac's, Grev's and her things. Ayla watched her for a short time, then went to help the woman.

As Ayla approached Brun's hearth, she could feel Broud's eyes burning into her back, but she kept going. Grov saw the angry man's look, and leveled his own look back at him, daring the former leader to threaten either of the women at his hearth.

When Ayla reached Brun, she gracefully lowered herself to the ground in front of the man. Brun tapped her shoulder, allowing her to speak. "Brun, this woman would like to help Oga move to Grov's hearth."

Brun grunted his approval, but Ayla did not go to help. "What else Ayla?"

Ayla hid her smile, knowing that the leader was still a bit uncomfortable with her smiles, but thinking that he better get used to them, considering that Grov, Vorg, Durc, Ura, Ora and herself smiled a lot. The reason she was amused was that she was happy the leader could tell when she had something to say to him.

"Brun, this woman would also like to tell the leader that the second medicine woman is pregnant, and this woman thinks it would be best if Uba could refrain from doing too much work. Her last pregnancy didn't go well, as we all know, and this woman hopes that this time Uba will bring forth a new life.

Brun grunted again, looking over at Uba, who was sitting in Vorn's hearth. For a moment, Brun thought about his own sibling, Iza, and Creb, his brother, both of whom he missed dearly. He was the last of the three.

Ayla helped Oga carry her things back to Grov's hearth, setting Oga and her boys up in the connecting room to the hearth. That way Oga would still have some privacy, but she wouldn't be lonely.

"Oga, I would like you to have the deer hide that I have just finished curing. It could make a good ground covering for you or the boys," Ayla gestured, trying to help the woman settle in.

Oga took the proffered gift and said, "This woman is grateful to the medicine woman for her gift."

Ayla smiled at the woman that was three years her senior, and gestured, "You will find that we are not so formal at our hearth. Grov will not want you to ask to do everything. Just do whatever makes you happy, _and, _you can always come sleep with us if you want to, Oga, there is no reason to sleep alone if you do not want to," Ayla offered.

Oga nodded, not wanting to interfere with the newly mated couple. After all, she wasn't second woman, but she was happy Ayla had made the offer. It made her feel more welcomed; more part of the family.

**XxX**

**Goov's Plea to Ursus**

Later on that morning, Brun came around to let everyone know he wanted to have another feast, in celebration of actually being in the cave. He said that each woman should make her own dish, and bring it to the central space to share at evening mealtime. Everyone was excited about the coming evening meal.

The women in Ayla's area decided to cook their offering outside, so that their children could get some fresh air while the work was getting done. It was starting to get cool out, but it wasn't too cold yet. Soon enough they would be confined to the cave for the winter.

Brac, Vorg and Breg picked up their spears, deciding to 'hunt' just away from their mothers. Grev and Durc were trying to play hearths with Ada and Aka, but the twins weren't very interested in the game, since the boys were ordering them around, and they weren't used to that. The boys finally tired of the game, ran off to playing their own hunting game. Ora was lying on a hide on the ground near the women, napping before the meal.

The men, Daub, Dorg and Grov, were sitting outside as well, somewhat off to the side of the women. They were watching the three older boys as they hunted, and were talking about what was going on.

"This clan sure is different than the one we grew up with, but I think our women are adjusting fairly well," Dorg gestured.

Daub leveled a glance at Dorg. "Well, I guess so, but I think my mate's daughters are confused. They are not used to having boys tell them what to do."

"We will have to teach them to act properly, so that life is pleasant for them," Dorg said, glancing at Grov, who had said nothing. The man appeared to be a million miles away, and Dorg nudged him to bring him back to the conversation.

"Grov, what do you think of this clan," Daub said.

"Oh, fine," he said, looking back toward the women.

Dorg and Daub exchanged amused looks, as they followed Grov's gaze. He was watching Ayla, of course, never taking his eyes off her.

Dorg snorted at Grov's response, which caused the man to come to attention.

"What?" he said with a grin, knowing full well that they were making a joke about his mind being elsewhere.

It wasn't much different over by the women. They were fixing the meal, and discussing this clan's differences. It was a good discussion, having two women coming from each clan to bring in the different points of view.

Eka and Uga, who were both full clan, had very liberal views about clan ways. They had grown up with many mixed and others people as part of their clan, and it was quite normal for them to see changes in short periods of time. They understood that the changes were necessary for life to move on.

Oga, having lived with a somewhat conservative clan all of her life, was having a very difficult time with the changes at hand. She did not like change; it was unsettling to her. Eka and Uka sympathized, but hoped the woman would get used to change, for it was not going away.

Ayla, who had contributed quite a bit early on, was now not adding anything to the conversation at all. She was doing more staring over at Grov. It did not need to be discussed that she was obviously the one most capable of change, since she was others.

Finally, the other three women noticed that though Ayla was working beside them, she was not _with _them. They followed Ayla's eyes, and saw that Grov had the same ridiculous look on his face. If the clan could laugh, they would be laughing.

Oga smacked Ayla gently on her thigh, and signaled, "Ayla, go to your man. You are of no use here, and apparently neither is he."

Ayla smiled back at the three women, then got up to go to Grov, who, seeing her coming, got up, and almost sprinted to her as well. He ignored the grunting men that were having fun with his inability to concentrate on anything but Ayla.

The three clan women looked on with amused expressions, remembering what it was like to be newly mated for the first time.

Uga too had just been mated, but it was a second mating for her. Plus, she had been sharing Dorg's furs for sometime, and did not feel like a newly mated woman.

And Eka, who had been mated to Daub for several seasons, had become very comfortable with the man, and did not get seem to get that rush of feel as she used to. He did not make the signal to her as often as he used to, but that did not mean he loved her less.

Oga, who had been mated until recently, felt a twinge of sorrow. Even after all she had gone through with Broud, she missed him. He was all she had known.

When inside the cave, Grov grabbed Ayla around the waist and kissed her full on the mouth. She smiled at him through the kiss, and pressed herself up against him. They hardly made it to their hearth with their wraps still on.

On the other side of the cave, everyone was busy cooking and preparing meals. Ebra and Uka were working together, while Aba, Aga and Ika were off doing their own thing. Uba and Ona had gone to help Oda, Ovra and Aza, and most of the younger men had gone out for some casual hunting.

Broud didn't want to go hunting, but didn't want to sit around watching the women, so he had gone off by himself. Brun watched Broud leave the cave, thinking that the son of his mate was spending entirely too much time alone. He aught to be hunting with the men, and trying to get back into the swing of things, but he wasn't.

Goov, who hadn't gone with the hunters either, caught Brun's eyes and sent a plea to his totem, asking Ursus to help their former leader.

**XxX**

**Ayla Tries**

That night, the feast was grand, and the storytelling was awesome. Each person was given a chance to tell a story, and while not everyone chose to, everyone enjoyed the ones that were told. The night reminded Ayla that Creb had always told her favorite, the Story of Durc, and that he was not there to tell it again. Feeling a little sad at the loss of the man that was like her mother's mate, she leaned back against Grov, who was also feeling a bit of loss that night.

As the night went on, Ayla watched everyone surreptitiously. Uba was glowing with her secret that only a few knew. Igra looked a little uncomfortable, she noticed, wondering if the girl was feeling okay. And Oga, who was sitting only a short distance from her, looked absolutely depressed.

Ayla sat up and gestured to Oga that she should come sit closer to her, and Grov, seeing his mate's concern, also signaled the woman to come. Oga moved back to sit with them, and they both moved in close to surround the saddened woman.

From the other side of the crowded space, Broud watched _his _woman get comfortable between Grov and Ayla, and felt a twinge of guilt that he could not comfort her himself. He knew he was the cause of her unhappiness, and that upset him greatly, though no one seemed to understand him.

When the night was coming to a close, Brun announced that the men would be hunting for the next several days, to stock up for the winter, which would be coming any day, and that the women would need to gather all that they could. When he finished, he and Ebra retreated to their hearth, followed by the other older clan members, leaving the younger one to enjoy some time alone.

Goov signaled to Ovra that he would be spending a while in the men's ceremony room, searching for animals for the next day's hunt. Ovra nodded, and began gathering up her belonging to go back to the hearth for the night. He also wanted to start thinking about choosing an acolyte. It would be a useful thing to start working on over the winter, he thought.

Several others were cleaning up and going off to their hearths. Eka had already left to put the twins to bed, but Daub was hanging around talking to Corg and Norv about the coming day's hunt.

Ayla, who wanted to get the children off to bed, asked Oga to take them back with her, while she cleaned up. Grov was going to stay there with Ayla, but she sent him back with Oga, encouraging him to keep her company.

Ayla not only needed to clean up, but she also wanted to talk to examine Uba before she returned to the hearth. When she went to the medicine woman's hearth, she had to wait, because Broud was there talking to Vorn, and she didn't want to cause any trouble.

Broud saw her waiting and flashed her an unreadable look, confusing her. She decided to talk to him. Nervously, Ayla approached Broud, and kneeled at the man's feet. He stared down at her, wondering what she could possibly want from him, and didn't want to grant her an audience. However, his curiosity won out and he tapped her shoulder.

Ayla did not rise, but stayed in a kneeling position so as not to anger him, and looked up at the man who had caused her so much pain, and said, "This woman would tell the man that Oga misses him."

Broud stared at her briefly, then grunted, then walked away.

Ayla watched Broud leave, wondering if she should have spoken to him, then went to talk to Vorn and Uba. Vorn had been watching, and he shrugged his shoulders as she approached, as if saying, _you tried._

"Okay Uba, I want to examine you," the medicine woman said, which cleared Vorn out of the hearth.

When she was finished, she told Uba that she had talked to Brun, so there was no need to worry. "We will do everything possible to bring a child to your hearth." Uba came as close as a person of the clan could to a smile, letting Ayla know she was hopeful.

When Vorn realized they were done, he returned to the hearth, and the three of them talked for a short time before Ayla left.

During Uba's exam, Daub finished his conversation with the men, and was ready to leave. At the same time he getting up to go, Ovra was passing in front of him on her way out as well. Her arms were overloaded, and she kept dropping things, so he helped her back to the Mog-ur's hearth.

As Ovra followed the man back to Goov's hearth, she thought about everything that had happened to the clan in the last few moon cycles. When they got there, she could not help but brush up against the man as she took everything from him, and put them away. Though the man was happy with his mate, and it hadn't been his intention, he quickly became turned on by the woman that stood in front of him, and he gave her the signal.

Ovra, being a good clan woman, assumed the position for Daub to relieve his needs. When he was finished, he sat with her for a while, asking her questions about which woman was her mother, since he didn't know, and other unimportant things. He hadn't wanted to just get up and leave after signaling her to relieve him. When he decided to go, he said, "I am going now," and left to go to his hearth. Ovra cleaned herself up, straightened the hearth, and went to bed.

When Ayla finally returned to Grov's hearth, she was pleased to see Oga sound asleep in Grov's furs. He was sitting by the fire, waiting for her to come back, and hugged her when she sat down.

Ayla could smell Oga on him, and asked, "how did it go," gesturing toward the sleeping woman?

Grov blushed a little, not wanting to answer her direct question, but spoke anyway, "She is fine, but I am not Broud, and she wants him, even though he is so awful."

Ayla smiled at her mate, "You did not have to signal her if you did not want to. I just don't want her to feel so lonely." The she added, "I did talk to Broud. I don't know what he thought, but he did not cuff me. That's a good sign."

Grov knew she was joking, but the thought of Broud hitting his woman made him mad. "He better not cuff you," he gesticulated angrily. "He has done enough of that," he said looking over at Oga. "Why she still wants him is beyond me."

"Don't worry Grov, this woman has been taking care of herself for a long time, I can handle Broud." She paused briefly, then cocked her head and coyly said, "Do you think you have it in you to signal this woman too?"

Grov looked at her seriously, and having become aroused as she made it know what she wanted, he made signal.

**XxX**

**Preparation For Winter**

The next day, Grov left early with the men, so that they could hunt enough meat to get the forty-four members through the harsh glacial winter. Ayla stirred, as he brushed her hair off her face before he left, and smiled up at the man signing, "Good luck," but Oga remained still.

When Ora started to cry, Ayla got up, and brought her to Uga, then returned to the hearth. Oga was beginning to wake up Ayla noticed, so she put on some water for tea, and sat watching the other woman sleep. It wasn't long before the tea was ready, and Oga was awake.

Ayla smiled at the woman, and Oga gestured a morning greeting.

"How did you sleep, Oga?" Ayla gestured, thinking that the woman _looked_better.

Oga shrugged, giving Ayla a strange look. Ayla was certain Oga had experienced something different the night before. The medicine woman was now sure that other men of the clan just relieved their needs with their women, and did not give them pleasure as well. She knew she was truly lucky to have been given to Grov.

"Ayla," Oga said hesitatingly. "Is it _always _like that with Grov?"

Ayla smiled again, and Oga blushed. "Well, I don't know for sure, since we have just been mated, but so far, yes."

Oga didn't say anything else on the subject, but she became very thoughtful.

The next few days were filled with hunting and gathering. Each day the men went out, and the women roamed around collecting everything they may need. Then, after the first days of hunting, the women's lives were consumed with cooking and drying meat, drying or storing vegetables and greens, and curing and tanning hides.

The meat was stored in the hearth area closest to the northern entrance. It had been like a freezer in there for the past few weeks, and with the chilled wind, the temperature was dropping daily. The vegetables and greens would be stored in the elongated room just in front of the meat area.

While some of the women worked on the afore-mentioned tasks, others worked on piecing together hides that would be used to block the four cave entrances, to hold in heat. Only the northern entrance hide would be placed somewhat inside the cave, because they wanted it to keep the meat frozen.

The entire clan kept busy. Brun knew that they would need a considerable amount of wood for the many fires, so even the smallest children were instructed to gather wood constantly, and some of the older girls gathered grasses so they could spend time weaving baskets for storage purposes.

The cave was just taking a deep breath from all the work they had done when Grev and Durc, loaded to their chins, came running in, dropped their wood, and gestured wildly, "Mama, it's snowing!"

Ayla and Oga had been sitting near the center space fire weaving baskets for the late season apples they had gathered. Both women looked up to see their sons covered with snow and shivering. Ayla hid a smile and reprimanded the boys for getting wet and cold.

As it turned out, that was the first day of many long, hard winter days.

**XxX**

**A New Woman**

A few days into the second big storm, Ika made her first trip through the cave passageway over to Grov's hearth to get Ayla's help; Igra had become a woman. Igra had just entered her seventh year, and her mother was worried about her daughter having to spend her first woman's curse off alone in the blowing snow. Ayla reassured the woman, saying that she would go talk to Brun.

Ayla and Ika, with Oga in tow, walked back through the passage together. Ika and Oga headed toward Crug's hearth, almost bumping into Broud, and Ayla hurried over to Brun's hearth. Brun was sharing a morning meal with Grod and Zoug at Grod's hearth, and the medicine woman didn't want to interrupt, so she waited with Ebra at Brun's hearth.

Since the incident at the river, which was over two moon cycles ago, Ayla and Ebra had become quite close. Ebra looked at the woman now as if she were her daughter. She was delighted that Ayla had found happiness with her mate, and wondered how long it would be before Ayla would be expecting another baby. The whole cave had heard about Ayla's and Grov's exploits, and knew that they were sharing it with Oga, much to Broud's frustration. He never did like to share Oga, and now _his _woman was living at another man's hearth. Ayla spoke to Ebra often about how Oga was, and about how worried she was about the woman. Sometimes Oga appeared to be getting over her depression, then just a day later, she was wallowing in it again. Ebra reassured the medicine woman that Oga would recover, but it would take time. Ebra knew Broud hadn't just hurt Oga physically, but mentally as well. It could take a very long time.

Brun was also happy that Ayla was happy. For many seasons he had wished she were a man, so he could talk to her openly about the things she thought, but a man would never discuss such things with a woman. Now, since Ebra had taken Ayla in as somewhat of a daughter, Brun began to truly understand what Iza and Creb had felt for the woman, _and _he was glad that Ebra finally had a daughter. He knew she had always secretly wanted one.

When he saw Ayla approaching his hearth, but looking at him over at Grod's hearth, he knew she wanted to talk to him. He didn't want to leave to go see what she wanted, because he knew it shouldn't matter if a woman had something to say, but his curiosity was always peaked when she wanted to say something.

So, Ayla and Ebra sat talking, and Uka joined them. Uka had long since given up the immature feelings about how Iza had usurped her sister's position as highest ranked female of their clan. Now, it was Ayla that held that position, but it no longer mattered to the women. Uka was quite aware that Ebra now considered Ayla a daughter, and she readily accepted her new familial rank as aunt, though there was no term for it.

Ayla told them that Igra had become a woman, and they were pleased for Ika, yet scared for the new woman, and what Brun would decide about her woman's curse isolation. When they saw Brun approaching the hearth, Ebra and Uka left, heading straight for Crug's hearth, to talk to Ika and Igra.

Ayla watched them go, then since she was already sitting on the ground, she looked down, waiting for Brun to tap her shoulder. When he did, she looked up, and said, "This woman has news. Igra has become a woman, and Ika doesn't know what to do since she needs to endure her first curse away, but the weather is so bad."

Brun looked across the central space and into Crug's hearth. Crug was nowhere to be found. He must be somewhere else and does not know yet, Brun thought. "Igra can spend her curse in that small cave that opens up to the outside, yet still has a passageway to the inside. She will be away from all of us, and Ika can still visit her everyday."

Ayla nodded, thinking that Brun's plan was a good one, but waited, it seemed like he wanted to say more. "Ayla, I am going to allow you to visit her as well. I do not want anything to happen to the woman. It could be bad luck if someone dies in our new cave."

Ayla nodded again, agreeing with the leader. Usually a new woman was required to stay away from the cave, but due to weather, that would be impossible. She too believed that a death _in _the cave could be cause for the spirits to become angry with them.

When Brun dismissed the medicine woman, she went directly to Crug's hearth to tell them the news. Ika and Igra were beside themselves with worry, but Ayla was smiling as she approached and they visibly relaxed.

"Igra," Ayla said, speaking to the new woman, but including everyone else that was there. "Brun has given permission for you to stay within the cave. I will show you where. _And, _he is going to allow both Ika and myself to visit you."

The other women were shocked. "Why, Ayla," they chorused?

"It may be bad luck if something should happen to Igra in our new cave, so he wants to make sure nothing does."

The women were all impressed and agreed Brun had made a very wise decision.

"So, let's get you packed up, and settled into your new space. It will not last long Igra," Ayla gestured remembering too well that it could be a very lonely experience. "And, once it's over, you can start thinking about being mated."

Igra blushed, she had already been thinking about that subject; wondering what boy would eventually become a man that she could be given to.

When Ika had Igra packed and ready, Ayla led them away, and the other women left to go to their own hearths.

Oga crossed the central space, trying to avoid Broud, but he was at Vorn's hearth and saw her coming. Without so much as an, 'I'm leaving now,' Broud got up and headed her off. He knew he could not order her around, or any other woman for that matter, but he really wanted to talk to her; he really wanted her back.

"Oga," he said, but then didn't know what else to say when she looked up at him. He didn't want to plead with her, clan men just did not plead with women, but he didn't want her to go.

Grov, who had just been coming down the passage looking for Ayla, stopped when he saw the couple ahead of him, and he waited. When Broud didn't say anything else, Oga just said, "This woman is going now," and pushed past her former mate. Broud watched her go, and didn't miss Oga side step Grov to get back to the man's hearth. Why was that man watching their conversation, he thought angrily? But he could help noticing that Grov was being protective of Oga, and that was a good thing, wasn't it? If he couldn't do it, wasn't it good that some man was; even if it _was _Ayla's mate?

Broud went back to Vorn's hearth, to finish the conversation he had so abruptly walked away from.

Brun, across the way, had watched the son of his mate. He had seen the anger on Broud's face change to something else. He didn't know what it was, but it seemed better than the open hostility he had been showing for so long.

That night, Oga did not share Grov's and Ayla's furs; she wanted to be alone. She could not help her feelings of confusion. She wondered why she longed to be with Broud, when he had been so awful towards her. She looked over at her two sons, who slept soundly, and considered their training.

Brac was still spending time with Broud, even though he had defended her so strongly that fateful day, but Grev hadn't spent much time with Broud for some time. Grev knew that Broud did not like his milk brother, so he tried to stay away from the man. Oga guessed that Grov would train Grev, if Broud didn't do it.

As Oga drifted off to sleep, she was aware that Grov had signaled Ayla again, and she wondered if Ayla's totem would ever be defeated again.

**XxX**

**Who's Out There?**

It was very dark in the cave when Oga woke up the next morning. The fire had burned down, and everyone was seemingly still asleep, so she got up to throw a log on the fire, and sat down, with her back to the opening of the hearth. She looked over at Grov and Ayla, who were snuggled close in their furs, and felt a pang of longing.

When watching them sleep became too painful, the woman got up and put on water for tea, then decided she needed to go relieve herself. In the darkness, she slowly crept through the small space toward the windbreak, which was anchored down strongly to keep out the icy blasts, and pushed it aside to go out. Being alone outside at dawn frightened her, so she hurried and went back in, fastening the flat back down as she entered.

She stood where she was for a brief moment, allowing her eyes to adjust to the darkness again after being outside in dawn's light, then slowly crossed back to the hearth. When she neared its entrance, she saw movement down the passageway to her left, and turned to look into the dark, rocky corridor. She was just about to hurry into Grov's hearth and wake the man, when Broud stepped out of the shadows.

Oga's eyes widened when she realized it was Broud. Had he been watching her? How long had he been doing that, she wondered? Her heart was pounding.

"This woman would greet you," she signed to him politely, not kneeling or waiting to be addressed as she used to. He did not say anything, but was struck by her formality. He had seen how informal she was within Grov's hearth, and desperately wanted his woman back.

When he didn't appear to have anything to say, Oga stepped back and turned to go, but Broud put his hand on her arm, and gently pulled her one step into the hallway. Oga paused, unable to leave, knowing that the man that had been her mate wanted her to stay. Then he did something totally unexpected, he leaned over and put his mouth on hers.

Oga's eyes flew open and her knees almost buckled. Broud had never done that before. She now knew that he had been spying on her for some time. He had obviously seen Ayla with Grov and/or her with Grov, and knew the effect the action had on them.

Then, as quickly as he had appeared, he disappeared into the dark passageway, leaving Oga even more confused than she had been. Oga just stood there looking into the darkness, until she was startled by Ayla's whispering voice saying, "Oga."

Oga jumped at her name, and quickly went into the hearth. "Good morning, Ayla."

Ayla gestured good morning back to the woman, then said, "Oga, are you okay?"

If Oga could have cried, she would have been sobbing, "Oh Ayla," she said. "Broud was just here, he just put his mouth on mine, just like Grov does. I am so confused. I miss Broud so much, for all that he can be mean; I still miss him."

It was no secret that Ayla didn't like Broud, but she felt for her hearth mate, and held the hurting woman in her arms. When the woman sat up to pour herself some tea, Ayla motioned, "give it some time Oga, either the pain will go away, or you'll know where you really want to be. Broud was never terrible to you until he became leader. Maybe he just isn't capable of leading. Maybe if he doesn't ever become leader, then he can be your mate again."

Oga nodded and sipped her tea. She sure liked Ayla, and wished Broud didn't hate the medicine woman so.

Ayla finished off her own tea, and then went off to see how Igra's first night alone had gone.

Oga poured herself another cup of tea, and just sat there waiting for Ayla to return. When Ora started to cry, Oga picked her up and offered her a breast; her milk still wasn't gone, as Grev and Durc continued to crawl onto her lap and suckle. Ora had become fond of the new woman at the hearth.

For the next few weeks, every time Oga left the hearth, she looked for Broud in the shadows, but never saw him there. That didn't mean he wasn't there, but if he was, he had learned to be more elusive. Oga had not forgotten his kiss and wished he would come back and do it again.

On a clear day, about a month later, the men decided to hunt. They had been confined to the cave for so long, and it felt good to get out. Some of the women prepared to go out as well, just to get some air, but Ayla and Oga decided that they would go visit Ebra for a while.

However, before they could get out of the hearth, Ovra came walking up. "Ayla, this woman needs to talk to you," she said nervously.

Ayla invited the woman in, and gestured, "Is something wrong, Ovra?"

"Well, I'm not sure. I think my totem has been defeated again. I did not get my woman's curse."

Oga brightened, but Ayla had some questions. "When should it have come?"

"I think it should have been here over a moon cycle ago, but I have not really been keeping track for a long time now. It could be even longer."

Then Ayla's next question was, "Have you been drinking Iza's tea?"

Ovra blushed at this, "no Ayla, I ran out a while ago and I've been too busy to ask you for more."

"Well Ovra, you must be pregnant. You never did have trouble getting pregnant, it's just that you don't seem able to stay pregnant."

"But Ayla," Ovra said pleadingly, "I want to bring a child to Goov's hearth so badly. Is there anything you can do to help me."

"Well, first I will talk to Brun about restricting you from _all_ work. Then, I will need to talk to Goov about abstaining from giving you the signal, _and _I think it would be best if you stayed in bed during your entire pregnancy. It's going to be very difficult Ovra, but I will do everything I can."

Ovra was nodding her head, willing to accept whatever needed to be done to bring a child to Goov's hearth, and feeling hopeful. Ayla didn't want to wait on any of her medical advice, so they left the hearth immediately to go find Goov, whom Ovra had said did not go hunting.

They found him still in his hearth, sitting quietly with his eyes closed, meditating. Ovra was nervous about interrupting him, but Ayla said this was too important to wait for, and cleared her throat. Goov opened his eyes and knew something was up with only one glance.

The two women entered the hearth and the medicine woman lowered herself quickly. Ovra watched nervously, as her mate tapped Ayla's shoulder.

"This woman would like to tell the Mog-ur that his mate's totem has been defeated again."

Goov's eyes widened, and he jumped up and went to Ovra. "Really Ovra?"

She nodded, looking happy, but frightened, and he knew why

"Mog-ur, if you want Ovra to keep this baby, then she is going to need some help."

He looked at the medicine woman seriously, and said, "This man will do whatever it takes to help his mate. What do I need to do?"

"First, this woman does not want Ovra to get out of bed for any reason other than to relieve herself." Goov was nodding, and absently signaled to Ovra to get back into bed.

"This medicine woman must also let you know that Ovra should not be signaled to relieve your needs, or anyone else's for that matter. It could disrupt the pregnancy." Goov was still nodding, he could do that; there were plenty of other women around to relieve him, and he would talk to Brun about announcing it to all of the men.

"And finally, we obviously need to have Ovra relieved from all other duties for the duration of her pregnancy, so we must speak to Brun." Goov gave a final nod, and left the hearth to go find Brun. He felt like the happiest man of the clan.

**XxX**

**Broud's Visit**

The winter was in full swing when Uba and Ovra's pregnancies started to show. Uba was in her fifth month, and as it turned out, Ovra was farther along than she had known. She was in her fourth month, and everything seemed to be going okay for both the women.

The whole moon cycle of confinement had been very difficult on Ovra, but her pleasure at finally becoming pregnant, after all those years of being seemingly barren, brought great joy to Goov's hearth and to the woman herself. She positively glowed, and had decided resolutely that she would walk through fire to have her baby if she had to.

Ovra did get out some. Ayla periodically took Ovra on short walks around the cave, and outside when the snow was not blowing. During these walks, they were always followed by Goov, who was incredibly nervous about his mate and her child to be. Ayla thought Ovra to be very lucky in that the mate she had been given to genuinely cared for her. He had never been upset with her inability to bring a child to his hearth, and now that it may happen, he was like an expectant mother himself. He even learned to have her favorite tea ready for her when she woke up every morning.

For Uba, things had been much easier; she had the option to get up and do almost anything she wanted, as her pregnancy seemed to be strong right from the start. The strength of her pregnancy did not however stop Vorn from following her around like a puppy, just as Goov did Ovra. At just five moon cycles along, her stomach had swelled promisingly, and the baby was extremely active. She could hardly believe the difference in how she felt now versus her previous experience. It amazed the young medicine woman everyday.

The people of Brun's clan, or any clan for that matter, didn't have much to do during the long winters, since they were essentially bound to the cave. The women's days consisted of basket weaving, scrapping hides, cooking meals and other womanly duties, while the men did a little sling hunting, signaled their women to relieve their needs, or talked about the coming spring hunt.

When Goov told Brun that the Winter Solstice was approaching, Brun decided to break up the monotony and have a winter feast. For the next couple days every woman, with the exception of Ovra and Uba, started preparing meals for the coming festivities, and there was a buzz in the air. A few men even went out to see if they could drum up some fresh meat.

Ayla and Oga worked feverishly within Grov's hearth, Ayla making her ptarmigan dish, and Oga preparing the stew that she knew was _someone's _favorite. Grov was off somewhere else, and the women were enjoying their time together, which was filled with good conversation, and glances at their children, who were playing close by.

Ayla was putting the finishing touches on her ptarmigan, when she realized she didn't have some of the herbs she needed. "Oga, I have to go to the vegetable storage room, do you need anything?"

Oga looked around at what she was doing, "Yes Ayla, I need some of those small red potatoes."

"Okay, I'm going to go check on Ovra real quick and then I'll go get what we need." The medicine woman left quickly, leaving the other woman alone.

Oga busied herself around the hearth, waiting for Ayla. She decided to finish working on the wolverine hood she had started for Grev, and sat down to do her task. Then, a noise at the hearth opening caused her to look up. Broud was standing there watching her.

"This woman greets you," Oga said nervously. Broud signaled a greeting, but didn't move otherwise.

Oga tried again, "This woman would invite you in if you would like." Broud still did not move. This was Grov's hearth, and he could tell the man did not like him. Broud knew he had reason not to like him. Oga didn't know what else to say to the man. She could see a change in the man that had been her mate. He would never have had nothing to say in the past.

Just as Broud was deciding to leave, Grov came around the corner, and almost walked right into the man that stood there staring at Oga. For a brief second, Broud seemed angry that the deformed man showed up, then realized that it was Grov's hearth.

Grov looked from Broud to Oga, and realized the woman wanted the man to stay, so he invited him in. "Oga, make tea, we have a guest." Oga immediately jumped up, and started some water boiling.

As Grov walked into his hearth, he considered the former leader. Broud's whole demeanor seemed to be so different from the man he had met five moon cycles ago. He still had a lot of problems, but due to his punishment, he had become rather docile. Grov silently wondered if it could last. It was his experience that people like him rarely changed for the good. But, to give the man the benefit of the doubt, he did truly seem to miss Oga.

Grov sat down next to Oga, and turned to look at Broud. The man hadn't entered the hearth yet. He was struggling with the fact that Grov was sitting right next to the woman he still considered his. Grov watched the man working to control his emotions; something that had always been nearly impossible for the hot headed man.

He couldn't decide what he should do. He wanted to grab Oga and drag her away from the hearth, but he knew he couldn't do that, so he slowly took a step inside the hearth, and sat down on Oga's other side.

Oga was so nervous that she spilled the first cup of tea on the ground, then annoyed with herself, she started over. Grov watched her with an amused expression, thinking that the woman must _really _like this awful man.

Broud could tell Grov was enjoying the situation, and he didn't understand why the man did not get mad at her for spilling the tea. He would have been.

Then, when it was finally finished, Oga went to him and kneeled in front of him like she always had in the past. Broud tapped her shoulder and she handed him the cup. When he took the proffered drink, he made a point of brushing her hands with his.

They sat there in relative silence, drinking their tea.

Ayla had spent more time at Goov's hearth than she had intended. Ovra's mother had been there so they chatted for a while before the pregnant woman's exam. When the medicine woman finally did her examination, she smiled up at the woman.

"Ovra, you look really good. Everything inside feels just as it should, better than I expected. And your belly is growing fast."

Ovra, who was lying there with her hands on her stomach, and looking at the medicine woman through her open legs, was overjoyed by the news. She was so happy.

Uka turned toward her daughter, "You will be holding a baby of your own by mid spring, Ovra. I am so happy for you and Goov."

When Ayla was finished, she left the women alone, and started for the vegetable storage room. As she passed Norv's hearth, Ura came running out, "Ayla, up."

Ayla stopped to tickle the little girl who would be her son's mate someday, and picked her up and swung her around as she giggled. Norv was giving her a dirty look, so Ayla put the child down, and motioned, "I am leaving now."

When she turned around, Brun was staring over at her from the central space, and he too looked displeased. Ayla blushed at her misbehavior; she always seemed to forget that they didn't like unnecessary sounds.

At the vegetable storage area, Ayla gather what she needed, and some other things, then went the back way to the hearth.

Ayla walked back to the hearth, thinking about Brun's displeasure, and scolding herself for going against clan ways again. She wasn't really paying attention, so when she entered the hearth it took her a second to realize someone else was there. And then, when she realized who that someone was, she blanched visibly.

Oga started to get up to help her, since her arms were loaded, but Grov pushed the woman back down and got up to help her himself. When the vegetables were put away, Grov told Ayla to sit down, and he handed her some tea, and asked about Ovra.

Broud watched Ayla's reaction to his presence, knowing that she did not like him either, but he was most surprised by Grov. First, he told Oga to sit, while he got up to help a woman, and then he poured Ayla tea and sat her down next to him. And finally, told the woman he was glad she was back. Broud had never seen a man act so strangely.

Broud did not stay long that night; it was a strained visit. Both of the women there had born the brunt of this man's anger at sometime or another, Oga much more recently, and it was only Oga that was feeling forgiving.

Ayla wanted Oga to be happy, that is why she spoke to Broud that one night, but she could not help but remember the pain this man had caused her.

**XxX**

**Not Alone**

The next day started with everyone waking early, finishing up the meals for the feast, and straightening their hearths. It didn't matter what their hearths looked like, but most cleaned up just to be doing something.

At midday, Ayla left Grov's hearth to go help Ovra over to the central space. Goov was fussing over his woman, adding to her happiness, when Ayla arrived. The Mog-ur and the medicine woman walked the pregnant woman over to the space and propped her up with furs. Goov stayed with her, not wanting to leave her side, but Ayla needed to get back to finish up before everyone came out.

Broud had been watching everyone getting ready, but he had nothing to do, and no one to talk to, since everyone was busy. When he saw Ayla and the Mog-ur come in helping Ovra, he thought it would be a good time to go to the central space, and he made his way over there.

Ayla saw him coming out of the corner of her eye, and realized she was going to have to get used to seeing him since Oga was staying at Grov's hearth. Before he reached her, she grabbed her amulet and sent a plea to her totem to make her strong enough to deal with the man she didn't like.

"Ayla," he said, and she turned around and kneeled. The man tapped her should so she could rise, and she did, trying to disguise her height, knowing how much the shorter man didn't like it. "This man wants to see Oga. Is she at Grov's hearth?"

Ayla nodded. "This woman is going there now. If the man wants to come too, he is welcome." Ayla couldn't believe she was actually welcoming _this _man to her hearth.

Broud grunted that he would come, and they left with Ayla walking just behind the man.

Brun was watching the interaction between the son of his mate and the first medicine woman. Was there was something there that he had missed? This cave made it very difficult to know what everyone was doing. He couldn't see half of them half the time.

Broud and Ayla passed Daub, Eka, and the twins in the passageway. They were on their way to the feast. Then they passed Dorg, Uga and the boys. When they came upon Brac, Grev and Durc in the smaller main space, Broud gestured a greeting to Oga's sons, and glanced at Durc, but did not greet him. Then, Ora toddled over and fell on the man's foot, and began to cry; sprouting tears out of her tiny eyes. Broud looked down at her as if she were some strange animal he had never seen before, then bent over and picked her up.

The man held the child in front of him, arms extended slightly, looking at the strange child that looked so much like the woman he had never liked. Ayla watched him surreptitiously with an amused smile on her face, then, deciding to relieve him of the child, hid her smile and stepped up to take the child. Broud took one last look at the little girl, then handed her to the woman who stood so close to him.

When Ayla and Broud entered the hearth, Grov and Oga were straightening themselves up. Ayla cast a glance at Broud trying to catch his reaction; she saw anger cross his face first, then pain, then he masked his emotions and stood there with no expression what so ever.

Ayla went over to Grov, handed him the crying child, and then kissed him, trying to show Broud that it was okay. Then she went to help Oga with the meals. Oga was flushed, partly because of her pleasure, and partly because she knew Broud was upset.

Grov felt a little odd. He had not wanted to signal Oga, but Ayla had been gone, and he did not want to go to the central hearth full of heat, and then Broud had shown up. Grov knew Broud did not like the situation, and he felt badly for the man.

Grov and Ayla left the hearth first, with the three boys trailing them. Oga waited trying to let Broud pass, but he signaled her to go, so Oga walked next, with Broud silently walking behind. They were to last to arrive

Brun called everyone to order for the Mog-ur, who stepped up to announce that he spirits were happy with the clan. He talked about the joining of three good clans, the finding of the perfect cave, the three newly mated couples, the lucky hunts that they had had, and the fact that the two women that hadn't yet had children were both bringing forth life. Everyone was excited, and Brun was happy with his clan. Brun dismissed them to eat, saying that the stories would come after the meal.

The women got up to serve their men; starting with Ebra, who obviously served Brun. Broud hung back, thinking that he would get his own, when all were through, but Oga, who now lived at Grov's hearth, who was mated to the first ranked medicine woman, was in the fourth ranked hearth, so she prepared him a plate and brought it to the man.

Broud, who was still somewhat pouting due to Oga's acceptance of Grov, was surprised to see the woman sitting at his feet with food for him. _And, _it was not just any food; she had his favorite meal. He grunted approval to her and took the plate.

Ayla was serving Grov at the same time, and she noticed Broud's pleasure at being considered again, and Oga's pleasure at serving him. Brun did not miss Oga's service of the son of his mate, nor did he miss Broud's proper behavior. He wasn't exactly sure what was happening between them, or the four of them for that matter, he thought watching the other young couple that sat so close. The leader wasn't sure he liked not being able to see everybody interacting on a daily basis, but then, this may not be happening if we were all together all the time.

The people ate and enjoyed themselves, and told stories, and watched hunt dances. At some point in the evening, the men separated themselves from the women, by going to the other side of the central fire, to tell men's stories, so the women decided to tell their own stories. The children ate and played until they dropped, in which case they stayed where they were until mothers picked them up and brought them to bed.

Eka left early again, wanting to put Ada and Aka to bed, and this time Uga went with her, taking Ora to nurse her before she slept. Oda also left to put Ura down, but she returned.

Ayla, Oga and Ovra were sitting together talking about babies. Ovra still could not believe she would be a mother soon, and the two older women questioned Ayla about whether or not she thought her totem would be defeated again. She refrained from mentioning that she thought men were responsible for getting babies started, not spirits, but admitted it was possible.

Oga kept looking across the fire at Broud, who was trying his best to avoid looking over at her, but try as he might, he could not help himself. Ovra and Ayla were teasing Oga that he was a new man, hiding their signs from the man of course, so as not to make him angry. They weren't sure if he had really changed. Oga blushed a deep shade of red at their jokes, then teased Ayla about her man, which caused Ayla to blush as well.

Not too long afterward, Goov came over to Ayla asking her to help him get Ovra back to the hearth. Ayla had noticed the woman was starting to look tired. Before Ayla got up to go with Goov and Ovra, Oga tugged at her wrap. "Ayla, you once told me to, 'do whatever makes me happy.' Did you mean it?"

Ayla looked perplexed. "Yes Oga, but what do you mean?"

Oga looked across the fire to Broud, then turned so he could not see her, "Would it bother you too much if Broud…?" she said trailing off. "I know you don't like him, but this woman does."

Ayla looked into Oga's eyes; she could see that the woman really wanted this, so she nodded and left.

Seeing his woman go, Grov excused himself and went to get the boys, but Brun signaled him to leave them. "They can stay at my hearth tonight," he gestured, knowing the young couples wanted to leave, but the boys wanted to stay and hear the stories. Grov changed direction and joined Ayla at Goov's hearth just as she was finishing up with Ovra.

Broud watched the man go, and turned to look at Oga, she was sitting there alone looking at him. He could not stop himself; he got up, crossed the central space and told her he wanted to go back to her hearth. It was not a command, just a statement, but she nodded and got up, heading for Grov's hearth.

As they walked down the passageway, they saw Ayla and Grov ahead of them. Grov had Ayla up against the cave wall and he was kissing her passionately. Broud stopped to watch. Then Grov grabbed Ayla and pulled her along in what seemed to be a rough manner, but both Broud and Oga could tell she was enjoying it. What happened next shocked them both, Ayla pushed _him _up against the wall, and kissed him back, then ran away from him. Grov chased.

Broud was interested, they were playing with each other, he could tell, but he had never seen anything like it. "Broud," Oga whispered nervously, "this woman wants you to watch them. He nodded, his curiosity was piqued beyond measure, and they followed the couple to the hearth.

They caught up just in time to see Grov make the signal, but Ayla backed away shaking her head. Oga's sharp intake of breath was silenced by Broud's look. _What would the man do to her_? he thought. He knew what he had done, but Grov only grinned at the insolent female. Was it still a game?

Grov chased after her again, but she dodged around the fire. Broud and Oga pulled back somewhat, they did not want to be seen. The next time Grov lunged for the woman, she didn't get away, but she did giggle quietly, and he pulled her toward him for another kiss, then pushed her gently onto their furs, where he lay down beside her.

_He caressed the side of her body, feeling the fullness of her beast, the dip of her waist, the smooth curve of her hip, the taut muscle of her thigh. She quivered under his touch. His hand brushed the golden curls of her mound, and across her stomach to the turgid swelling of her breast, and felt her nipple harden in his palm. He kissed the tiny scar at the base of her throat; then he sought the other breast and sucked her nipple into his mouth._

Broud and Oga watched wide-eyed as the couple continued. Broud was standing behind Oga, since she was smaller and would not have been able to see if it had been the other way around. Oga was aware that Broud had become aroused, but he still wanted to watch Grov and Ayla.

_His mouth left her nipple and circled her stomach and her navel. When he reached her mound, he looked up at her. She was breathing in mewing gasps, her back arched and tense with anticipation. She was ready. He kissed the top of her mound…and inched lower. She was quivering, and when his tongue found the top of her narrow slot, she sprang up with a cry, then lay back moaning._

Oga was breathing hard just watching them, but Broud had an aching in his loins like nothing he had ever experienced. They did not take their eyes off the couple.

_Suddenly she arched her back and cried out…. Her hands clenched and unclenched convulsively in unconscious beckoning motion that matched her spasmodic breaths._

As she arched up to receive him, he let himself enter…. He drew back and plunged deeply into her again. She wrapped legs around him to pull him into her.

He drew back once more. Ayla raised up to him with every nerve and muscle taut. They strained together, Ayla cried his name, and, giving her his final fraction,

Grov filled her.

_For an eternal instant, his deep, throatier cries rose in harmony with her breathless sobs repeating his name as paroxysms of inexpressible pleasure shuddered through them. Then, with exquisite release, he collapsed on top of her._

Broud drew back from the scene. It was over. He never fathomed that there was so much more to giving a woman the signal. Oga was watching him curiously, and it occurred to him that Oga had experienced Grov as well. For the first time in his life he wondered if he could measure up.

They waited there until the heavy breathing become the rhythmic sounds of sleep, then they approached. Oga gestured that she would get her furs and they could go into the joining hearth.

**XxX**

**A Visit With Brun**

Broud woke early the next morning, and for a moment, forgot where he was. Then, recalling the night before, he looked at Oga, who slept beside him, and studied her relaxed expression. He could not stop thinking about what he had seen, and experienced the night before. Then he glanced through the opening to look at Grov and Ayla as they slept.

Grov was still sleeping deeply, but Ayla was stirring. She lay in her mate's arms, with her furs only partially over her. Though the firelight was dim, Broud could see her bare left thigh, breast and arm as she rolled over. He couldn't help but think that she was such an ugly woman. But Grov must not think so, he thought, looking back at the sleeping man. Then it struck him, Grov looks so much like her; that's why he doesn't think the woman is ugly.

Broud was still studying them when Ayla opened her eyes, and focused on the man that had been a thorn in her side for as long as she could remember. The sight of him staring into the hearth brought back such bad memories that she shuddered involuntarily. Then, not wanting to wake her mate, she slipped out of the furs, put on her wrap, and left to go relieve herself.

Broud had the urge to follow her; she should have offered him a drink, he thought, but remembering what he had seen of Grov's hearth, told him that this was Ayla's hearth just as much as it was Grov's hearth, and Grov didn't expect her to wait on him.

Ayla was feeling a tremendous amount of mixed emotions. When she had first seen Broud in Grov's hearth two days before she had a sudden feeling of anger that he was there, but seeing Oga's pleasure at his presence caused her to mask her anger. She wondered if she would have told Broud that Oga missed him had she known he would be coming around the hearth more often. All she could think now was that if he hurt Oga again, she would make him pay, even if Brun cast her out forever.

When the woman was through, she returned to the hearth, to find that Broud had not moved. He was still lying there staring, yet unfocused at the moment of her return. The young woman looked at him, then stepped into view, and his head turned toward her sharply.

"This woman would know if the man wants some tea," Ayla asked him? Broud sat up and nodded, and the woman threw a log on the fire.

While Ayla made tea, Broud got up, put on his wrap, entered Grov's hearth, and sat down silently. He did not know what to say to the woman he had hated for so many years. He did not know how he felt about her now, but he knew he felt differently.

Brun, who had also risen early, was up thinking about the son of his mate. He was aware that Broud left with Oga the night before, and that his hearth was empty now, so he thought he must be with Oga somewhere. He wouldn't have believed that Broud was sitting with Ayla at that very moment.

After sitting for sometime thinking about it, he decided to get up to go looking for the son of his mate. The leader stood up, and signaled to Ebra that he would be back, and he walked out.

First, he glanced around the central space, just to make sure he had not missed the man somewhere. Then had started down the passageway that led to the other space, noting that Broud was not in any of those hearths. When he came to the western entrance area, he looked into Dorg's hearth, and finding nothing, he turned toward Daub's hearth. When he didn't see Broud there, he almost didn't bother to go to Grov's hearth, as he was sure Broud would not be there, but something made the leader go anyway.

When he came around the wall that led to Grov's hearth, he saw the son of his mate sitting by the fire, sipping tea, and Ayla was sitting there too. When the woman noticed the leader, she jumped up, crossed the hearth, and knelt at his feet.

Brun was beyond shock, and didn't immediately tap her shoulder, but signaled over her head to Broud. "Did you stay at the Grov and Ayla's hearth?"

Broud felt a little strangely. "Yes, I stayed with Oga, in there," he gestured pointing toward the medicine woman's other area.

Then Brun turned back to the medicine woman. Ayla thought he was never going to acknowledge her. She had no idea he was speaking with Broud. When he finally did tap her shoulder, she said, "This woman would know if the leader would like some tea?"

Brun grunted accent, and entered the hearth. He didn't really want tea, and he had no reason to even be there, but he didn't want to admit that he had just been looking for Broud. The leader sat down, wondering what in the name of the spirits was going on here.

Within minutes, Grov woke up from the noise of people shuffling around, and got up. "Ayla, you should have woken me," he said. Ayla blushed knowing she should have, but had been stunned to see the leader on this side of the cave.

"I just got here Grov, it is not the woman's fault," Brun replied glad to see that Grov wasn't letting the woman become lazy. She had been behaving quite well, except for the one incident where she was causing Ura to make unnecessary mouth sounds, but he didn't know what was going on within the hearth.

Brun was still drinking his tea when Oga woke up and came into the area. She greeted the leader respectfully, and blushed as she looked at Broud. What is going on here, the leader thought to himself?

Then, as if making a decision about something, the leader turned to Grov. "I need to talk to you Grov…alone."

Ayla and Oga got up to leave, and Broud slowly rose, wondering what Brun had to say to the deformed man, but Brun put his hand up and motioned them to remain there. "Grov and I will talk at my hearth."

So, Grov got up and followed Brun out.

When Brun was gone, Broud relaxed a little, he knew the man had come looking for him, yet he left with the other man; he wondered why. Broud turned to Oga, who was sitting next to him, and the sight of her reminded him again of the night before. He was becoming aroused.

Then he turned to look at Ayla; she was watching the two of them. Why is she always looking at people, he thought? Then he realized, for the first time, that it was probably a medicine woman's job to always be watching.

When he looked at Oga again, he realized she was trying to entice him, so he made the signal. He know he was not supposed to use the signal, but Oga obviously wanted him to, and he could restrain himself no longer.

Oga started to get up, to present herself to him, as she was accustomed to doing, but Broud glanced at Ayla, who had looked down, then he signaled Oga to go into the other space so they could be alone.

Ayla smiled, with sudden comprehension; Oga had obviously taught the man a thing or two. She had no idea Broud and Oga had witnessed them the night before.

On the other side of the cave, Brun was having a hard time wording what he wanted to say, so he just blurted it out. "Grov, at some point I want to give Oga back to Broud, but I cannot have him treating her as he did. I would like them to try living at the same hearth again, but it seems that Ayla and Oga have become close. I do not want to remove Oga from your hearth just yet. I want to have Broud stay at your hearth for a while."

Grov was stunned by the leaders news. "It could be very hard on my mate, to have that man in the hearth. I have heard about Broud's treatment of my woman and I do not like it."

Brun was nodding, "Yes, I know he has been brutal with her in the past, but this might be a way to heal old wounds; for both of them."

Then it was Grov's turn to nod. Brun was right, Broud and Ayla needed to get over their anger. He didn't know if this was the right way to do it, but since Broud had been forbidden to hit anyone, or order the women around, Grov could not think of a reason why it would not be okay.

Brun looked pleased, he had a place to put Broud, so that he would not be alone, _and_ he would have someone to keep an eye on the man. "Send Broud to me when you get back to your hearth. _And,_you need to talk to Ayla. I am finished."

As Grov walked back to his hearth, he was thinking about how to tell Ayla that the man she detested was moving into their hearth. He knew Ayla would not be happy about this, and he didn't blame her one bit.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Tears**

Before he got to the hearth, Grov tried to put his words in order. He tried to relax; there was nothing Ayla could do about Broud coming to live with them, and he would be there to keep an eye on the man, so she didn't have to worry. _But, _he knew she wouldn't really be worried, she was not afraid of Broud, she just didn't like him.

When he got back to the hearth, he entered slowly, noticing first that Broud had left the fire and was relieving his needs with Oga in the other area. The man suddenly realized they needed another way to refer to this, for Broud was 'relieving' Oga as well, and the term didn't seem right when using it for the woman.

Then, when he turned to Ayla, he thought she had a rather odd expression on her face. She was aware that he had come back, but she was transfixed on Ora, as the child sat on the ground playing with the dirt.

The man shrugged his shoulders; he needed to wait for Broud to finish with Oga before he told the man to go to Brun, so he needed to wait to tell Ayla as well. Actually, he thought, studying her further, she looked like she wanted to say something as well. Does she already suspect what I'm about to tell her?

Grov came in, and sat down, waiting for Ayla to say whatever it was she had on her mind, but she didn't say anything, she just got up and fixed tea for the two of them. Ora smiled at the man of her hearth, and toddled over to him, plopping down on his lap.

Ayla made the tea, and then brought it to the man that was her mate and sat down on the ground facing him. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Ayla, what are you doing?"

"This woman would tell the man of her hearth something."

"Ayla, we are within our hearth, you do not have to talk to me this way."

"This woman knows that Grov, but…"

Grov was becoming concerned, and picked up the child, set her aside, and stood up, pulling Ayla to her feet. "Ayla, what is it? What is wrong?"

Ayla blushed, then said, "Grov, I have missed my woman's curse; I think I am going to have a baby."

It took a few seconds for Ayla's signs to register in the man's mind, then he put his arms around his mate. Now he understood why she had been staring at Ora; she was daydreaming about holding a baby of her own.

Just as their embrace concluded, Broud stepped back into the hearth, eyeing them strangely. Grov turned to the man, and gestured, "Brun wants you to come to his hearth."

Broud frowned, wondering what his mother's mate wanted. It seemed like every time he was summoned, he was in trouble. Was Brun upset that he was here with Oga? "Okay, I am going now," he said and left.

With Broud's departure, Grov turned to Ayla with a worried look. Now it was her turn to wonder. "Grov, I can tell you have something to tell me too. What is it?"

The man sat down, gesturing that she should sit as well. Ayla sat, and waited. "Brun has just told me that…that he wants Broud to move into our hearth." He waited for Ayla to become upset.

She stared at her mate, and said, "Why?"

"Brun wants to be able to give Oga back to Broud, but he does not want to change where Oga lives, since there's a good chance it won't work. He believes, and I think I understand, that it is a good way to have Broud back with her, and not have them alone, because I will be here to watch him, and…. Well Ayla, maybe he will be able to come to terms with…with you."

Grov paused and watched her. Her eyes had filled up with tears. She had been putting up with him for Oga's sake, and now the man would be living in her space. She had been so happy just minutes before. Grov gathered her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

Ora, seeing Ayla's tears, tried to get the woman's attention. "Mamma," she said mimicking Durc. "You all right?"

Ayla laughed, wiped her tears, and pulled the little girl close, kissing her cheek. "Yes Ora, Mama's just fine."

Grov wasn't happy that Ayla was so upset. He had known she would be, and he might have told Brun it wasn't a good idea, had he known she was pregnant, but it was too late, _and _he thought, Broud has been making progress. He still struggled inside, that was plainly obvious, but he had not so much as reprimanded a single woman.

Just then, Grev and Durc came walking into the hearth, looking for their mothers. Ayla looked at her son, and unconsciously put her hand on her belly, and smiled.

"Mama, we're hungry."

"This woman will feed them, Ayla," Oga said seeing Ayla's tear-stained face. She didn't know why Ayla's eyes were watering, but she had nothing to do, and was happy to help.

Ayla sat there next to Grov, holding Ora, and studying the boys. They looked so much alike, except for Durc's high forehead. Then the image of Broud relieving his needs with her flashed through her mind. She had to shake her head to dispel the bad memory, but she had been certain for some time that Durc had been started by Broud; that Durc was just as much his son as he was hers. And, she realized, Durc was truly Grev's brother; Brac and Grev's brother, for there was no mistaking that they looked like Broud as well.

Broud had gone to see Brun, and was both pleased and upset about what the leader had told him. The leader had also reminded him that everyone in the hearth had more status than he did, and that he should remember he was to take care of himself, and to not hurt anyone.

He was elated that he would be back with Oga and her sons, but at the deformed man's hearth? With Ayla there? That would be most difficult. Though he wasn't feeling hatred for her anymore, he couldn't say he liked her, and she definitely didn't like him.

Broud crossed the central space, greeting Vorn and Borg as he did, and gathered his things to move to the other end of the cave. The man feeling rather strange as he carried his belonging. This is woman's work, he thought.

Sitting next to Ayla, Grov decided he had better tell Oga about Broud's move. He would be back shortly, and he didn't want the woman shocked at his return.

"Oga, come here."

She did as he said, her life's conditioning forcing her to drop what she was doing to listen to the man. "Brun has decided to have Broud move into our hearth."

Oga glanced at Ayla, who was looking down at the ground. That was why her eyes watered, she thought. "This woman will do whatever she can to take care of Broud's needs as well as yours Grov, so that the medicine woman doesn't have so much work."

He grunted, knowing that she would. Their hearth had so many people in it; more than everyone else's, and another one on the way. At least they had the extra hearth area, and now they would have three hunters.

**XxX**

**Ayla Runs**

Grov was pleased that Oga understood his mate's feelings about Broud. Oga was a good woman to have in the hearth, he knew Ayla was happy to have her there, if not the man. The winter had been okay so far, but Grov knew some things would change now.

When Broud approached the hearth, he walked determinedly into it, with his few things. Oga got up to help him, carefully avoiding his spears. She was pleased that he was there.

Ayla, on the other hand, was not happy with the turn of events and was showing it openly. Grov was torn between making excuses for her, and scolding her. Finally, she just stocked out of the hearth.

Grov didn't blame her, but she was not acting like a good clan woman and it bothered and embarrassed him.

Oga blushed at Ayla's behavior, and Broud wondered why the man did not control his mate. It was Grov's duty to keep her in line and he wasn't doing it.

Ayla left the hearth in tears. She couldn't understand why Brun would do this, knowing she didn't like Broud, and he didn't like her. I will never understand leaders, she thought.

As she passed Goov's hearth, she couldn't help but notice that Ovra was bored. Ovra saw her passing and beckoned her in.

"Hi Ayla. Why are your eyes watering?"

Ayla hesitated, then plunged in. "And now he's staying at Grov's hearth," she finished.

Goov had walked in and saw the end of the conversation. He gave Ayla the same sympathetic look, which Ovra had in her eyes. "I'm sure he will not do anything that Brun has told him not to," Goov said.

"Yes, you are right Mog-ur. He probably won't. It's just that he has been so awful to me. I know I have been disobedient in the past, but I don't think I could have done anything to please him."

Goov and Ovra felt for the woman, but there was nothing she could do about it, so they tried to encourage her to get over the past. "Ayla, Ovra needs to walk, and I have things to do."

Ayla nodded, and helped the pregnant woman up. They didn't go far, only to Uba's hearth; Ayla had something to tell her sister.

"That's wonderful Ayla," Uba exclaimed. "What did Grov say?"

"I think he was happy, but we didn't talk about it much," Ayla said. When Ayla didn't say anything else, Ovra explained what had happened. The three women discussed the changes, and how all of it could be good for her and Broud. After all, they had to spend the rest of their lives together in this cave, why not work things out. Ovra and Uba made some jokes about the situation, and about Grov, which successfully cheered Ayla up. When they had her smiling again, Ovra said she wanted to go back and lie down, so Ayla helped the woman back.

Brun watched the two women go, noticing Ayla tear streaked face from across the central space. He knew she would be upset, but he thought it would be worst for Broud. Broud hadn't really taken it so hard.

Ayla spent some time settling Ovra back down, then said, "I am going now."

When she stepped back into the passageway, she saw Broud coming and immediately changed direction walking rather quickly, thinking to return to Grov hearth by going around the other way.

Broud saw her turn, and he quickened his pace to catch up with her, but as she went out of sight, she started to run, and he had to run to catch up with her. "Ayla," he called, and conditioning made her halt.

The woman knelt down, heart pounding, waiting for the man to catch up. When he tapped her shoulder she looked up, but did not get up.

"Ayla, I know this is hard. I know you do not like me."

"This woman knows you do not like her either, though she has never understood why."

Broud grunted. He did not know why either. Everything this woman did bothered him. He did not feel like he could control it, well, not until recently anyway. "I do not _hate _you, Ayla."

Ayla gave him a disbelieving look. The man was struggling with what he was saying, but it was not a lie; the clan was not capable of lying.

When Broud did not continue, Ayla said, "I am leaving now," and she turned and ran the way she had been heading before he could stop her.

When Ayla got back to the hearth she was looking over her shoulder and she ran right into Grov, who tried to grab her as she fell to the ground. Once on the ground, Ayla just sat there, and Grov knelt down beside her. "Ayla, are you okay?"

She nodded feeling stupid for not watching where she was going, then she started crying again. "Ayla, you need to stop this, I'm sure it's not good for the baby. In fact…Oga!"

When Oga appeared, Grov gave her an order, "Go get the medicine woman. I want her to come look at Ayla." Oga nodded and was gone.

"Grov, it is too soon for Uba to examine me. There is nothing she can do."

"This man would feel better if the second medicine woman came to examine you." Ayla nodded. "Now, tell me why you are running."

"This woman was leaving Goov's hearth, after taking Ovra for a walk and Broud was coming down the passage, so I…this woman ran the other way," Ayla finished up fast, knowing she had gone against the clan, yet again, and waited for Grov to be angry with her.

"Ayla, I told you I would protect you. You do not have to worry about him. He will not harm you."

"This woman knows that, it's just so hard to see him all the time."

"I understand, but you have to get used to it. He lives here now."

Oga returned with Uba, she informed the medicine woman that Ayla fell down, while Ayla protested, "This woman is fine. It is too soon for an exam."

Uba gave Ayla the 'I am the medicine woman when the patient is you' look, and Ayla complied. Grov left to go find Broud, while Uba worked her magic.

"Ayla, you feel just right, but you have been pregnant for longer than you think. I would say you are about three moon cycles along."

Ayla was stunned, she hadn't even known. Her woman's curse had still come, or so she thought. The last two curses had been so light and short, but she didn't realize the truth. She was so pleased.

Later, when Grov returned, she told him the news, and promised she would work hard on getting over the past. "You are right. This woman has so much to be happy about now. This woman will not let Broud's presence dispel her happiness."

Oga was glad that Ayla would try harder to accept Broud being there, and Broud could see a difference in her when he returned that night.

**XxX**

**A Fourth Pregnant Woman**

As promised the first medicine woman reached into the depths of her soul, and found a way to deal with Broud's constant presence within Grov's hearth. And when she finally accepted her plight, the changes were felt by all. Grov was so pleased with his mate's sudden change of attitude that he wore an almost constant smirk on his face. Life seemed so good.

Brun was also especially pleased by the arrangement he had created, though mystified as to why it had taken him so long to come up with the idea. Had he known this could have changed the two people in his clan that caused distress to everyone, he would have punished the son of his mate, and given Ayla to _him_ seasons before. _But, _he thought, it is probably Ayla's happiness with Grov that has helped her into acceptance.

Further, the whole clan seemed less tense when the two people were in the same area. Ayla still did things that other clan women never did, but they were used to that. When everyone found out Ayla was pregnant again, the whole issue about deformities came up within the men's ceremony room, but it was Broud that dismissed the subject.

Broud, who had been studying the interaction between Grov and Ayla, had to admit the mixed man was happy with his woman. He also had to admit that Ayla wasn't as disobedient as she used to be. The man was coming to understand that she was just different, because of who she was born to.

One night, about two moon cycles later the two men of the hearth were sitting around their hearth fire, leaning up against the cave wall, and drinking their tea, while their woman talked nearby. Brac had gone off to find Nouz, who had become a good friend, and the two younger boys were tussling just outside the hearth. Ora was sitting with Grov, but got up to find something else to do.

Broud was watching Grev and Durc, and comparing them. Durc still looked different, but his difference was not as prominent as it had been when he was younger. At almost four seasons, he still had the high forehead, just like Ayla, but the child was definitely just as smart as the other children. Broud finally had to admit that the child was not deformed; he was just part Ayla and part clan, as she had always insisted.

But, that thought made him start thinking about whose totem had created the child. Every man wanted the credit, but no one had wanted the woman. He knew most thought it was either Creb's totem or his totem, and he had refused to believe it was his at the time. Now, however, as he watched Durc and Grev, he could see that Ayla's son looked like Oga's son, whom he was sure was started by his totem, and Durc's hair seemed to stick up in the exact same place as his own did. Broud came to this realization suddenly, and turned to look at the strange woman of Grov's hearth. She was just starting to show her pregnancy again. Would it be another child started by his totem? He thought it could be, but Grov spent so much more time in close proximity to her than he did; it probably wouldn't be.

Then Broud looked at Oga, who had recently informed him that she too was expecting another baby. He knew that she was happy about it, and he was too. He only had one concern; what if Grov's totem had defeated Oga's totem? She spent a considerable part of her time with Ayla's mate; it could be _his _totem that created the baby. Broud shook his head to remove the thought. It would be obvious when the baby was born. It would either be full clan, or mixed.

After chatting for a while, Ayla and Oga decided to go check on Ovra and Uba. The two women were nearing the births of their babies, and both of them were huge. They stopped at Goov's hearth first.

Ovra was sleeping, but Ayla decided to wake her for the exam and then take her on her daily walk.

"Ovra," Ayla whispered, and Ovra rolled over. "You don't look so good."

"Hi Ayla, Oga. This woman just has a backache. I will be fine, but I think I could use a walk."

Ayla sighed, she was glad Ovra was in good spirits despite the backache. Ayla knew what it was like to be confined to bed for the duration of a pregnancy, but Ovra never complained; she was too happy at the thought of holding her own baby in just two more moon cycles.

Ayla had Ovra lie on her back while she placed her hands on the woman's belly, visually measuring the size of the woman's stomach. "Ovra, you are just huge; you are going to have a big baby."

Ovra became a little nervous at Ayla's news, but put the thought out of her head.

Then Ayla checked Ovra's hands and feet for edema; she looked pretty good. Finally, Ayla gave the woman a vaginal exam, as she had done many times before. "The place that the baby will come through seems to be thinning, and everything feels normal to me, Ovra."

The pregnant woman sighed with relief, and Ayla and Oga helped her up so they could walk to Vorn's hearth to see Uba.

Once at Vorn's hearth, Ayla went through the same steps with Uba that she had with Ovra, noting that Uba's birth canal was thinning as well, and starting to open. She determined that Uba's baby would be big too. Uba's stomach was in constant motion as Ayla examined her, causing humorous looks from all four pregnant women. "This woman thinks your baby does not like the exam," Ayla said with a smile. "Okay Uba, tell me how you are feeling."

"Actually, I feel fine, just tired. I am not sleeping too well, but that is normal when a baby doesn't stop moving around. My body is getting ready for the birth, I keep having small contractions. Vorn has even been aware of them. We can see my belly get hard, but it doesn't hurt." Ayla nodded, knowing that was normal, and Ovra admitted to having them too.

When Ayla was finished, Uba said, "Okay, it's the first medicine woman's turn." Ayla rolled her eyes and lay down for Uba to examine _her. _She knew it was coming. Uba always managed to fit in Ayla's exam when Ayla did hers.

"Except for a little bit of swelling in your feet and ankles, you look good too. What am I missing?"

"Nothing…except that I am hungry all the time," Ayla said with a smile. Oga nodded, knowing the feeling. She wasn't showing yet, and she wasn't at that stage, but she remembered all the symptoms from her previous pregnancies, and understood how hungry a woman could get when expecting.

**XxX**

**Spring Labor**

As the spring thaw started, and the river swelled to its full size, the people began to venture out of the cave. It was still pretty cool, and it rained periodically, but everyone knew the end of the cold season had finally arrived.

Daub, Dorg and Grov decided to enter the forest to hunt deer, and had invited Broud to go along on impulse. Ayla, Oga, Eka and Uga were having a morning meal together, and happily talking about the changes within Brun's clan. Out of the four women, only Oga found the changes a little difficult, but she was still pleased by them, as they had brought Broud back to her.

From the passageway hearths, Corg, Norv, and Goov had gone out the northern cave entrance at dawn to see how the hunting was, while Aza, Oda, and Ovra spent the morning together at Goov's hearth. Ovra had just entered the last moon cycle of her pregnancy, and she was having a little trouble moving around; she had become huge.

In the main cave area, the older women sat at the central fire talking about the four pregnant women. Uka was overjoyed that her daughter was finally having a baby of her own. Ebra, who now truly loved Ayla, and felt she finally had the daughter she had always wanted, was ecstatic that she would be gaining a grandchild when Ayla's baby was born. She was also more than thrilled about Oga's pregnancy, and about the new relationship that had developed between her son and the first medicine woman; she was happy that her son seemed happy. Aga was pleased that Vorn's mate would be giving birth, and she was hopeful that Ona would be next. Ika felt the same way that Aga did about Ona being next, and hoped that Igra would be mated soon, so she could start producing children as well. As for their mates, they had all gone down to the river to do a little fishing.

On the other side of the main space, Uba and Ona sat together working on various projects. Uba had just finished her birthing blanket, when she suddenly gasped.

"Uba, what is it?" Ona asked her, not really needing to as she watched the ground around Uba suddenly get wet.

"Ona, my water sac just broke. I will be in labor soon," she said with joy. "I think I should go tell Ayla."

"No, no Uba, I will go get the medicine woman," Ona said, but Uba protested saying she would be confined to bed soon enough, and that the walk would do her good. Ona looked at her nervously, but nodded figuring the second medicine woman knew what she was doing.

Uba got up, with Ona's help, and started for the western side of the cave. When they came to the passageway, Uba had her first contraction, and she paused for its duration. As they passed Goov's hearth, Ona gestured to the three seated women that Uba was in labor.

As they arrived in the small central space near the western entrance, the four women seated around the fire looked up. Ayla knew immediately that Uba was in labor, and got up to get her medicine bag. "Let's get you back to Vorn's hearth so you can rest in your own furs."

Uba nodded as another contraction caused pain to radiate through her middle. Ayla got her sister back to the hearth quickly, and word of Uba's labor spread quickly, causing all the women to congregate at Vorn's hearth.

As evening approached, the women started leaving to begin preparing evening meals. Ayla and Aga stayed to help Uba, but received meals from other hearths as they sat with the second medicine woman.

As the evening wore on, Uba _was straining harder. Every few moments she took several quick breaths, then pushed hard holding the hands of the two women. Every member of the clan kept vigil as the night wore on. The men were clustered around the_ central fire, seemingly _involved in some deep discussion. But the occasional surreptitious glance betrayed their real interest. The women visited periodically, checking on_ Uba's _progress, sometimes staying for a while. They all waited, united in their encouragement and anticipation while_ one of _their medicine woman labored to give birth._

It was well after dark. Suddenly there was a flurry of activity.

Aga spread out a hide while Ayla helped Uba up into a squatting position. _She was breathing hard, straining hard, crying out in pain…. Ovra and Oga…groaned and strained in sympathy…. The woman took a deep breath, and with a long, teeth-gritting, muscle-straining push, the round crown of the baby's head appeared…. Another tremendous effort eased out he baby's head. The rest was easier as_ Uba _delivered the wet, squirming body of a tiny infant._

Ayla picked up the baby, extracted a gob of mucus from its mouth with her finger, and thumped the baby's feet, bringing out its first cry. Then, as she turned to lay the newborn on Uba's stomach, Uba eyes widened, and she refused to take the baby.

"Ayla, it's not over," she signed quickly. Ayla handed the baby to Oga, remembering that Uba had not yet delivered the after birth, but when she went to receive it, she saw that Uba was crowning again. "Uba, you are having another baby," she said looking over at Ovra, who had been the only one that had seen the conjoined twin sons Uba given birth to the first time.

The second baby came much faster, and then, with a final push, Uba brought forth the mass of bloody tissue. Ayla cleared the mucus out of the second baby's throat, and this time, Uba accepted the baby when it was offered, and gestured that she wanted the first baby placed in the crook of her other arm.

After cleaning the woman up, Ayla went to the central space to inform the leader about the birth. "This woman is pleased to report, she gestured as custom dictated, "that Uba has given birth to _two_ healthy sons."

**XxX**

**The Naming Day**

When Ayla returned from telling the leader about the birth of Uba's twin sons, she _wrapped the afterbirth tissue in the hide that had been put down just before the delivery and hid it in an inconspicuous corner _for Uba to take outside to bury in a place only she would know.

After a short time, Brun and the Mog-ur approached Uba and her sons. The two medicine women unwrapped Uba's babies, and held them up to Brun. Uba was careful not to look at either man. _Both men examined the infant_s, which were _wailing loudly at being taken from_ their _mother's warm side and exposed to the cold air of the cave. They were just as careful not to look at _Uba.

"The babies are normal," Brun's gesture announced gravely. "They may stay with their mother. If they live until the naming day, they will be accepted."

_For the next seven days_ Uba _would be isolated, confined to the boundaries of_ Vorn's _fire, except for necessary trips to relieve herself and to bury the placenta. None of the clan officially recognized the existence of_ Uba's babies _while she was in isolation except_ for Vorn, because he _shared the same hearth, but other women brought food for them so_ Uba _could rest. It allowed a brief visit and an unofficial peek at the new_ babies. _Beyond the seven days until she stopped bleeding, she would be under a modified woman's curse. Her contacts would be restricted to women, the same as during her menses._

When the seventh day arrived, Uba was beside herself with joy. The only thing that marred her happiness what the fact that her mother wasn't there to see her children, but she was sure Iza was watching her from the spirit world.

The entire clan was milling around outside for this most joyous moment, and Uba _waited anxiously for_ Goov's _signal that announced he was ready and the clan all gathered. Namings were often held before breakfast, shortly after the sun rose while the totems were still close by after protecting the clan during the night. When he beckoned, she hurried to join them and stood in front of Mog-ur, looking down at the ground while she uncovered_ one of her children. _She held the babe up while the magician looked over her head making the gestures that called the spirits to attend the ceremony. Then, with a flourish, he began._

Dipping into the bowl…he drew a stripe from the point where the baby's brow ridges joined to the tip of

his _nose with the red-ochre paste._

"Brev, the boy's name is Brev," Mog-ur said. _The naked infant, assailed by the cold wind that whipped past the sunny front porch of the cave, voiced a healthy howl which drowned out the approving murmur of the clan._

"Brev," Uba _repeated, cuddling her shivering baby in her arms…. The members of the clan filed past, each repeating the name to familiarize themselves and their totems with the newest addition._ Uba _was careful to keep her head down so she would not inadvertently look upon any of the men who came forward to acknowledge her_ son. _Afterward, she wrapped the infant in warm rabbit skins_, and handed him to Ayla, who stood close. The process was repeated for Uba's second son.

"Berc," the boy's name is Berc," Mog-ur said, and everyone filed by a second time at acknowledge the child.

After the naming ceremony Uba took her sons back to Vorn's hearth, and some of the women followed. Ovra was especially excited for Uba, since she hoped to be doing the same thing as the new mother in just one more moon cycle. Ayla went with Uba, to examine her one more time before going back to Grov's hearth, and Oga, who was never far from Ayla, was right there with the first medicine woman.

"Uba, we are so happy for you," Ayla said smiling. Oga and Ovra nodded at Ayla's statement. The four women drank tea, and talked for a while, but soon Ayla noticed Goov trying to make eye contact with Ovra, so she ended the chat. "I think we need to get Ovra back to Goov's hearth, he's looking a little nervous."

That was an understatement. The man was so worried that Ovra had done too much already that morning, and he was literally wringing his hands, wanting Ovra to go back to bed, but not wanting to interrupt the women while they were with Uba. As soon as they left Vorn's hearth, he jumped up and escorted her back to bed.

Ayla thought he was very sweet, but thought he was being over protective. After all, Ovra had made it through eight moon cycles, chances were she'd do just fine now. As Ayla and Oga were making their way back to the hearth, several others were breaking up to return to their own hearths, or to go out on hunting forays.

When Ayla and Oga got back to the hearth, no one was there yet, so they started a meal for the men. Ayla had run out of the vegetables she wanted, so she told Oga she was going to go get more.

"Oh Ayla, I need things too. You went last time, I'll go this time. What do you need?" Ayla told her and the woman left.

Just as Oga disappeared, Grev and Durc came running in, with Grov, holding Ora, and Broud right behind him. Broud looked around, but not seeing Oga, he sat down in his usual place with his back against the cave wall, and observed the hearth. He was learning more from watching this hearth than he had in his whole twenty-two seasons.

Grov put Ora down, and came over to Ayla and caressed her swelling belly. When his hand came around to grab her backside, she swatted at his hand, and said, "Grov, I'm trying to cook here."

"Well, _I _am trying to stop you from cooking," he said, grabbing her around the middle and pulling her away from her work.

"Grov, do you want to eat, or not?"

"_Yes,_" he said, smiling.

Broud watched the scene, amazed that the man did not just give her the signal and be done with it. He understood that the couple was playing with one another, but he thought they took it too far. Oga does not do this, but what if she did, he thought? The thought of Oga teasing him like this aroused him as he sat there.

As the man sat there thinking about his need, but having no one to relieve him, Ora came over and tried to sit on his lap. Broud set her on the ground beside him and handed her some bones to play with. He watched the strange looking child, remembering that Ayla looked almost identical to her when Iza picked her up.

The bones did not amuse the child for long and she started to cry. Grov stopped messing with Ayla and carried the child to Uga to nurse.

Broud continued to watch Ayla, which was starting to make her uncomfortable, so she turned around and leveled a look at him. "This woman would know if she can do something for you Broud?" She could see his need, but unless he signaled her, she would not give him what he wanted.

He did not make the signal. Brun had told him he wasn't allowed, not even to Oga, but Oga wanted him to. So, he just said, "This man wants a drink of water."

Ayla stopped what she was doing, poured the man a cup of water, then knelt down to give it to him. She was still expecting him to give her the signal, but he took the water, and did not make the motion.

Grov returned in time to see her kneeling there, and smiled, glad that she was trying so hard. He also noticed that Broud was struggling greatly, and he knew why.

When Oga returned, Broud was very glad to have her back. She too saw his need. "This woman could use some help bringing more wood into the hearth," she said, giving him a coy look, which he understood right away.

Ayla watched them leave the hearth, glad that Oga had returned, and that she hadn't been signaled.

**XxX**

**Current Hearth Listing** (sorry for including the dead people...their names are in _italics_)

**Brun** (34) – reinstated leader (Bison totem)  
><strong>Ebra<strong>(32) – Broud's mother

**Zoug** (44) – second in command to the leader before Brun  
>-~-<strong>Grod<strong> (30) – Brun's second in command, son of the mate of Zoug (Brown Bear totem)  
>-~-<strong>Uka<strong>(28) – Ebra's sister, Ovra's mother

**Goov** (21) – Mog-ur (Aurochs totem/Ursus totem)  
><strong>Ovra<strong>(19) – Goov's mate, pregnant, (Beaver totem)

**Grov** (17) – mixed man (1/4 clan, 3/4 others), master hunter (Leopard totem)  
><em>Nora (quake death) – Grov's first woman (others, 18 at death, wb 19 now if alive)_  
><strong>Ayla<strong> (15) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman, others woman, "Woman who hunts," (Cave Lion totem)  
><strong>Broud<strong> (22) – former leader (Wooly Rhinoceros totem)  
><strong>Oga<strong> (18) – formerly Broud's mate  
>-~-<strong>Brac<strong> (9) – Oga's first son  
>-~-<strong>Grev<strong> (5) – Oga's second son  
>-~-<strong>Durc<strong> (4) – Ayla's son, mixed (1/2 clan, 1/2 others) Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)  
>-~-<strong>Ora<strong>(2) – Nora's daughter, others looking (1/8 clan, 7/8 others), (Alpine Marmot)

**Vorn** (14) – formally Broud's second in command  
><strong>Uba<strong> (9) – second medicine woman, childless, but pregnant  
>-~-<strong>Brev<strong>and Berc (newborn) – Uba's twin sons

**Aba** (36)  
>-~-<strong>Droog<strong> (32) – toolmaker, mated to Goov's mother before Aga  
>-~-<strong>Aga<strong> (25) – Droog's second mate, Vorn and Ona's mother  
>-~-~-<strong>Groob<strong>(7) – Aga's son born to Droog's hearth

**Crug** (23)  
><strong>Ika<strong> (21) – Crug's mate, Borg's mother  
>-~-<strong>Igra<strong> (7) – Ika's daughter  
>-~-<strong>Dorv<strong>(2) – Ika's child

**Dorg** (21) – toolmaker (Red Tailed Hawk totem)  
><em>Ala (quake death) – Dorg's first woman (mixed)<br>Dreg (quake death) – Daub's twin brother, was mated to Uga_  
><strong>Uga<strong> (17) – previously mated to Dreg, now Dorg's second woman (Lark totem)  
>-~-<strong>Vorg<strong> (8) – mixed child (3/4 clan, 1/4 others), Ala's son  
>-~-<strong>Breg<strong> (6) – Uga's son  
>-~-<em>Ega (quake death) – Uga's deceased 2-year-old daughter<em>

**Corg** (18) – takes on leadership role after cave's collapse, takes on an advisory role to Brun  
><strong>Aza<strong> (16) – Corg's mate  
>-~-<strong>Orga<strong> (6) – Aza's first daughter  
>-~-<strong>Egra<strong>(3) – Aza's second daughter

**Daub** (18) – Dorg brother, Dreg's twin (deceased)  
><strong>Eka<strong> (16) – mated to Daub  
>-~-<strong>Ada<strong> and **Aka**(4) – Eka's twins

**Norv** (16) (Moose totem)  
><strong>Oda<strong> (13) – daughter of Corg's mother, now mated to Norv (Hamster totem)  
>-~-<strong>Nouz<strong> (10) – son of Norv's deceased mate, has been a man for just one moon cycle  
>-~-<strong>Nala<strong> (5) – daughter of Norv's deceased mate  
>-~-<strong>Ura<strong>(3) – mixed child (1/2 clan, 1/2 others), created by the totem of a man of the others (Red Wolf totem)

**Borg** (10) – (Boar totem)  
><strong>Ona<strong> (10) – (Owl totem)

**XxX**

**Another Birthing**

As it turned out, Ovra didn't last the full nine moon cycles. That night, after all had gone to bed for the night, Ovra began tossing and turning. Goov was awakened by his mate's movement, and was instantly worried. "I will go get the medicine woman."

Ovra was shaking her head, "Goov this will go on all night. I would like to let Ayla sleep if I can." Goov bit his lip and nodded, thinking, Ovra's a woman, she must know about these things, so he didn't go for the medicine woman.

Goov sat near his woman meditating. He thought he should leave the hearth since men are not usually there, but it was night and everyone else was asleep. He did not want to wake anyone unnecessarily if he did not have to. Uba had been in labor all day and into the night. Surely Ovra would go all night and into the morning.

Not much more time had past before Ovra was feeling the urge to push; she had reached transitional labor, but didn't know it. When the next contraction came, she bore down hard, causing her face to redden.

"Ovra, should I get Ayla yet," Goov asked, but Ovra held up her hand. She could not gesture and bear down at the same time.

When the contraction was finished, she beckoned her mate forward. "Goov, I need for you to go now." But, as he started down the passageway, Ovra let out an agonizing howl, which turned him around. She had pushed the tiny baby out of her body, and it lay there in a bloody heap on their furs. Goov stood there staring at Ovra and the baby for only a second, and then he returned to the hearth to help his mate.

Within seconds, Oda had crossed the passageway and had entered the Mog-ur's hearth. The scene that she saw shocked her beyond anything she could comprehend. With Ovra's instructions, the Mog-ur was helping to clear out the baby's throat. Then he placed the baby in his mother's arms.

"Mog-ur," Oda said, "This woman would help if there is anything she can do."

Goov looked up at Oda and said, "Oda, please stay with Ovra. I need to go get the medicine woman." Oda nodded, and the shaken man left the hearth.

That night Grov had signaled Ayla to his bed, and they had pleasured one another for what seemed like hours before falling asleep exhausted. They had been aware of the rustlings within the cave, but did not wake up at Ovra's cry, because they were truly spent.

When Goov arrived at the hearth, gesturing frantically in the semi-darkness, Ayla and Grov got up immediately. Grov stoked the fire, and the sight that greeted him was cause for serious concern. Ayla gasped. The man was covered in blood, and he was gesturing incoherently.

The medicine woman grabbed the man's hands, "Mog-ur, you must slow down. What has happened?"

Goov spoke only one word, "Ovra!"

Ayla's eyes opened wide, "The baby?"

Goov nodded, and Ayla grabbed her medicine bag to go to the woman. "Ayla, it's too late, the baby has been born."

Ayla nodded, calling for Oga, who appeared within seconds, "The Mog-ur needs tea, and someone needs to go tell Brun what is happening," then she hurried out of the hearth.

It did not take Ayla but seconds to reach the new mother, who as holding her new son. "Ayla, I have a son. Look at him, isn't he just wonderful?"

Ayla took the baby and looked her over, then handed him back to Ovra. "He looks fine Ovra, tiny, but fine. What about your afterbirth."

Ovra shook her head, "Not yet Ayla. I am certain another baby is coming. I still feel movement inside."

Ayla was shocked. The clan hardly ever had babies born at the same time, and now their clan would have three women with two babies born together. The second baby, also a tiny son, arrived minutes later with only one contraction. Ayla cleared out the child's throat, cleaned it off, and placed it on its mother's breast.

"Oda, would you stay with Ovra? This woman would like to go clean up, and see to Goov; he was quite a mess when I left him." Oda nodded, she could do that for the medicine woman, especially now that she had help, Aza had arrived.

Ayla went back to her hearth to find that Goov was just sitting there drinking tea, and staring at the fire. Ayla picked up a basket of water and brought it over to the man. "This woman would clean you up Mog-ur. You are a mess."

He nodded. "How are Ovra and the baby?"

Ayla smiled, "This medicine woman thinks Ovra and the _babies _are just fine, small, but fine.

Goov's eyes focused on Ayla, "Babies, she had two babies?"

"Yes Mog-ur, she did, and they are all just fine. This woman thinks you should go see them for yourself, after you are cleaned up that is, and I will go find Brun."

**XxX**

**Midnight Excitement**

Goov agreed that he needed to go see his mate adn her sons, but decided to go to the pool that lay within the cave first. That way he could wash the evidence of Ovra's birth from his body completely. Then he would stop at the men's cave briefly to get a charm to protect him from the spirits battling within his hearth.

Once Goov was gone, Grov told Ayla that he had already sent Broud to Brun, but Ayla felt that as medicine woman, she needed to go see him as well, since she needed to inform the leader that there had been two births, and tell him the gender of the children.

Grov stayed at the hearth, with the four sleeping children, while Oga went to see Ovra and Ayla went to speak to Brun.

Ayla walked down the dim corridor, which was lit only by hearth fires, heading toward the leader's fire. When she arrived she saw that everyone was awake, including those from the two hearths next door. Ebra and Uka were sitting together at Grod's fire talking excitedly about the birth of Ovra's first baby. They did not know there were two babies yet. Aba and Aga were awake, but within Droog's hearth drinking tea.

The men, Brun, Broud, Grod, Zoug and Droog, were sitting in Brun's hearth, and waiting for news when the first medicine woman approached and lowered herself gracefully in front of the leader.

Brun tapped her shoulder, and Ayla looked up at the leader.

"This woman is pleased to report," she gestured, "that Ovra has given birth to two healthy sons."

The men were stunned. They could not remember a woman in their clan ever having twins, and now there were three sets of them. "Two of them?" Brun asked questioningly, looking up at Goov, who had just arrived. Why is that man all wet, the leader wondered?

Ayla nodded. "They are very small, because they have come a little early, but this woman thinks they are healthy."

"Did you see them Mog-ur?" The leader asked, turning to the Mog-ur and ignoring the medicine woman.

Goov turned red and nodded to the leader, "This man saw the first one, but I was not there to see the second one."

Brun grunted, noticing that the Mog-ur had reddened, then gestured, "Well we must go see if they are normal."

Ayla moved closer to the men indicating that she wished to speak again, so Brun tapped her shoulder again, hoping the medicine woman would hurry. It was very late and he wished to see the babies and get back to sleep.

"This woman would go see Ovra and the babies first. This woman needs to examine her one more time before the leader and Mog-ur come. There might be more cleaning to do."

Brun grunted again, and Ayla left.

Ayla went back to Goov's hearth quickly, and did everything she had to do, including making _a wormseed tea to encourage the flow of milk and to relieve the painful cramps _that the new mother was feeling.

Ovra was beside herself with joy at the birth of her sons, and couldn't wait for the leader and Goov to come to the hearth to see that her sons were indeed normal.

When Brun and the Mog-ur arrived, Ovra uncovered the first son, while the medicine woman did the same to Ovra's second son, and they held them up to the two men. The babies let out a deafening howl, which confirmed in Ayla's mind that they were healthy. _Both men examined the infant_s, who were both _wailing loudly at being taken from_ their _mother's warm side and exposed to the cold air of the cave. _Ovra was careful not to look at either man, and they did the same.

"The babies are normal," Brun's gesture announced to the group within Goov's hearth. "They may stay with their mother. If they live until the naming day, they will be accepted." Then, with an exhausted expression, the leader signed, "I am going now."

Goov stayed with Ovra and the babies, as he was sure his charms would be enough to protect him, and everyone else went back to their own hearths to finish out the night.

Ayla smiled at the couple, and patted her own burgeoning belly. Soon, she thought. Soon I will have another baby of my own.

Back at Grov's hearth, the two men were up drinking a calming tea. Oga had gone back to bed, and Ayla wanted to go to bed as well. She was very tired from the night's activities, but also because she was pregnant as well. Very shortly, the two men joined the women in bed, leaving their fires to burn down slowly.

**XxX**

**Put In Her Place**

The next day most people slept late due to the night's activities. Ayla was exhausted beyond measure, but she was one of the ones that rose early; there were new mother and babies to check on.

Ayla got up and dressed, then drank some tea, and gestured to a sleepy eyed Grov that she would return after looking in on the new babies. "Come back soon, Ayla, you need rest as well. This man doesn't want the medicine woman to forget that she is pregnant too." Ayla nodded, then left the hearth.

She stopped at Goov's hearth first, since it was on the way to Vorn's hearth. Goov was sleeping soundly next to Ovra, who held one of her sons to her breast; the other lay next to her contented with mother's milk.

Ayla entered the hearth, and signaled a greeting, which was returned with a one-handed gesture. "How are you this morning Ovra?"

"This woman is doing just fine, but I am so tired. These little ones kept us up all night," she said glancing at her sleeping mate. "Ayla, Goov was the one that helped me. I should have sent him to get you sooner, but I did not know they would come so quickly. I'm sure he's having a difficult time with his part in this. Men are not supposed to be around when a woman gives birth."

Ayla was shaking her head. "Ovra, the Mog-ur has his charms, he will be okay. I'm sure everything will be fine…but maybe we shouldn't mention this to anyone if we can avoid it. The only men that saw Goov covered in your blood were Grov and Broud, and I'm sure Grov won't say anything. Actually, come to think of it, I know Broud hasn't said anything, because Brun did not know when I went to talk to him about your birth, and Broud was there first. I know he wondered why Goov was all wet, but the leader did not ask the Mog-ur to explain."

Ovra sighed, she did not need her mind crowded with thoughts of losing her mate to the spirit world when she had just had two babies.

"Okay Ovra, I just want to feel your stomach to make sure your insides are shrinking back to their original size." Ayla poked and prodded the new mother, who moaned at the pressure the medicine woman was exerting on her middle. When Ayla was satisfied Ovra was doing good, she made the woman comfortable, and told her to sleep. "Ovra, you must sleep when the babies are sleeping, because they will not sleep much and you need your rest. I will have another woman bring food for a while, so that you do not have to be concerned with serving your mate or yourself. I still do not want you out of bed, at least for a few days." Ovra nodded and closed her eyes, and Ayla left for her next call.

At Vorn's hearth, Uba was up and busy already. Vorn was not there so Ayla went in and hugged her sister. "Uba, how are you today?"

"This woman is good, but I heard that Ovra gave birth, and that she had two babies as well."

Ayla nodded, "Yes she did, we were up half the night, but Ovra's sons are beautiful babies, tiny, but beautiful." Ayla paused then went on, "So, what are you doing up so early Uba? You know you should rest all you can."

"Yes Ayla, I know, but Brev woke us up early, so Vorn decided to go hunting with Norv, Nouz and Borg. When I finished nursing Brev, and got him back down, Berc woke up, so I nursed him. I just wanted to make myself some more tea, and then I was going to lie down again."

"Well, okay Uba, but I will fix your tea since I am here, and I want to look at you again." Everything looked good to Ayla, so she left quickly before Uba could insist on an exam for her.

As the medicine woman walked back to the hearth, she decided that a little spring hunting would be in order for herself as well, after a nap or course, since she doubted Grov would let her go hunting without some rest first.

The prospect of get out her sling after the long winter made her feel alive again. She had hardly been out of the cave since the snow had fallen, and now that it was spring, it was a perfect day to go hunting.

When she got back to the hearth, Grov and Broud were up, and Oga was making a morning meal. She went to assist the other woman, but Grov stopped her, saying, "You need rest Ayla."

Ayla nodded, but lay in her bed thinking about the hunting she wanted to do. Grov noticed that she wasn't sleeping, and asked why.

"Grov, I am not tired anymore. I have been thinking about going hunting."

Grov frowned; he didn't like the idea of her hunting while she was pregnant. "Ayla, I think it would be better if you didn't hunt while you are pregnant."

"But why, Grov? You know it is my favorite thing to do."

"Well, what if you fall down and hurt yourself or the baby. Or what if an animal attacks you. I do not want to lose another mate."

"Grov, those things could happen to me if I wasn't pregnant, or while just walking around. I have never fallen down while hunting. I need to go hunting today. I need to make a birthing blanket."

"Ayla, you have three moon cycles left in your pregnancy, you do not need to go hunting for a hide to make a birthing blanket today. Besides, I could hunt one for you."

Ayla was starting to get upset, and it was showing. "Grov, it would be easier for me to hunt now, while I am not so big, than later when I am. _And, _I do not want you to hunt for me, I want to do it myself."

Broud was watching them go back and forth, and he just could not understand why Grov didn't just tell the woman no. Why he allowed his mate to continue hunting at all, let alone pregnant, was something he thought he'd never understand. "Ayla!" The man said loudly, "Your mate does not want you to go hunting!"

Ayla turned towards the former leader, "Broud, this woman is the Woman Who Hunts. Brun has allowed me to hunt. It should not matter that I am pregnant."

"No, it may not matter that you are pregnant, but it should matter that your mate has said no."

Ayla leveled a look at Broud, but said no more. She had pushed the envelope as far as she cared to. She would not hunt that day, but she wasn't happy about it, and she wasn't happy that it was Broud that had been the sound mind that stopped her from arguing further and getting herself into trouble.

Grov didn't think Broud needed to step in, but he was glad for the back up. He knew that others women could be quite head strong, and it didn't bother him. He probably would have compromised with her, but now he didn't have to; she wasn't going today. But he was sure she would want to the next day, or the day after that, so he started thinking of a plan so that she could.

**XxX**

**Grov's Plan**

Ayla spent the rest of that day pouting, hardly getting out of bed, but she knew Broud was right; it should matter that her mate wished her not to hunt. It did matter to her that he was worried about her hunting while pregnant. She just did not like it, or the fact that Broud had put in his two pebbles.

Grov watched Ayla for the remainder of the day, wishing he could do something; wishing he had not been so insistent that she not go hunting, so that Broud wouldn't have had to say anything. He could not be upset with Broud though, Broud had shown considerable restraint, which not many men of their clan would have shown had they been witness to the scene. He decided to let the incident go, but talk to Broud at a later date about others women; for the man had no idea what they were like, and that Ayla was an exact replica of those women. She could not help what she was.

Broud had managed to make himself scarce for the rest of the day, thinking that Grov was probably upset with him, and knowing that, as a man with not status, he should have kept his mouth shut, but unable to allow a woman to override a man.

In the evening, when Ayla and Oga went off to bring food to the two hearths with new babies, Grov thought it a good time to talk to Broud. He had not thought the chance would come so soon, but he took it since it did.

The two men were sitting by the fire, drinking tea that the women had made for them, but not conversing. "Broud, I am grateful that you helped me this morning. It was a difficult situation."

"I do not see it as difficult. Your woman should not be arguing with you, or any man, like that. She needs to be put in her place."

"But Broud, she is one of the others. They do not dominate their women as we do. I do not think she can help what she is."

Broud considered Grov's words, but still didn't understand. "Ayla may be one of the others, but she lives with the clan. She is a clan woman, for all that she looks different; she should act like a clan woman. How can you stand it?"

Grov smiled slightly, "Broud, I am a mixture of clan and others; more others than clan, can you not see how I can stand it. It is in my blood to accept Ayla for what she is, just as you do not. I see tremendous change in you, and I want you to know that I do not expect you to like everything that goes on in this hearth, but just remember that Ayla is different than clan women. My first mate, Nora, was a woman of the others too. She actually lived with them for a time, and she was far more argumentative than this one."

Broud nodded, still not fully understanding, but willing to think about it further.

Ayla returned later in a far better mood than she had left in, and busied herself making the evening meal for Grov and Broud. Oga had taken the boys to get more wood from the wood storage area to stock up their hearth's supply, and Ora was playing happily on and around Grov.

Ayla watched the men as she did her work, wondering at the change in the man that had treated her so unmercifully in the past, and about her mate's tolerance of him. The men were sitting in their usually places, and discussing the coming spring hunt, which she was sure she would not be included in, when the two year old picked up a handful of dirt and placed it on Broud's head. Ayla could see that he was upset with her, but he only grabbed child's hand, and told her no, then shook his head to dispel the dirt. When Ora started to cry at his harsh gesture, the former leader picked her up and set her on his lap. Ayla could not believe it; she had to admit that Broud had changed considerably, and she smiled to herself at the thought, thinking, who says the clan _cannot _change? If Broud can, then anyone can.

Before the night was over, Grov disappeared for a short time. Ayla did not know where he went, and he did not fill her in when he returned.

The next day Grov woke up wanting to take Ayla hunting, so he ate quickly and informed her of his plan. "We are going hunting today. I have asked Dorg and Daub to accompany us, so you will have enough protection while you hunt. They are happy to go, because they have not seen your skill with the sling and they are interested." Ayla looked at him in disbelief, and then smiled at her mate, knowing he truly wanted to make her happy.

Ayla ate quickly as well, wanting to go as soon as possible, and was ready when the other two men arrived at Grov's hearth. With her sling in hand, and several stones in a fold of her wrap, Ayla followed the three men out of the western cave entrance.

As the four hunters left the cave Broud watched them go, torn between wanting to go as well, and not thinking the woman should be hunting, pregnant or otherwise. The information he had gained from Grov the day before was causing a new struggle to mount within him. If women of the others hunted, then why did it bother him that Ayla hunted? Even though she was raised by clan, and lived with the clan, she couldn't really help who she was, could she? Just as clan women could not help that they didn't know how to hunt, and didn't want to learn.

**XxX**

**Dorg's Totem**

Grov had forewarned the other two men about Ayla's skill with the sling, so they were anxious to see her in action. They opted to try out the steppes this time, since the spring had flushed such variety.

As the men held back watching the Woman Who Hunts, Ayla scanned to steppes looking for rabbit. She wanted rabbit because she thought it was so nice for birthing blankets. When she sighted what she wanted, she placed two stones in her weapon, and cast them out quickly, killing two with one throw. Grov looked at Dorg and Daub, and was pleased that they were sufficiently impressed. The two clan men were nodding and gesturing that the young woman could be an asset to the clan.

As Ayla neared the downed rabbits, she saw swift movement to her right, which told her something else wanted her kill, so she grabbed two more stones and ran ahead. Grov turned around in time to see the difference in her movements immediately, though he did not see what she was stalking. He had a sudden fear that she would get hurt, so he rushed forward.

Ayla came upon her kill to find nothing except the two rabbits, and looked around wondering where the feline was. Grov came up beside her, with Dorg and Daub right behind him. "What are you doing Ayla? You have your rabbits."

Ayla put a finger to her lips, indicating that they should not make any unnecessary noises, then gestured, "I saw a cat of some sort. I thought it was going after my rabbits."

Grov frowned, "You should have waited until we came to help you."

Ayla was about to say something when out of the corner of her eye, she saw the animal slink by in the tall grass. "There it is again," she said pointing. The three men turned to look where she was pointing, but still saw nothing.

Then, all of a sudden, the cat jumped, and would have landed on Daub's back had Ayla not acted with instinct, and pushed the man out of the way. The two of them landed on the ground just to the right of the lynx, and Grov and Dorg had been able to side step the animal as well. Before the lynx had time to land and turn around, Ayla was up, and was flinging the stones she held. The cat dropped dead. She now had two rabbits and a lynx, but Grov was not happy.

"Ayla, you could have been hurt. You cannot take chances like that," he gestured angrily.

"Grov, this woman has been hunting for a long time. I know what I'm doing," she said smiling at her mate. "And besides, I could not just do nothing, or the lynx would have landed on Daub." She looked into the concerned eyes of her mate, and grabbed his face. "This woman is fine," she said to him, then moved her hands to her stomach, and gestured, "we are both fine."

Grov took a deep breath. She was right; she was fine, but she made him nervous. "Yes Ayla you are fine, I can see that."

Ayla grinned at her mate, then scanned the area saying, "I wonder what that lynx was after, since it wasn't stalking my rabbits."

"Oh no you don't," Grov said catching her wrist, as she started to take a few steps in the direction the lynx had come. "You gather your kills, Dorg and I will go see what else is out there. Daub will stay with you."

Ayla smiled again, picked up her dead animals, and waited there with Daub. Grov and Dorg went the way the lynx had come, but spread out slightly to cover more ground. They had not gone far when Grov yelled, "Ayla!"

Ayla and Daub came quickly to see an injured bird of prey lying with a broken wing. "Dorg, it is the bird of your totem; the red-tailed hawk, see," she said kneeling and pointing to the birds boney ridge over the orbit that provides shade for the bird's eyes. "It must be a young one; less than two seasons," she said, indicating the grayish brown banded tail and a square patch of feathers toward the end of the wings. "If it was full grown, it would have very red tail feathers."

"Ayla, how do you know so much about birds," Dorg asked.

Ayla just shrugged her shoulders, and said, "I guess I am just interested in everything that is around me. I have watched them before."

Then the medicine woman in her eyed the bird more closely to see what had happened to it. "That lynx must have broken its wing. The hawk must have been preying on the rabbits, and the lynx got him instead."

The men were nodding agreement, getting ready to return to the cave, but Ayla was taking a small hide out of her wrap to pick up the injured bird. "Ayla, what are you doing?"

"This medicine woman is going to take the bird back to the cave and heal it. I could not leave it out here to die; that could make Dorg's totem angry."

Dorg grunted, considering what the woman had said, then nodded. "I think the medicine woman is right. We cannot leave it here to die."

Grov and Daub shrugged their shoulders, accepting what the woman wanted to do. She now had two dead rabbits, a dead lynx, and an injured, but living red-tailed hawk that needed healing.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Figure Eight**

When the small hunting party approached the western cave entrance a few people were outside enjoying the warm afternoon. Eka and Uka were roaming nearby collecting herbs, while Oga and Ovra sat, each holding one of Ovra's new sons and watching Ora play with Eka's twin daughters. The boys, Brac, Vorg, Breg, Grev and Durc, played at spear hunting, while Broud and Goov looked on. It was Ora that saw them coming first.

"Mamma," she cried, getting up and running toward the returning hunters.

As the child ran up, Grov grabbed her and picked her up, bringing her up to eye level with Ayla. "Ora, look what Mama has," he gestured, as Ayla pulled back the leather blanket to reveal the injured hawk, which squawked loudly at the sight of the people.

Hearing the noise of the bird caused the boys to come over to inspect the animal. "Mama, what do you have," Durc asked?

Ayla smiled at her son, "It's a red-tailed hawk, Durc," she said lowering the bird so that the boys could see it.

"What happened to its wing, Ayla," Brac asked?

"Well Brac, I think this lynx attacked it," the Woman Who Hunts gestured as she shrugged the dead cat off her shoulder. "I'm not quite sure why the lynx was out during the daytime though, they usually hunt at night."

The women were approaching slowly amazed at what the medicine woman had with her. Grov was standing just behind the woman, holding Ora up, and smiling his pride at his hunting woman. Broud watched them, wondering how the man could be proud that his woman returned with a kill, three kills actually he thought noticing that she still held more, and he returned empty handed.

"That is a meat eater," the former leader said. "Brun will not let it in the cave."

"Yes Broud, it is a meat eater, but it is injured and this medicine woman needs to help it. It is Dorg's totem animal, and I think it could be dangerous to the clan if we do not at least attempt to save it."

Broud grunted, he had not thought of that. "I will go get the leader."

Goov took a look at the hawk, and considered the danger to the clan. "I agree with you Ayla. I will go with you Broud."

Broud and Goov walk through the cave entrance and then down the passageway to the main space. Brun was sitting at the central fire, and saw the Mog-ur and the son of his mate approaching. The Mog-ur looked calm, but he could tell that Broud was agitated.

Brun had been immensely pleased at the hearth arrangement he had come up with; it seemed to be maturing Broud faster than anything he had tried in the past. He was sure that part of it was that Broud had no status, and therefore could not cause trouble there, but he had hope that the new patience he saw in the man was permanent.

"Brun, the Woman Who Hunts has brought something back to the cave that you need to see." Brun noticed he called her the _Woman Who Hunts_ instead of Ayla or the medicine woman; that told him that the _something _was something she had hunted. The leader glanced at the Mog-ur.

"She has killed another lynx with her sling," the Mog-ur gestured.

Brun looked at the two men suspiciously, "_And…_she has done that before, what makes this one different? Has she used something other than a sling?"

"No, she used her sling to kill the lynx," Broud gestured. "_And two rabbits,_" he added quickly. "_But…_this time she has brought back a live, but injured hawk that she says she must heal," Broud went on. Brun frowned. Why does this woman constantly do such strange things, he thought to himself?

Before Brun could say anything, Goov cut in, "It is a red-tailed hawk, Dorg's totem; she believes, and I agree, that she should heal it so that we do not anger the spirit of the red-tailed hawk, and cause danger to the clan."

"But it is a meat eater," Brun said, knowing that he had already been through this with Ayla when she was a child.

"Yes Brun, but like I said, it is Dorg's protecting totem. I think we must allow it this time."

Brun grunted. "Bring the woman to me as soon as she has treated the bird. I want to talk to her."

Broud and Goov agreed and went back through the passageway.

Ayla had managed to get through the curious people, and back to Grov's hearth, intent on saving the bird. With Grov's help, she first cleared off the cave shelf that was at the back of the hearth. It would be a good place to treat the animal, and keep it safe from the hands of the children.

Once a place was ready, the woman cleaned the wounded wing with warm water, and made a salve that would remove any infection from the bird's cuts. Ayla believed this to be necessary since it was a feline that had gotten hold of the bird, and wounds from cats could fester pretty badly.

Then, using strips of soft leather, the medicine woman constructed a figure eight bandage around the bird, which would stabilize the wing by holding the wing in a closed position. The hawk would not be able to get around very well, and would have to be watched carefully so that it did not fall down and get hurt. Ayla asked Grov to construct something that would hold the bird until it was ready to be released. While he was doing that, Ayla butchered one of the rabbits, fed the hungry bird, and gave it some water.

By the time Broud and Goov got back to the hearth, the medicine woman was finished working her magic, and asked Goov to ask the spirits to help heal the hawk. He felt a little silly doing this, but he trusted Ayla's medicine magic and complied.

Broud eyed Ayla and the bird, thinking she probably couldn't save it, but wondered if there was anything the woman wouldn't try. "Ayla, when you are finished Brun wants to talk to you."

Ayla looked at Broud and nodded, knowing Brun probably wasn't happy about having a meat eater within the cave. She knew she had been told in the past not to bring them in, but she was a medicine woman; she could do no less.

**XxX**

**Ebra's Gift**

Ayla finished up within the hearth, then made her way through the long dark passageway toward the leader's hearth. As she approached, the people sitting with the leader stopped their conversation, and watched the strange woman come near. Ayla sat at the feet of Brun and waited for him to acknowledge her.

"Ayla, the leader has been told that you have disobeyed my rule of not bringing meat eaters into the cave again. Why have you done this?"

Ayla stayed sitting, since Brun himself was sitting, and looked at the leader pleadingly. "This woman remembers that you have ordered her not to bring meat eaters into the cave, and the woman does not wish to make the leader angry, but the hawk is injured."

"Yes Ayla, I know that, but it is still a meat eater."

"_But…_" Ayla began, then changed tactics, "This _medicine _woman thought it could be dangerous to the clan if the hawk should be left for dead. He is a red-tailed hawk, just like Dorg's totem spirit."

Brun considered her thoughts. He already knew this was why she had brought the hawk in, but he did not want her to know. He wanted her to feel like she had to explain her reasoning. "And what makes you, a woman, think she could know what the spirits may think?"

Ayla looked almost ashamed that she had implied she could know anything about the spirit world. "This woman regrets that she has assumed. This woman did not mean to upset the leader or disobey again. This woman will remove the hawk from the cave if the leader insists that she do so."

Brun grunted, happy that she was so contrite. This _woman _would be the death of him, he was sure of it. "I am finished with you for now. I have not decided if the hawk can stay or not. I will have to speak to the Mog-ur. Go back to Grov's hearth, and take care of your bird…for now."

Ayla got up to go, hiding a smile, but didn't get far before Ebra came up to her. "Ayla, I have something for you, and for Oga," she said, placing what she held into Ayla's hands. "It's for your babies."

Ayla looked at the proffered gift, and her eyes brimmed with tears; Ebra had made each of the pregnant women a soft, supple blanket for their soon to be born babies. "This woman does not know what to say," she gestured, knowing that the clan rarely gave each other gifts.

"There is nothing _to_say Ayla. I told you that you are the daughter the spirits never gave me, and this woman wants to do things to help you."

Ayla smiled, unable to stop more tears from coming to her eyes. "This woman is grateful."

Ebra reached up, and brushed the tall woman's tears away. "Ayla, your eyes are always watering. You need to wash them again."

When Ayla returned to the hearth, the three boys were all standing next to Ayla's drying rack, staring at the bound and caged bird, and commenting on whether or not they thought it would live. "Mama will fix it," Durc was saying, and Grev was nodding his agreement. Brac finished up with, "Brun will not let the bird stay in the cave."

Broud and Grov were sitting at the fire, watching the boys' conversation, and had been debating over Ayla's hunting before she returned to the hearth. Broud could not understand why the men went with her on her ridiculous hunt; he would have preferred to hunt for her _himself, _to keep her from hunting.

Oga was watching the men surreptitiously, and keeping quiet, so they would not know she was watching them. She busied herself by making the evening meal. Ora, on the other hand, was toddling around, doing her best to annoy the man that seemed to like her least.

As Ayla walked into the hearth, she saw that the child was on Broud's lap, pulling at his beard, and babbling incoherently in his face. Ayla could see he was getting upset, so she came to Ora's, and Broud's, rescue. The woman swung the little girl around, and set her up on the cave wall shelf, and motioned, "Ora, watch the bird while I cut up some meat for him." Ora nodded, with wide eyes.

As Ayla worked, she informed Grov that the hawk would stay until Brun decided what to do with it, then seeing Broud's frown, she turned to Oga, and handed her Ebra's gift. "This is from Ebra, for your baby. She is very happy that we are expecting," Ayla said holding up the blanket that the leader's mate had given to her as well.

Oga looked very pleased and went to put the small baby blanket away.

**XxX**

**The Men's Meeting**

The next day, Brun called a meeting for the men to discuss the meat eater that was living at the first medicine woman's hearth. The men gathered at dawn and sat in a circle in the men's ceremonial cave.

"I have called this meeting to discuss the animal that was found yesterday by Ayla. The woman believes it could be dangerous to let it die. I am concerned that having a carnivore in the cave could bring us bad luck, or cause us to go without the food we need."

"Droog would speak, Brun."

"Droog may speak."

"I am not sure if having the bird in the cave would bring good luck or bad luck, but we know that Ayla herself has been good for our clan; she has always brought us luck. She was the one that found the first cave, and she is responsible for finding this cave. She has healed many people in this clan, including saving Ona while we were fishing many seasons ago, and Brac on that hunt. _And, _more recently by diving into the river to save Ebra." That last comment made some uncomfortable, as most believed the woman to be a spirit at the time. "I am finished."

"Crug would speak."

Turning from the first man to comment to Crug, Brun said, "Crug may speak."

"I would agree that Ayla has brought our clan luck…but I am more concerned about having a meat eater around that could potentially take food from our mouths. If the bird lives, it could possibly eat the small game that we often subsist on in late winter. I am finished."

Many were nodding at the thought, including Brun. "Zoug would speak."

"Zoug may speak."

"I agree that the bird _could_ take from us, but we do not even hunt most of what this carnivore hunts. Yes, we hunt rabbits and we fish, but the hawk is likely to go after animals that we do not consider suitable for consumption. We could allow the bird to stay, but make the woman responsible for feeding it, so that it cannot affect the clan. _And, _it may not matter…by next winter it will probably be gone. I am finished."

Everyone was nodding again, but Norv was not happy. "Norv would speak, Brun."

"Norv may speak."

"I am concerned about the children of this cave. Some of them are small enough that the meat eater may see them as food," he said looking at Goov and Vorn, who both had two newborns at their hearths. "Or, due to instinct, it may attack some of the other children. I don't see how we can allow that to happen. I think we should just get rid of the bird and be done with it. I am finished."

"Grod would speak," Brun's stoic second said.

"Grod may speak."

"I do not like the idea of having a meat eater in the cave, but we cannot just 'get rid of the bird and be done with it.' We must carefully consider whether the death of the bird will affect the clan. We do not want to anger Dorg's totem spirit. If we let it die, Dorg's totem spirit may turn against Dorg, or may turn other spirits against all of us, but if we allow the medicine woman to heal it, the spirit may be pleased and bring additional food to the area. However, I have mixed feelings, and I do not want a carnivore in the cave. I am finished."

Dorg was nodding. "Dorg would speak."

"Dorg may speak."

"I do not know about spirits, but I do not want my totem spirit to be angry, because we did not protect it. It has been protecting me for many seasons. I think the least we can do is try to heal it. It may not live anyway. I am finished."

"Daub would speak."

Brun turned to Dorg's younger brother, and said, "Daub may speak."

"Before the earthquake that brought these three clans together, I was working with our Mog-ur, and learning about the spirit world. I do not think that the spirits would be upset if the medicine woman did nothing to heal the hawk, after all, the spirit of the red tailed hawk will return to the spirit world once it dies, no matter the cause. However, I do not have an objection to the bird staying in the cave, if there is any reason to believe the saving of the bird will please the spirits."

Brun watched the men openly discussing the situation and he was glad to see that most had something to contribute. Corg had said nothing, but he was an unusually quiet man, and watched carefully and nodded thoughtfully at all comments. Vorn said nothing as well, but Brun could tell he worried for the sons of his mate. And Borg and Nouz also had nothing to say. They were young, and didn't feel like they had enough experience to contribute. Two others said nothing; Grov and Broud. Grov felt that he was too close to the situation to comment; he did not want to upset his pregnant mate, and Broud was struggling with the idea of sharing the hearth with an animal, on top of being the lowest ranked male at another man's hearth.

For a short time the leader let the discussion run its course, then he put up his hand to indicate that he had heard enough. "I would like to hear from Mog-ur."

Goov looked at Brun, and then he turned toward everyone. "First, most of us know that Ayla has brought us luck, and has saved many lives. She is an asset to this clan for all that she looks and acts differently. Even though she is just a woman…I do not like the idea of upsetting her, for we know that the spirit that protects her, the cave lion, has given her the luck she possesses, and we all have shared in it.

Secondly, I think that Daub has brought up a valid point, the spirits may not get angry if the medicine woman does not save the bird, but we do not know; it _could_ be dangerous for the clan. I would like to meditate on this. I do, however, think that having the bird in the cave could please the spirit of the red tailed hawk, and that would be good for the clan, as well as for Dorg. It may even please the spirits of other meat eaters, therefore causing us further luck. _And, _Dorg may be right; it may not live even with the medicine woman's magic."

And finally, as far as the physical danger to the children and other clan members goes…well, the bird is injured; I do not see how it could hurt anyone while it is in the condition it is, and it will be gone before it can affect our hunting next winter. I am finished."

Brun nodded at the Mog-ur's logic. He understood why his brother chose Goov as acolyte many seasons earlier.

The leader considered, then asked if anyone had anything else to add. He turned to Broud, who always had something to say. "_Broud_," he said, looking at the son of his mate? The man shook his head, so the leader turned back to the rest of the men.

_"I will take all your thoughts into consideration before I make my decision. But now I want to ask each of you to give me a definite answer," the leader finally said. The men were sitting in a circle around the fire. They each clenched a fist and held it in front of their chests. A movement up and down would mean an affirmative answer, a lateral movement of the fist, no._

"Grod," Brun began with his second-in-command, "do you think the medicine woman should be allowed to heal the hawk?"

Grod hesitated, he wanted to please the spirits, but didn't know what would please them more; returning one of their own, or healing it, and he didn't want the bird in the cave. He moved his fist across his chest.

"Grod says no. Droog?" Brun asked, turning to the toolmaker.

Droog did not hesitate. He moved his fist up, then down.

"Yes. Crug?"

Crug moved his fist across his chest.

"Crug says Ayla should not heal the hawk," Brun confirmed. "Dorg?"

Dorg drew his fist up, then down.

"Dorg says Ayla should heal the hawk. Corg?"

Corg sat for a second thinking, then moved his fist across his chest.

"Corg says Ayla should not heal the hawk. Daub?"

Daub also did not hesitate, and moved his fist up, then down.

"Daub says Ayla should heal the hawk. Grov?

Grov moved his fist up, then down as well.

"Yes for Grov. Norv?"

Norv moved his fist across before Brun could say his name, and Brun moved on just as quickly. "No. Vorn?"

Vorn's concern still showed on his face as he moved his fist across his chest.

"No. Borg?"

Borg voted with a fist across his chest as well.

"No. Nouz?

Nouz looked at the circle of men, then at the mate of his dead mother, and moved his fist across his chest.

"No. Zoug?"

Zoug looked only at Brun and moved his fist up, then down.

"Zoug says Ayla should be allowed to heal the hawk," the leader said, as he turned to the son of his mate. Broud?"

Broud frowned, feeling as if this whole meeting was his fault, but knowing at the same time that Brun would have held it no matter who informed him of the presence of the meat eater. He didn't want to have the bird in his hearth, but then, it wasn't _his _hearth, was it? Further, he had never been for letting Ayla do the strange things she did, but Grov had been very accepting of his opinions in the hearth, and he felt like he owed the man, if not Ayla. He moved his fist up, then down.

Brun was shocked that Ebra's son voted that Ayla should heal the hawk, but masked his surprise quickly. "Yes. Mog-ur?"

Goov had decided that it would be better to heal the hawk, so he moved his fist up, then down.

"The Mog-ur says Ayla should be allowed to heal the hawk. Again, _the opinions are evenly divided," the leader announced_, thinking that this clan never made anything easy on him. _"The decision was never anything but mine anyway, I only wanted to know how you felt. _I will think about this on my own, and decide by tomorrow morning. We are finished."

With that the men dispersed. Some returned to their hearths, while others tended to tasks that needed to get done; it was still early in the day.

**XxX**

**Brac's Lesson**

Grov and Broud walked back to the hearth together, not saying anything. Broud was still feeling guilty about going to Brun, and Grov was thoughtful about Broud's support of the bird during the meeting. He was, without doubt, not the only one to be surprised by Broud's vote.

Brun watched the two dissimilar men walk away; one tall, younger, blue eyed, light haired and strange looking, the other, the son of his mate, shorter and darker, both in stature and within. The leader was very impressed with the young man that had come into their lives due to the earthquake, making changes for the good without even knowing it. Brun would file that information away in his brain for future use.

When they returned to the hearth, Ayla had just finished re-bandaging the bird's wing, and was preparing tea in anticipation of their return. When Ora saw Broud coming, she made a break for him. For some reason the two year old found enjoyment in the man that ignored her at all costs. "Up Broud," she said, as she stretched up, wrapped her arms around his legs, and pulled on his wrap. Ayla watched out of the corner of her eye, but decided not to save the man this time.

"Grov, this woman would like to go see Ovra and then Uba, to see how the babies are doing. Do you mind if I go?"

Grov smiled at Ayla, "Go Ayla. You do not have to ask to go talk to the women."

Ayla smiled back and kissed her mate, gesturing, "Do you need anything?"

Grov considered for minute, but could not think of anything. "No Ayla, go ahead."

Broud watched them and shook his head, trying to understand, but distracted by the child who was hanging onto him. The man looked back down at the child, saying, "Ora, stop!" When the man's harsh gesture finally reached the child, her lip turned down, and her eyes welled with tears, causing Broud to look around for help.

Grov was watching out of the corner of his eye, but decided to do nothing, just as Ayla had. He thought Broud was learning to control his temper well, _and_Grov knew he was close enough to step in if it was necessary.

Ayla went to Goov's hearth first, since it was on the way, and because she thought Ovra really needed the attention. Ovra's birth had been easy, but sleep had not been going well; the infants were small and needed to nurse often.

"Hello Ovra. How are you doing?"

"I am fine Ayla, but so tired."

"Don't worry, it will not last too long. When they grow a little, then they will sleep better. It will be their naming day soon. Are you excited?"

"Oh yes. Goov told me that he has chosen names for them. I can hardly wait to find out what they are…and to be able to get out of this hearth a little."

You were out yesterday. The fresh air must have felt good."

"Yes, it was nice. You sure caused a lot of excitement with your unexpected catch. How is the hawk anyway?"

"He is doing good. His is a bit scratched up and his wing is broken, but he is eating well and he seems to trust me. I hope Brun will let me heal him. It would be a shame to start healing him and then have to set him free." Ayla had tears in her eyes as she spoke, and Ovra knew the medicine woman felt strongly about the bird already.

"This woman has noticed that Broud has been working with the boys on their hunting. How is everything at the hearth? Has Broud _really _changed?"

"This woman does not know if he _really _has; for Oga's sake if for no other reason, I hope that it is so. He is not so terrible anymore…I still don't understand him, but at least I don't have to be afraid of him, now that I have Grov.

"Ayla, you never seemed too afraid of him. Only when you were very young, but you are different now."

He makes me wonder why he hates me so much. He says that he doesn't hate me, but I still wonder. This women thinks that he doesn't even know why."

"Well Ayla, none of us understand you either. What kind of woman wants to hunt?"

Ayla had wondered the same thing for many seasons. "Grov says the women of the others hunt all the time, and that it is perfectly normal for me to want to hunt. I am glad that I know how…I really enjoy it."

Ovra was nodding, glad that the medicine woman had something she enjoyed, then thought about the medicine woman's pregnancy. "And how is your pregnancy going, Ayla," Ovra said, changing the subject?

Ayla smiled at the question. "Just over two moon cycles left," she said patting her expanding middle. "I'm hoping for a girl this time."

"But Ayla, you know it's bad luck to hope for a girl."

"I know that's what people think, but I don't think that. Besides, that's what I really want to have, and I'm sure Grov just wants the baby to be healthy." Ayla paused and looked at the woman lying on her furs. "Okay Ovra, I think I better go check on Uba. I'm sure she's going to want to examine _me_," she said rolling her eyes. "I am going now."

Ovra gestured a goodbye, then closed her eyes to rest.

At Vorn's hearth the younger medicine woman had tea waiting for Ayla. "How did you know I was coming, Uba?"

Uba looked at her older sister with an amused expression, and gestured, "Ayla, you come to look in on me everyday. I knew that you'd be here soon. Besides, it is I that will be examining you today. This woman is just fine."

Ayla grinned at the woman and said, "Well, I just want to make sure you are healthy and happy. Are you Uba?"

"Ayla, you are trying to distract me again. This woman is more than fine…lie down," Uba said pointing at the furs.

The pregnant woman did as she was bid, then drank tea and visited with Uba for a while before returning to Grov's hearth. Uba did not ask about the bird, deciding that it would be better to ask later, _if _the bird was allowed to stay.

When Ayla got back to the hearth, the three boys were once again watching the bird, and Ora was sitting on Grov's lap chewing on a piece of dried meat, and watching Broud's every move. Ayla shook her head, not understanding why the child liked the man so much. Oga was preparing the evening meal, so Ayla went to help her.

When they had all finished their meal, the bird began to squawk loudly, causing Ayla to worry. It turned out that it was just hungry. "Brac, do you want to feed the bird tonight," the woman asked the boy?

Brac looked at her with an unsure expression. He had never fed anything before in his life; that was usually woman's work, but he nodded his head anyway.

Ayla smiled at the boy that was almost a man, and said, "Come here, I will show you. I have cut up some raw meat from the rabbit that I hunted yesterday. See? This way he can just eat it and not have to tear it up. I do not want him to have to struggle to eat, and maybe get hurt in the process."

Brac took the strips of meat from the woman, but asked, "Why does it matter if he cannot eat? Do you really think Brun will let you heal him?"

Ayla looked at the boy's skeptical look. "I am hoping so Brac. It would be a shame to turn it out now. I can save him, but if I let him go, he will die for sure. This woman does not want that to happen. As medicine woman, I want to save everyone, or everything, if I can."

Brac looked at the medicine woman, and then looked over at Broud who was observing, but trying to appear that he wasn't. She had a good point, he thought, and Broud does not seem upset over this. If the former mate of his mother was not upset, then there was no reason that he should be. The boy looked down at the meat he was holding in his hand, and turned toward the bird. "What should I do Ayla?"

Ayla smiled, and showed him how to give the bird the meat. It was not hard; the bird wanted to eat, and readily took the food.

That night Ayla tossed and turned, knowing that the fate of her bird would be revealed the next day, and hoped that she would be allowed to keep the meat eater, at least until it was healed.

**XxX**

**Ebra Waits**

Brun did not sleep well that night either. He too tossed for half the night, before getting up long before dawn. Ebra silently woke with her mate, fixed a calming tea, and massaged the tight muscles in his back and shoulders.

Brun didn't know why he could not decide, but he did not know what to do. He did not want to turn out the hawk, for fear that its spirit would become angry, but some of the men's concerns over the meat eater troubled him. What if it harmed someone? What if it took food from their mouths? The leader shook his head with the frustration of it all. Why does Ayla always have to be so unclan-like, he thought to himself? Then he snorted aloud…because she isn't clan, he mused.

While Brun sat there pondering his thoughts on the matter, Goov walked up, "You can't sleep either, can you?

Brun glanced up at the young Mog-ur, and gestured that the man should sit down. "No Mog-ur, I cannot. I just do not know if the bird could cause the clan harm, either directly or indirectly."

Goov thought about the leader's dilemma, and said, "I'm sure it _could _be harmful…but I am willing to take the chance, if Ayla is made aware that she must take sole responsibility for the bird. I am sure the medicine woman can heal the bird, with the help of the spirits, of course."

Brun nodded. "You are not afraid for the babies?" Brun questioned, referring to both the unnamed twins that would not be fully recognized until their seventh day, and Uba's sons.

Goov hesitated slightly, but shook his head anyway, "I trust Ayla. She is a fine medicine woman. She would not allow it."

As the sun came over the horizon, the two men broke up their twilight vigil. "Ebra, go get Ayla," the leader demanded, and Ebra went off to find the woman.

As Ebra approached Grov's hearth, she had to stop and wait; Grov was relieving his needs with Ayla. Ebra did not want to interrupt the man, so she stood just behind a hide that had recently been hung up between the hearth and the open space to give more privacy. Ebra inspected the curtain, and thought it was a good idea. She wondered why they had not thought of it before.

As she stood there waiting, for what seemed like forever, she began to listen to the mated couple, and wondered what Grov was doing to Ayla that would cause him to go on for so long. She decided to look around the barrier, and saw that Ayla was not on her knees as was customary, but on her back with Grov on top of her. The older woman was intrigued by the position. Ebra did not know that so much time had past until Brun walked up behind her, and tapped her on the back of her shoulder, causing her to jump. "Ebra, what are you doing? Why have you not brought Ayla to me?"

Ebra turned around, and looked at Brun. "This woman did not want to interrupt a man as he relieves himself with his mate."

Brun nodded with understanding, then narrowed his eyes, "But you have been gone for some time. Why is it taking so long?"

Ebra shrugged her shoulders, "This woman does not know, but they are still…busy." Just as Ebra finished her sentence, Brun saw Broud come into the passageway from the hearth that joined with Grov's hearth.

"Broud," Brun called quietly. "I want to speak to Ayla. When Grov is finished with her I want you to bring her to me," he said, unhappy that the woman was not readily available, and still not understanding what was taking so long.

Broud nodded, and glanced in at Grov and Ayla, who were completely engrossed in one another, and thought to himself that it could be a while. Brun then looked at Ebra, and said, "Let's go, Ebra. This man is hungry."

Finally, when the two had finished, Broud stepped into the hearth hesitantly. Ayla was lying on her back, with Grov collapsed on top of her. "Ayla," Broud said to get the woman's attention. "The leader wants me to bring you to his hearth."

Ayla nodded and Grov extracted himself from her, so she could clean up and go. Ora, who was lying quietly on her own furs, brightened at seeing Broud come into the hearth, and got up to go to him. Broud rolled his eyes, causing Ayla to giggle as she got up.

"What is so funny woman," Broud gesticulated angrily. "This child is annoying, and should not be allowed to bother a man." Grov had to turn away to hide his own smile. There was something very amusing to them about how befuddled the former leader became with Ora's attention.

Ayla's stifled her giggle quickly, and tried to speak without a smile. "This woman knows that Broud, and I am sorry, but the child seems to like you, though I cannot see why."

Broud face turned red, and it looked as though he was going to become angry, but then he just took a deep breath, bent over and picked up the little girl, brought her to the medicine woman, and said, "I do not understand why the child always wants me either, but you should not talk to a man like that; someone may cuff you if you do."

Ayla eyed the man closely, and then took the child from him. "Yes Broud, this woman will try harder to teach Ora, but I cannot stop her from liking you."

Broud grunted, knowing she was right. "Come Ayla, Brun has been waiting for you for some time." Ayla nodded, handed Ora to Grov, and then followed Broud out of the hearth.

At the leader's hearth, Brun saw the son of his mate approaching with the medicine woman, and he could not believe Broud was walking with the woman without a look of hatred on his face. Something was definitely happening to the man to change him for the better.

When Broud stopped walking, Ayla came around him and knelt on the ground at Brun's feet. Brun signaled that Broud could leave, and when he had, the leader tapped the woman's shoulder, allowing her to look up at him. He did not say anything at first, but instead looked at her closely.

The woman was a few moon cycles from giving birth and her protruding stomach made her kneel in a position with one knee on the ground and the other off to the side, and Brun noticed that her breasts were becoming rather large. The medicine woman's long yellow hair was tucked behind her ears, but hung down past her knees, nearly touching the ground. Brun looked at her blue eyes. What strange eye's she has, he thought. Now there are three members with eyes that are too light. What other changes will this clan be exposed to? Brun looked deeply into the woman's eyes, and she stared back with eyes wide open, wondering what the leader was doing.

"Ayla, this leader still does not understand why you have brought a meat eater into the clan's cave, but I have discussed the matter with the men, and the Mog-ur has meditated. The Mog-ur does not think it is dangerous to us to have it here. Therefore, I am going to allow it to stay, but I will hold you responsible for it. You must make sure the animal hurts no one, and you are the one that must feed it. I do not want meat taken from the people of this clan for that hawk. How long will it take to heal him?"

Ayla considered how long it took broken bones to heal. The bones of the clan people sometimes took a long time to heal, but the hawk had smaller bones. It should not take as long, she thought. "He could be healed within a moon cycle, but it could up until the summer season begins before he is fit to fly."

Brun nodded. "Okay Ayla, take care of him, but don't forget what I told you. The clan's safety must come first. If he threatens anyone, then he must be turned out. Do you understand me?"

It was Ayla's turn to nod. She was so happy she could hardly contain her excitement, but she managed to hold back and be respectful to the leader.

"Ayla, there is one more thing I wanted to ask you…" Brun started off, then stopped, not sure he knew what he wanted to say.

"Yes Brun?" Ayla prompted, hoping the leader wasn't upset about something else she had done.

Brun glanced around the cave, and positioned himself so no one would see what he was saying. "How is…_everything _within your hearth?"

Ayla looked at the leader strangely, thinking he must be wondering about her interaction with the son of his mate, but she sidestepped the indirect question. "This woman is happy with her mate. Grov is very good to me."

"Ayla, you know that's not what I am asking, though I am glad the first medicine woman is 'happy,' it makes for a healthy clan…_and _a healthy baby," the man added looking down at her stomach once again. "But, I want to know how you are doing with Broud there. I know this cannot be easy on you after all that he has put you through."

"This woman did have a hard time growing up with the son of your mate around; that much is true," Ayla said, blushing at the directness in which she was being allowed to speak to the leader, a man. "He has always hated me, but I know that I have not always been obedient. Broud does not seem so hateful anymore, and I am working hard to not provoke him, though sometimes it is hard. You are right Brun, it has not been easy, but I think we are doing okay. Broud is even teaching Durc to use the spear, and you know how much Broud has disliked my son."

Brun watched the woman, considering what she said. He had always wanted to discuss things with this particular woman. Creb had always said she had many opinions on topics that were not womanly. It was too bad that she was not a man, so they could converse openly. "Okay Ayla, you can go now, but don't forget that _you_must hunt for the hawk, and it must not hurt anyone."

Ayla nodded and then gestured, "I am going now."

**XxX**

**Ayla's Hawk**

Ayla left Brun's hearth walking normally, but when she got to the passageway, she turned right and ran through the portion of the cave that seldom had people in it; she was so excited, and she felt like she needed to run. As she neared the hearth she slowed down, but it was too late, she had built up momentum; she rounded the corner and ran smack into Broud, who had just stood up to leave the hearth.

As the woman hit the man, and began to fall backward, he instinctively reached out and grabbed her. This time she did not fall to the ground, but was pulled into the man's arms instead. This was the second time that Ayla had come around this corner too fast and run into someone.

Ayla stared at the man, then slowly backed away with a flushed face. "This woman did not mean to be so careless. I know I should not run in the cave. I will be more careful."

Broud stepped back from her, saying, "Ayla, you should be more careful…" but the man trailed off, thinking to himself that the woman had just said that. Then the man returned to the fire, in the confusion he forgot that he had been leaving.

When the woman finally composed herself, she turned to everyone in the hearth, and she noticed that they were all sitting patiently, waiting for her news. Grov had not gotten up, but had instead allowed Broud to handle the hastened woman.

"Well?" Grov gestured when she was composed.

Ayla smiled, "I get to heal him."

Grov got up and hugged his woman; he was happy that she was happy, and interested in the bird. All three boys were excited; Ayla could tell. She had already decided to enlist all of them to help her with minor things for the hawk, since they were so fascinated. Ora did not understand what was going on, but she knew Ayla was happy and that was all that mattered to the two year old. Oga was glad Ayla was happy too, but she was nervous as to how Broud would take it. Broud did not say anything, but Oga could tell he was not upset.

Ayla continued to talk to Grov, while she busily made a meal. Oga had tried to help, but the medicine woman told her to relax. "I can do this Oga, you rest." Oga didn't know what to do with herself; she didn't usually have time to just sit there watching the conversation.

The next few days went quickly, and before they knew what was happening, it was the morning of the seventh day, time for Ovra's twins to be named, and Goov was quite proud to be standing up there naming his mate's sons.

Ovra _stood among the massive group of people out in the sunlight, waiting for her mate to come out of the cave with his bowl of red-ochre paste. When the Mog-ur finally appeared and beckoned, she hurried to the front of the assemblage, and stood in front of the Mog-ur, looking down at the ground while she uncovered_ one of her children. _She held the babe up while the magician looked over her head making the gestures that called the spirits to attend the ceremony. _Then, just as he had done a very short time before, he began.

_Dipping into the bowl…he drew a stripe from the point where the baby's brow ridges joined to the tip of_ his _nose with the red-ochre paste._

"Droov, the boy's name is Droov," Mog-ur said, looking through the crowd at his dead mother's mate. Droog looked on with pride and happiness for the son of his first mate, and had a look of pleasure at the name of the child. Then the air was split, for though the day was rather warm for early spring, the naked infant howled angrily at being removed from his mother's warm breast.

"Droov," Ovra _repeated, cuddling her shivering baby in her arms…. The members of the clan filed past, each repeating the name to familiarize themselves and their totems with the newest addition._ Ovra _was careful to keep her head down so she would not inadvertently look upon any of the men who came forward to acknowledge her_ son. _Afterward, she wrapped the infant in warm rabbit skins_, and handed him to Ayla, who stood close, just as she had for Uba. The process was repeated for Ovra's second son.

"Creb," the boy's name is Creb," Mog-ur said, and everyone filed by a second time to acknowledge the child. When Brun passed by, saying the name of Ovra's second son, there was no mistaking _his _pleasure that the Mog-ur had chosen to honor the memory of his brother, their greatest Mog-ur, by naming the child after him.

"Creb," Ayla said, and leaned over to place her cheek next to the baby's cheek as she passed by. Ovra was overjoyed.

Later that same week, Ayla decided to re-bandage the hawk's wing again. She was doing it about every three to four days, and it was time to do it again. As she removed the existing bandage, she could tell the wing was becoming tight from being kept immobile, so she spent some time massaging it before she put fresh bandages on. The hawk had eyed her warily in the beginning, but the beginnings of trust had developed between them, and it was much easier as time went on. Ayla was very please at the bird's progress and ended the medical exam by petting his head, which was obviously enjoyed by the bird. Ayla was extremely happy with her new friend, and so it would seem was the bird with his healer.

Feeding was going well too. Every day, at about the same time, the hawk would let out a shriek that let the woman know he was hungry, and Ayla always had meat ready for him. The woman learned that he didn't like rats and mice as much as other animals, and that quail was his favorite.

Ayla also learned that the hawk knew who belonged in their hearth, and who did not. When someone other than the eight members of their hearth entered the hawk squawked in earnest to get everyone's attention.

However, though the bird knew who lived in the hearth, it was only Ayla that he allowed the close contact. When Ayla worked on his wound, he just sat there looking at her with wise eyes, and his head cocked. When she fed him, he took the food gently and waited patiently for more. When she scratched his head and neck, he lowered his head, enjoying every minute of it. When Ayla picked him up and held him, there was nothing but trust for the woman that had saved him and cared for him as if he were her baby. Ayla had essentially become his mother.

After a few weeks, Ayla starting thinking that the hawk needed a name, though she wasn't sure if animals had names. After all, no one could speak to animals, so how would she ever know, she thought to herself one evening while she preened her bird. She began to think about it often and wondered what the clan would think of naming a bird. She was sure they would think she was crazy, but she could not help it; she couldn't just keep calling it 'the bird,' or 'the hawk,' or 'the meat eater.'

Finally, she decided that she would have to spend some time carefully studying him, so she could come up with something appropriate.

**XxX**

**Wrapping and Unwrapping**

During the healing of the hawk, Brun was keeping tabs on the hearth with the strange member. He visited often, causing Ayla and Oga to become nervous, but observed that there was nothing out of the ordinary there. Oga was still behaving as a woman should; serving the needs of both men of the hearth, as well as visitors, _and _caring for the children and the cooking. Ayla had not changed either. She tended to all of Grov's needs, and served Broud if Oga could not, she cared for all four children as if they were her own, she tended to cave's health needs and she gave a significant portion of her time to the hawk. She did all this without complaint, even when she herself was tired.

One evening after thinking long and hard about it, Brun let both Broud and Dorg know that he had decided to take Brac and Vorg out on the spring hunt. Broud was very excited that the first son of his former mate might soon be a man; that would give them even more to talk about. Dorg, on the other hand, was a little nervous about the son of his first mate going on the hunt; as a mixed child, he was actually much younger than Brac mentally and physically, even though he was taller, _and_the boy was all that the man had left of his dead mate.

The morning after making Broud and Dorg aware of his thoughts, Brun came to the western part of the cave to individually notify each man that the spring hunt would be in a few moons, and that they would have a men's meeting that evening to discuss the hunt.

The leader stopped first at Dorg's hearth, knowing the man, and the son of his first mate, were nervous about the boy's impending hunt, and wanting to reassure them both that it was not necessary for Vorg to actually make a kill, but to see a kill, and to be ready for one soon. When the leader left their hearth, both felt much better, and were looking forward to the hunt.

When Brun finished with Dorg, he went to Daub, who looked like he would quite happy to get out of the cave for an extended hunt.

"The winter had been long," Brun was saying, "And we will discuss which women will be coming with us on the hunt at the meeting tonight. Obviously, some cannot go."

Daub was nodding at the leader's statement. "Yes, I do not think Eka should go, since she has the two little ones to care for. . . but I suppose someone else could care for them, so she could go. I guess we do need to discuss it further."

As Brun was standing in the small central space of that area talking to Daub, he could not help but notice that loud shrieking that was coming from Grov's hearth, so he cut off the conversation to go investigate. What he found astounded him.

When he entered the hearth, he could see that Broud and Ayla were standing close together, with their backs somewhat turned to the hearth entrance, and Broud was helping the woman by wrapping her hand in a leather cloth, and tying thongs around it to hold it in place. Brun could not tell why they were doing what they were doing, so he continued to watch. At first he thought Ayla might be injured, but did not see any blood to denote injury, so he just stood there. As he watched he became amazed that the son of his mate was doing anything for the medicine woman. He was truly impressed with the change in the man, but still worried that it was not permanent. The leader decided to wait until the man was tested further before making any decisions about his future. Some changes would have to be made soon thought, he thought, or Oga's baby would be unlucky, but he would think about that later.

What Brun realized as he watched the scene was that the hawk was not happy that the man was touching her. As soon as Broud was finished wrapping the woman's hand, and stepped back, the loud shrieking ended. Ayla then removed the figure eight bandage from the bird, and put her wrapped fist in front of the hawk's feet. The bird immediately ruffled his feathers and stepped onto Ayla's hand. Then, when the woman turned around, and the hawk saw Brun standing there, he began so shriek once again, frightening the leader. Ayla quickly put the bird back in the wooden enclosure on the cave shelf scolded him, "You are too loud. You must not shriek like that."

Ayla went over to the leader and knelt down; at his tap Ayla looked up. "This woman did not see the leader come in. This woman would know if the leader would like some tea."

Brun looked at her, "Water would be fine. I have come to talk to Grov and Broud about the spring hunt. Where is your mate?"

"This woman thinks he went outside for some fresh air. It is a little stuffy in the cave."

Brun grunted, indeed it was, he thought. "I see that you have removed the bandage from the hawk. Is he able to use his wing?"

"This medicine woman has just removed the bandaging, so I do not know, but his wing seems to be functioning." Ayla handed the leader a cup of water.

With that, Brun turned toward Broud. "The men will meet in the men's cave after the evening meal to discuss the hunt. Let Grov know. Also, Ebra wants both her _children_, and their families," the leader paused, thinking that Broud and Ayla made very odd siblings, and then turned to look at Ayla again, "to join us for the evening meal. She says you and Oga are working too hard, and should be able to rest for a night. She says that _she_will make the meal for all of us."

Broud and Ayla just nodded. Ayla felt guilty; the leader's mate would be cooking for two hands of people, but Broud was excited that he would be spending the evening at his mother's mate's hearth, which he had not done in quite some time, and then they would be going to a men's meeting. It would be a good evening.

**XxX**

**Broud's Pain**

When Grov returned, with all three boys in tow, it was not long after Brun had left. He brought with him five ptarmigan: two in one hand, and one in each of the boys' hands. Ayla decided to cook two of them prior to going to the leader's hearth for the evening meal, despite Ebra's wish to do everything. Oga agreed that it was a good idea, and assisted by caring for the children.

It did not take Ayla long to get the ptarmigan into the ground oven, but the hawk was not happy to see the fresh kill disappear. He began to squawk loudly again, voicing his anger. Ayla signaled him to stop, then ignored him, and he finally gave up, but he watched everything that she did carefully; following her every move with his eyes.

When she had finished getting the food going, the medicine woman decided to go to the indoor pool to wash. "Durc and Ora," she said to get their attention. "Come with mama. We're going to get clean for our evening meal. Oga, do you want me to take Brac and Grev too?" she gestured, picking up her soap root, and a few absorbent leather towels. Oga nodded, and then Ayla turned to Grov. "Grov, do you want to come with us? I will wash your hair," she said suggestively.

The man looked at her and smiled. "Of course I will come with you." Grov got up, grabbed another towel, and led Ayla, and the two children, who obediently followed the pair down the dark passageway.

Broud watched them with an amused expression. He was beginning to see what they saw in each other, but he still thought they were the ugliest creatures he had ever seen, unlike Oga, whom he considered just the opposite.

At the indoor pool, Grov preceded to make a fire, so they could get some water boiling. When the water was boiling, Ayla took out another watertight basket, and mixed the boiling water with some of the pool water to make warm water. Then she took off her wrap, stepped into the pool, and shivered from the cold. The pool was only present because of the ice melt coming in from the cave opening above, and it was as cold as ice.

The woman quickly dunked herself up to her shoulders, and signaled Brac to get in and wash himself. Then, she picked up Ora to wash her thoroughly. Ora resisted when she was put in the cold water, but Ayla pulled her out quickly and set her on the bank of the pool. With a wet cloth and some soap root, Ayla scrubbed the child from head to toe, then dunked her in one more time, and handed her to Grov, who stood waiting. Ayla went through the same steps with Durc and Grev, but the boys did not complain about the cold. "Boys, take Ora back to the hearth, and put on clean wraps."

When the children had left Ayla turned toward her mate. "Well, are you coming in, or not?"

Grov looked at his mate. She was still standing in the pool, and the water that was dripping off of her body was glistening in the firelight. His eyes caressed her curves as they moved up from her wet legs and focused on her growing stomach. He was so happy that she was pregnant after only a short time. This was definitely a lucky mating, he thought. When he could finally tear his eyes away from her belly, and his thoughts, he looked next at her breasts, which had grown significantly with her pregnancy. Her nipples were hard from the cold, but he could see from her suggestive stance that there was more to it than the cold water. He could not stand it any longer, and stepped into the water with her. Unfortunately, the cold water held him at bay for the moment while she washed him completely, and then he had the pleasure of washing her too.

When they got out of the pool, they dried each other off, and caressed one another lovingly. Ayla took Grov's member in her hand and stroked it gently, causing it to become rigid once again. Grov pushed his mate down on the leather towels, and entered her slowly, being careful not to lean on her stomach. Ayla moaned with pleasure, and arched to receive him, shuddering with each thrust.

At the hearth, Broud was sitting drinking tea while Oga busied herself dressing Ora, when Eka came into the hearth looking for the medicine woman. Apparently Aka had stepped on something and was bleeding, and needed Ayla's assistance. Oga went off to fetch the medicine woman.

As Oga approached the couple engaged deeply in one another she hesitated, but realized Ayla's first duty was as medicine woman, so she cleared her throat, causing the people to look up at the woman.

Grov frowned, but could tell by the woman's look that something was wrong. "Oga, what is it?"

"This woman does not mean to interrupt, but Aka has stepped on a sharp rock and cut herself." Grov sighed, pulling his member out of his mate knowing that she would have to go tend to the child.

Ayla quickly gathered up her belongings, and looked at Grov, who sat there with his swollen organ throbbing, and felt bad that she was leaving him full of need. "Grov, I am not the only woman here," she said gesturing toward Oga. Grov glanced at the woman standing a little ways behind his mate, and nodded. As Ayla hurried off, she saw Grov signal Oga, and Oga complied.

Back at the hearth, Ayla asked a few questions of Eka, and began treating Aka's cut foot. When the child's foot was bandaged, Ayla dressed and sat down to talk to Eka about the cut. Ayla could see that Broud was anxious about something, but the woman didn't know why, and made him wait for her to finish. When she had a second, she turned toward the man, "Do you need something Broud."

He hesitated, and then said, "Where is Oga?"

Ayla thought about his question, and considered that the man was going to be upset, and then answered him. "She is with Grov at the pool."

Ayla saw a look of unmistakable pain pass through his eyes before he left the hearth. Ayla sighed knowing he wasn't going to be happy with what he saw.

When Broud came into the clearing by the pool, he saw Oga down on her knees with Grov behind her, draped over her body and resting on her back. The man had just finished, and was taking a few breaths, but he had not extracted himself yet. Oga had her head hanging, and was also breathing deeply. She was flushed with pleasure.

Broud, on the other hand, was devastated, and flushed with anger. This was the first time he had ever actually seen someone taking _his _woman, and he could not keep silent.

"Oga!"

The woman looked up, and Grov opened his eyes. "You better go back to the hearth Oga," Grov motioned to her as he withdrew himself from her and got up.

Broud's face was red with anger now, but he was rooted to where he stood, and just watched the woman as she walked by him in fear, then turned his angry look on Grov. Grov cleaned himself, and put his wrap back on, then went to the man.

"What are you doing, Grov? You do not need Oga, you have Ayla," Broud sneered.

Grov was shocked at the man's anger; men of the clan regularly signaled the mates of other men if there was no one else to relieve them, _and _Oga wasn't even Broud's mate. He did not know that Broud had never liked the idea of sharing Oga when they were mated, and now Broud had no one else he could signal. "Broud, I was only relieving my needs. I'm sure you know that Ayla had to go back to the hearth to help Aka. You are acting as though I was beating her for no reason."

Broud tried to compose himself, knowing that Grov had done nothing wrong, but he didn't like it that Grov signaled Oga. Broud changed tactics. "How would you feel if I signaled Ayla?"

Grov face turned a little red at the thought. "It is not the same, you are not allowed to signal the women. You are not even supposed to be signaling Oga, but she allows it."

"And if I _was_allowed…would it bother you then?"

"Yes, but only because you and Ayla have had many differences. You have not always been nice to her, in fact, from what I have heard, you were unbearable to her, and I would not like for my mate to be unhappy."

Broud was standing in a defensive manner, but Grov could not help but notice that the former leader was clearly in pain over the matter. "Is there something else you want to say Broud?"

Changing tactics again, Broud said, "I am concerned about Oga's baby."

"What about it?"

"Well…Brac and Grev must have been created by my totem spirit; they look just like me…and Durc…I now agree that he too was created by my totem spirit…but what about this new baby?"

Grov sighed not seeing where the man was taking this. "And, what about it?"

"I am concerned that Oga's totem was defeated by _your_spirit…since you spend so much time with her." The last part came out with obviously pained gestures. Broud did not like looking so weak, but he could not help himself.

"Does it matter Broud? As long as the baby is healthy, does it really matter?"

"Yes it matters," Broud gesticulated angrily. "I do not want another man's children at my hearth."

Grov frowned, thinking that the man was deranged. "First of all Broud, it is Ayla's and my hearth that Oga lives in, not yours. Secondly, the _children _would be Oga's children, not 'another man's children'. And finally, who cares whose spirit created them? You do not see me angry that Ayla's totem was defeated by your spirit, do you?"

"It is not the same," Broud gestured in a frustrated manner.

"Why not?"

"Because…because…you were not here then…and…and it was my right at the time."

"Well Broud, is it not my right to do the same thing now. Oga is not your mate, and even if she was, I had need. I don't know why we are even discussing this. You really have no right to be angry, and you have no right to interfere with what woman a man signals, even if it is Oga."

Broud hung his head feeling defeated. "I know Grov," the man said weakly. "I just don't like to share Oga. Until _you_she had not been signaled by another man, and I liked it that way."

The tall man sympathized with the former leader, and considered the fact that someday his own mate could be signaled by another man. He was not sure if it would upset him; he had not thought of it before. It did not seem to bother Ayla that he signaled Oga; she actually encouraged it, but it clearly upset Broud. "Come on Broud, let's go back to the hearth, and get ready to go to Brun's hearth."

Broud nodded to the man, with similar thoughts in his own head.

Grov smiled, and nudged the shorter man, "I'm sure Oga would assume any position if you signaled her when you get back."

Broud snorted, which was the closest he could come to laughter, and walked with Grov back to the hearth.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Hawk – Part II**

Back at the hearth Ayla was just finishing up on Aka's foot, and handed the child back to her mother. Oga had been assisting, but her mind was elsewhere. When the two men arrived at the hearth, Oga looked up nervously, and then got up, poured tea, and sat at Broud's feet, hoping he would not be upset with her. Broud frowned down at her, not upset with her, but struggling to control what the clan considered weakness. Grov decided long before that pain was not weakness, and he would talk to Broud again later.

When Broud had control of himself, he tapped her shoulder and accepted the proffered cup of tea. "This woman would make you happy Broud. What can this woman do for you?"

Broud looked at the beautiful woman before him, wishing she was still truly his, but thankful that she had not been given to another man yet, _and _thankful that she still seemed to want him after all he had done to her. "Yes Oga, you can relieve this man," he said giving her the signal. The woman popped up from her kneeling position, and placing a hand on his forearm, guided him to their furs. Broud had to admit, he was enjoying the newfound pleasure of signaling his former mate, and he couldn't forget who had given him the gift; Ayla and Grov.

When Broud and Oga had gone, Ayla went to sit with Grov. He had obviously been able to calm Broud down. "This woman would know what you said to him?"

Grov smiled. "He does not want to share Oga, and he sure said some strange things."

"Like what?"

"Well, he said that he doesn't want another man's children at the hearth."

Ayla frowned, she had often considered the parentage of the children of the clan. Everyone knew who the mother was, but no one really knew which man's spirit defeated a woman's totem. She had been thinking about that topic herself, and she concluded that it was a man that was responsible for the creation of life, and not spirits. And more directly that it had something to do with men making the signal. As she considered it further, she decided that Durc was started within her only after Broud had forced her, and that it was obvious that her son was of Broud's spirit. Ayla looked over at Durc and smiled. She had hated Broud when he did that to her, but she was thankful for her son. Her son, she thought…wouldn't Durc be Broud's son as well if it was him that directly created the life within me?

"Is he worried that Oga's totem was defeated by your spirit?"

"Yes, and it could be possible, but why would he think of the baby as a man's child?"

Ayla thought again for a moment, then began, "Well Grov, this woman does not think a woman swallows the spirit of a man, and then if her totem is defeated then she will has a baby. I think that when a man places his organ inside a woman, they are creating new life."

Grov frowned. "But Ayla, men signal women many more times than a woman becomes pregnant. I don't see how that can be."

"I haven't figured that part out yet, but I am almost certain that I am right. I did not become pregnant until after…until after Broud…and look at Durc. Other than having my bulging forehead, my son looks almost identical to Broud…and Brac and Grev. I think we will know whether Oga's baby is yours or Broud's, as soon as it is born, and I am positive that mine is yours…I have not relieved any other man except you."

Grov smiled down at his woman, there was really something special about her. "Does it bother you that Oga may be carrying what you say is _my _baby?"

"This woman would ask you the same thing…does it bother you that Durc is most definitely Broud's son?"

Grov considered her question. "No, I just don't like what he did to you."

"This woman does not like it either, but I wanted a baby so badly, and I would gladly go through it again if that was the only way to have my son."

Grov watched her talk about her son, and about the man that may have created the child, and he noticed that she did not harbor any of the pain and anger any longer. He decided that this was very good, and wondered if Broud would ever truly get over Ayla.

"Ayla, you did not answer my question…does it bother you that Oga may be carrying _my _baby?"

Ayla was shaking her head before he had even finished his sentence. "Grev and Durc were milk brothers, and I believe real brothers. I think it is great that Oga's new baby and my new baby may be siblings too." Ayla paused for a second, "But, this will be very hard on Broud if the child is _yours _and not his."

Grov nodded in agreement, but they all still had some time to wait to find out.

When Broud and Oga entered the hearth, Oga was again all flushed. Broud informed them that they were heading off to the pool to wash, but that they'd be back hurriedly so they could leave. Ora begged to go with the couple, but Ayla told her no.

While the couple was gone, Ayla put the last preparations to the ptarmigan together, and fed the hawk. This bird still needs a name, she thought as she sat waiting for him to take the next morsel of quail. When the woman had lapsed into daydream, the hawk shrieked loudly to get her attention. Ayla smiled at her winged friend. "You are a very loud bird. You are always shrieking at everything. Maybe that would be a good name for you," then she tring to imitate the hawk with her own loud shriek. He cocked his head, and repeated her shriek, as if responding to her. "That is what I will call you," she said calling him in the manner in which he would speak to other hawks.

Grov watched her and had to laugh out loud…and he thought Broud had said some strange things. Ayla had just convinced him that men created babies, therefore making them a man's child as well as a woman's child, _and_ she had just named a bird, which she was calling by his animal sounds.

**XxX**

**Brun's Hearth**

Broud gave Ayla a look of disbelief. "You named the hawk?"

"Yes," she said matter of factly. "We cannot just keep calling him 'the hawk,' can we?"

Broud thought for a moment. "But if he is healed, then you need to let him go. Why bother naming an animal. People do not share caves with animals."

Ayla looked at the bird, which sat perched on her wrapped hand, and wondered about a hawk living in the cave. She had grown attached to him during the moon cycle that he had been staying with the clan. She hadn't realized that this would happen, and she now knew that she could not just 'let him go.' Ayla looked into the wise eyes of the young bird, and rubbed his head. "This woman will set him free if he wants to go, but I won't force him to go if he wants to stay."

Broud frowned, thinking that this woman was very stubborn. Brun was not going to like this…_he_did not like this. He did not want to share the hearth with a bird…but the bird did not really affect him, did it? He supposed not. "What did you name him?"

Ayla smiled, she had seen the pebbles rolling around in the man's head, and could tell he was not happy, but was reaching for acceptance. When she said the birds name she sounded like the bird, which caused Broud's mouth to drop open. "Ayla, that is not a name."

"This woman has been listening to the hawk, and that is what he says all the time. I think it is a good name."

Without realizing it, the man was engaging in a debate with the woman, and it did not seem to bother him. Grov and Oga watched from the side, looking back and forth. "We cannot sound like a hawk Ayla. You need to come up with something else."

Ayla thought for a moment, realizing that the whole hearth was watching them. She tried to form the loud bird sound into a spoken word. "How about Shriek?"

Durc said the word with no problem, and Grov repeated it after the boy. Then Ora piped in and said, "Shreeeek!" She liked the word sound game. Everyone else attempted the name, but just could not pronounce the sound. All they could manage was Seek.

Ayla nodded, thinking that that was okay with her. She would _call _him with bird sounds, and refer to him as Shriek. And then, the mixed clan people could say Shriek, and the clan could at least say Seek. Ayla decided that the bird would not care. "I think Shriek suits him fine. I think it is a good name."

Broud shrugged his shoulders, still thinking the woman was strange for naming a bird, but not wanting to discuss it any further. "Are we going to Brun's hearth or not," he asked changing the subject?

Ayla put Shriek back in his enclosure, gave him some food, and then picked up Ora. "Okay, this woman is ready."

As they left the hearth, Grov said, "Do you want me to take Ora from you Ayla? She must be getting heavy."

"This woman can carry her if Oga will carry the food," Ayla said handing the platter of food to Oga.

When they arrived at Brun's hearth, Ebra made a big deal about welcoming them to the hearth. She first offered a drink to the three men, then hugged both Oga and Ayla, and finally acknowledged each child separately. Brun was shaking his head, thinking that his mate was acting as though they had never been there before. Ayla too was wondering what was wrong with Ebra, but decided to question the woman about it later.

When the people were settled on mats around the fire, Ebra, Oga and Ayla served the men their evening meal. Ebra was thrilled that Oga and Ayla had brought a contribution to the meal even though she had said that she would do it all. Brun noticed this as well and thought they were a credit to Grov's hearth.

As they ate, the men informally discussed the coming hunt. Brun informed them that he had seen bison in the valley just beyond their territory, and that he had decided to hunt them.

Grov nodded, thinking that a bison hunt was a great idea. They had not had bison in a long time. "Bison is good meat. I would like to have some bison stew," he said, knowing that his mate was watching the men as they discussed her favorite topic.

Broud was finishing up his plate of food, and was happier than he had been in many moon cycles. The only thing that would make him happier, he thought, was to have his mate back.

"At the men's meeting we will discuss what women will be coming with us on the hunt. I am thinking that neither of your women should go, Grov, since they are both pregnant." Broud frowned at Brun's wording, but tried to relax. "But I don't know what to do about bringing a medicine woman along. Uba cannot go either since she has two new sons to care for."

Grov looked at Broud's expression, and thought for a moment. "I think we should bring Oga. Broud will need _his_ woman there, _and_she is not that big yet. As for Ayla…she is a better choice than taking Uba away from her new sons, or having no medicine woman to heal the men if necessary. Besides, I'm sure Ayla would want to be there," he concluded looking over at his mate.

Brun was nodding, thinking once again that the mixed man was very logical. Broud was happy too, because Grov was making suggestions that would benefit him. Neither man missed that Grov had referred to Oga as Broud's woman, if not his mate. This got Brun thinking…what was he to do with the unmated pregnant woman? The leader looked over at the women. Ebra and Oga were engrossed in conversation, and Ayla was rudely staring over at the men. Brun had learned from Grov that women of the others hunted all the time, and he was finally beginning to understand that Ayla was truly one of the others, but she should control her staring, he thought.

"Ayla!" Brun snapped. "Do you need something?"

Ayla blushed, feeling embarrassed that she had been staring. "No Brun, this woman apologizes for staring at the men. I was just interested in your conversation." She looked down and started to turn away.

"Ayla," Brun said again. "Do you think you and Oga are fit to go on the hunt?"

Ayla glanced at Grov and Broud and considered the question. "This woman thinks so, but I don't know if we could be of that much use. We can butcher meat, and clean hides and skins. We can care for our men, and I can heal any injuries, but it would not be good if we carried heavy loads."

Brun grunted and turned back to the men. "Let's go discuss the hunt with the rest of the men," he said getting up. Grov and Broud got up as well, and as they walked back to the men's cave, the other men of the clan followed suit.

**XxX**

**The Men's Meeting**

When the men left, Brac asked to go off and find Nouz and Vorg. He was very interested in learning from the young man Nouz, and Vorg, though mixed had become a good friend. The women allowed the boy to leave the hearth.

Grev and Durc played just outside the hearth's boundary, and Ora fussed but lay on Ayla's lap while the women talked. As the women continued, Ayla steered the conversation toward Ebra's behavior.

"Ebra, this woman would know why you are fussing so much."

Ebra tried to evade the question by saying, "can't a mother take care of her family?"

Ayla and Oga narrowed their eyes. "Ebra, Oga and I have been pregnant before. We love that you want to take care of us, but it is not necessary." Oga was nodding her agreement.

Ebra got up to get more tea. When she sat back down she changed the subject. "So, this woman has heard that you have named the hawk…but I cannot say the name correctly."

Ayla glanced at Oga, both women decided to let Ebra drop the subject of her behavior. "Yes, his name is Shriek."

"Sseeeek," was as close as the woman could come, but the mention of the bird got Ora's attention.

"Shreeeek, Ebra, it's Shreeeek," the child said, over pronouncing the hawk's name. Ebra just shook her head.

In the men's cave the conversation had only one topic; who would go on the spring hunt. Some of course could not go.

"I have decided that we will hunt bison. Just a few days ago a herd was spotted by Corg and Norv in the valley just beyond our usual territory. We will set out in this many days," he gestured, holding up two fingers. "Now, we need to discuss who is going on the hunt, and who will stay behind. I have already decided that Grov and Broud are going. _And_, that Brac and Vorg will come, but not to hunt. Therefore I think Dorg should definitely go too. Is there anyone that would prefer to be left behind?"

Zoug, Droog, Goov and Vorn raised their hands. "Zoug would speak, Brun."

"Zoug may speak."

"I am too old to go hunting, but not to old to stay behind to defend the cave."

"Yes Zoug, you are the perfect defense for our women and children. You may stay." Then turning toward the other men. Droog?"

"I would like to stay behind and work with Groob on his hunting skills. The boy will soon be a man, and I would like him to be ready for his manhood hunt."

Brun was nodding, and looked over at the Goov and Vorn. "I don't suppose your wanting to remain behind has anything to do with the two new sons at your hearths?"

Both men nodded in agreement, and Brun agreed to let them stay behind. "Okay, what about the women? Ebra will go of course." That much they all knew. The leader seldom left his mate behind if he could help it. "We are taking Ayla. We may need a medicine woman and Uba is indisposed at the moment. And Oga will go," Brun said without giving explanation. "Who else?"

"Grod would speak, Brun."

"Grod may speak."

"I think Uka would prefer to stay behind, and care for children. She is not fond of extended hunting trips."

"That is fine Grod. I am sure Ebra would be happy to serve her sister's mate along with me. Crug?"

"Ika will go," he said, not wanting to rely on another man's mate to serve him.

Brun nodded, "Dorg?"

"I think Uga would rather stay at the cave, and I can use Daub's mate if I need to," he said looking at his brother.

Daub was nodding, "Eka will gladly go, if someone will care for the twins.

Grod brightened, "I am sure Uka would be happy to do that for Eka."

Brun was pleased with how accommodating his hunters were being. "Corg?"

"We will need many hands to carry the meat back…Aza will come with us."

Brun skipped over Daub since they had already heard from him. "Norv?"

Norv also did not want to rely on another man's mate. "Oda will come with us, but she will worry about Ura, and I do not want to bring Nala."

"Borg would speak, Brun."

"Borg may speak."

"Ona can stay to help care for the children. I'm sure she would be happy to do that."

Brun nodded. "Okay, we will take Brac and Vorg on the hunt, but we will also take Igra since she is a woman, and Orga, since she will be soon. What about the other children," he said turning to Grov who had his hand raised, "Grov?"

"Since Uga is staying, Ayla will leave Ora with her so she can nurse the child, but I think Grev and Durc should come with us."

Broud was nodding. "Oga will be worried about having Brac out with the men. It may help to have someone to focus on."

"Okay Grov and Broud, the boys may go."

"Dorg would speak, Brun."

"Dorg may speak."

"If Grev and Durc will go, then Breg will want to go…but without his mother there to make sure he behaves, it may not be a good idea."

"I am sure Ayla and Oga would be happy to keep an eye on him, Dorg," Broud spoke out.

Then Crug's hand went up again. "Crug would speak."

"Crug may speak."

Since Ika and Igra are going, Dorv will go. Ika will need to nurse him.

Brun nodded. "Okay, the rest of the children stay. Does anyone else have anything to add?" Brun looked around to see all fourteen men shaking their heads. He gave a final nod and dismissed the men.

As the men were leaving, Brun thought of something else. "Broud," he said, and waited for the son of his mate to join him. "I need to talk to you."

**Those Going on the Hunt**

Brun and Ebra  
>Grod<br>Grov, Ayla and Durc  
>Broud, Oga, Brac, Grev<br>Crug, Ika, Igra and Dorv  
>Dorg, Vorg and Breg<br>Corg, Aza and Orga  
>Daub and Eka<br>Norv and Oda  
>Borg<br>Nouz

**Those Staying at the Cave**

Zoug  
>Droog, Aga, Groob and Aba<br>Goov, Ovra, Droov and Creb  
>Vorn, Uba, Brev and Berc<br>-~- Uka, caring for Ada and Aka  
>-~- Uga, caring for Ora and Egra<br>-~- Ona, caring for Ura and Nala

**XxX**

**Brac's Decision**

Broud frowned, wondering what Brun wanted, and thinking he had done something wrong again. "Yes Brun," he said questioningly when all the men, with the exception of Goov, had left the room.

"Broud, I am wondering if Brac has considered a mate for himself."

Broud sighed audibly, glad that he was not in trouble. "I do not know Brun. I guess Igra is the only unmated woman. I was going to mate Brac to her."

"Yes, I would have too, but now we have more people to consider. Brac is not a man yet, but Nouz is. However, if Brac wants her, then I will put off mating Nouz until there is another woman to give to him."

Broud was nodding. "I think we would have to talk to Brac, because I am not sure. If you want me to guess, I would say he is not interested in Igra now that there are other girls here."

The leader considered the words of Ebra's son. "Bring him to me, and we will discuss it with the boy." Broud gave a clipped nod and left.

Broud went first to Brun's hearth, but was informed that the boy was somewhere with Nouz and Vorg. Broud went first to Norv's hearth, but the boys weren't there. Then he went to Dorg's hearth, but only Vorg was there. "I think they playing in one of the empty hearths in the back of the cave," Dorg informed him.

Broud started off for that part of the cave and found the young boys playing hearths with Igra and Orga. Boys usually felt this game beneath them when they became men, such as Nouz had, or even when they were close to manhood, like Brac was, but it appeared that they were doing more than just playing. Broud smirked at Oga's oldest son as he entered the hearth, and seeing him behind Orga, pumping away he thought to himself, well, I guess we know which girl Brac wants.

When Brac realized that Broud was standing there he was almost finished. Broud signaled him to finish, and walked out of the hearth to wait. Brac finished and left his friends to join Broud in the passageway. "This boy apologizes for not knowing you were here."

Broud waved his hand dismissively, secretly proud of Oga's son for coming into his own. "I am only here, because Brun wants to talk to you. Actually, it's about this very topic."

Brac frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Come one Brac. Let's go see the leader."

When Brac realized they were heading for the men's cave, he became excited; he had never been in the men's cave before.

Within the men's cave Brun and Goov sat by the fire waiting patiently. The Mog-ur wanted to know what the boy's choice would be as well, since he would be doing the ceremony.

When Broud returned with Brac, the boy looked scared and awed at the same time. He was scared that he was being summoned by the leader, and apparently the Mog-ur as well, but awed that he was being allowed to enter the men's cave before he was a man.

"Brac, please sit down," Brun gestured to the boy. Brac came in and sat as he was instructed. Broud sat down next to him.

Goov looked at the boy. "Do you know why you are here?" Brac shook his head, with wide eyes.

Brun looked on with humor in his eyes. "Relax boy, you are not in trouble. We just want to know if you have any interest in Igra. She has been a woman for a while, and you will soon be a man. As the son of the mate of the son of my mate, I want to make sure you have the woman you want. You are lucky there; not many others would be asked."

Comprehension finally crossed Brac's face. "This boy is not interested in Igra...but Nouz is."

The men all looked at each other, and then Brun turned back to the boy. "You do realize that another woman may not come available for quite some time? The next oldest girl is Orga, and she is only one season past her weaning year."

Brac was nodding. "I would be willing to wait for Orga. She is the one I want to mate."

Brun gave a nod to the Mog-ur, who left promptly, and then looked back at Brac. "You can go back to whatever you were doing." Brac glanced at Broud, and then ran off to join his friends and their activities.

The two men watched the boy go. Brun was glad the boy had made things easy on him. Now he wouldn't have to worry about mating Nouz. "He might have to wait a while for that one."

Broud smirked again, and relayed the story of finding Oga's son deeply embedded in Orga. If Brun could have laughed he would have. "Ahhh, to be young again."

The two men left the men's cave, and returned to the Brun's hearth. The women were still talking. Those woman sure can talk, the leader thought. When Ebra saw Brun enter the hearth, she jumped up and began fussing over him, much to his annoyance. "Ebra! What are you doing? What is wrong with you? Just get me tea, and go back to the women."

Flustered, Ebra did as she was bid and went back to the women's discussions.

Ora, who had been dozing on Ayla's lap, heard Brun's voice and woke up. When she saw Broud, she struggled to get up. "Want Broud," she gestured to Ayla, who was busy with the women and didn't pay attention to what the girl wanted, and let her get up.

Ora toddled over to the men, and seeing her coming Broud scowled. "Ora want sit on _Broud's _lap."

Broud looked over at Ayla, who had her back to him, and then signaled that the child could sit down. She did so with a huge grin on her face, and proceeded to play with the hair on the man's arm, and promptly fell asleep in the man's arms.

Brun watched the son of his mate, wondering who this man sitting with him was. Certainly this was not the man that hated Ayla with a passion. What was going on in the western section of his cave?

The night ended shortly afterward when Grov came to collect the women and children. Broud was going to stay, but didn't want Oga to go back with Grov, without him, so he too got up to go.

Ayla expressed her pleasure at eating at the leader's hearth, which Brun dismissed, but was pleased to hear to hear the woman's compliment. Ebra hugged the two women, which caused them to look at her strangely, wondering what was up. "Are you sure you have nothing to tell me, Ebra," Ayla asked secretly?

Ebra looked completely unaware of what the woman was talking about, and shook her head. Ayla eyed her suspiciously, but figured Ebra would tell her if there was something going on. "We are going now," Ayla said, and then followed her mate out of the leader's hearth.

**XxX**

**Extended Hunt – Day One**

The few days went by rapidly, and soon it was dawn on the day that more than half the cave would leave on the spring hunt. Brun had ordered that everyone meet outside the main entrance shortly after daybreak, so that was where everyone was. The ones that were not going carried supplies and packs for those that were leaving.

Tensions were high, but everyone was also excited about the change. Those staying behind knew it would be lonely with many relatives gone, but also easier and more relaxed. Those going on the hunt were looking forward to some time away, and the change of pace. It would be hard work, but they were looking forward to it all the same.

Brun and Grod lined up in front as they always did, with the first medicine woman behind them. The rest of the woman, carrying children and the clan's belongings, came behind Ayla, while the men flanked them for protection. It was travel as usual.

Uga brought Ora, who was crying hysterically, to Grov and Ayla for a last goodbye, and Ayla could hardly stand the child's cries. "Ora, mama will be back very soon," she said taking the child from Uga and crushing her in a big hug. Grov put his arms around both the woman and the child, and shushed their tears. When Uga took the child back she offered her a breast to quell the child's sobs. Ayla knew she could not take her for she could not offer the child a breast, not yet. Uga then went to her son, Breg, and reminded him to listen to the women.

The only other upset was Ada and Aka, who had never been separated from their mother before, but they were quickly distracted from the departing people by the promise of playing with friends; Egra and Ura were not upset about the separation, and were waiting to play with the twins.

When Brun finally gave to signal to start out, Ayla was relieved to be on their way; the goodbye was just too painful. As they disappeared around a bend, Shriek flew out of the cave, located his trainer, shrieked in true Shriek fashion, and swooped down, landing on the woman's outstretched arm, which she had quickly covered to protect herself from the bird's talons

Ayla had wanted to take him, but figured that since he could fly again, he would be okay if she left him. She was wrong. He had no intention of letting her out of his sight, and Ayla was glad.

Brun spent the first day walking at a steady pace. He wanted to get to the valley in no more than three days, so that they could set up a camp, and wait patiently for the bison. He knew that the bison would go to that valley, because the scouts had seen them passing through. His only concern was that they would have to leave clan territory to do their hunting. He decided it was worth the risk to have bison meat.

The people fell into a routine rather quickly. It was as if they hadn't stopped traveling even though they had been settled in their cave for two hands of moon cycles. Ayla was thrilled to be out and about again. She had always loved going on the extended hunting trips, though the clan didn't go on them much. She collected a massive variety of plant life, and contributed greatly to the evening meal that night. Grov was becoming more and more aware of how much his mate actually knew about plants.

Ayla truly loved her forays, but tried to include whoever wanted to learn to gather as well; it became a lesson that lasted all day. Oga helped the woman carry all that they gathered while Ayla explained the finer points of each item to the interested women. Aza, Eka and Oda helped as well impressed by the woman's knowledge, but it was Igra and Orga that were most adept at finding and identifying the different plants.

The first night, they set up tents, but spend a considerable time out under the stars, enjoying the fire and meal. For a people that did not adjust to change well, they would appear to be quite content with the different scene.

Ayla had slipped away to put Durc to bed before the storytelling began, as did all the women with their own children, but all returned quickly to enjoy the stories. When Ayla returned Grov motioned that she should sit close to him. She sat down between his legs and leaned against his chest, and relaxed completely. The man wrapped his arms around her, and rubbed her growing stomach. Several thought it odd that he did this, some even considered it rude, but the man did not care; he was very happy.

The strangest part was that Broud did the same thing to Oga, who was shocked by his actions, but melted as soon as the man touched her. Brun could tell Broud was learning from being at Grov's hearth, but he wondered about the behavior; it was very unclan-like, which made him uneasy.

During the storytelling, Nouz signaled Igra to his tent. The young woman looked positively pleased that the man had been enticed so easily.

After they left, Daub decided to turn in, but signaled Eka to go to Dorg's tent. Daub knew his older brother would be lonely without his mate. Dorg was seldom without Uga since the earthquake.

After the meal and stories, the people that had not already gone to bed went with their respective mates, or alone, to their tents; exhausted from the day of travel. It had been a long day.

Back at the cave, everyone was turning in as well. Droog had had a successful lesson with Groob, who had been upset at first to learn that he would stay behind, but was now happy to have had the time with his mother's mate. It was good to have some time alone with the man of your hearth, the young boy thought after the day's hunting.

**XxX**

**Extended Hunt – Day Two**

On the second day of travel Brun's clan rose early and the women packed. The clan assumed their positions, and started off without preamble. Only Ayla and Oga were without heavy burdens, though they did carry plenty, _and_they did their best to herd wayward children.

Ayla decided to work on training her bird while they traveled, much to the amusement of many. Some shook their heads that she would even try, but all watched with rapt attention.

As she walked along, never missing a step, she held out her arm, gave it a subtle shake, indicating to the bird that he should fly away. Then, when he had lifted off, and was soaring high above, she would pull out a piece of fresh meat, and shriek a call out to him. It did not take him but few tries, before he figured out the drill, and came to his savior. From then on out Shriek usually came quickly, though he was enjoying his renewed ability to fly. During that whole day, he began to fly off on his own, but never let the woman out of his sight.

The people were amazed that the woman could control the animal so easily, but none more than Brun. Brun wondered about what other things this woman could and would do in the future. _Future_, he thought, and then wondered why he would be thinking about what lay beyond the immediate here and now.

That was an odd concept, for the clan did not usually think about the future in the sense that the others did. They thought about the coming winter, by storing the necessary food to get them through, and a leader had to consider who would mate whom, but that too was necessity, without doing this they would die off, but beyond this, they had no concept.

Without meaning to, Brun's large clan brain was adapting and changing. After ten seasons with the woman of the others, he had learned that life was full of changing. It had been hard, and still would be for everyone, but Brun knew back in the deep reaches of his brain that it would be necessary to survive; if only for a short time.

That evening was not much unlike the previous evening, with the exception of a few sleeping arrangements. Eka slept with her mate that night, while Grod had asked for and received permission to signal Ika, and Borg signaled Igra.

**XxX**

**Extended Hunt – Day Three**

The third day began early with a warm wind that was not typical of spring. It blew into their faces, making Brun a little nervous thinking that something was wrong, but they continued their journey. As they walked, the prairie grasses became longer and longer until the people could no longer see over them. This did not help to calm Brun down, but Corg assured the leader that they were heading in the right direction.

The people walked on and on, listening to the sound of the warm spring wind, which had become a breeze, as it blew through the grasses. It was rather calming, Ayla decided, and glanced up at Brun. He too looked more relaxed, she thought. The only other sound was sounds of the people crunching the grasses, and that of Shriek as he squawked high above their heads.

By late afternoon they had reached the valley that had been their destination, and Brun called a halt. The prairie grass that littered the valley floor was much shorter; about knee high, which make visibility better for all. Far off in the distance, many large animals could be seen. They knew that it was a herd of bison, but they were too far away to see what the make up of the herd was. Good thing we are down wind, Brun thought.

As the women set up camp, the children played, and the men left to scout the area and decide on the best approach. It appeared that the bison had nowhere to run, for the valley seemed to be enclosed. The hunt would be the next morning. The men would set out early, and with luck, would be back before the evening meal.

Ayla was pleased with the hunting location, for she would be able to watch it, if only from their far off vantage point. She knew she would not be able to participate, only in part due to her pregnancy and her means of hunting. A sling would not kill a full-grown bison. But mostly, she knew that she would not be _allowed _to go on the hunt, due to her gender, but she still craved to see every bit of it that she could.

The woman finished her work, and then began to scan the area looking for the best place to watch the hunters. When she found it, she sat there for a while with Shriek listening to the breeze and enjoying the movement within her body. Not much longer, she thought to herself. I will be holding another baby very soon, she smiled to herself.

When the men returned Grov noticed his mate sitting alone on the hillside, so he went to her.

"Ayla, what are you doing?"

Ayla looked up at the man and smiled. "I am just enjoying the day, thinking about our baby, and wishing that I could go on the hunt."

Grov knew she might be thinking about the hunt. It was, after all, her favorite pastime. "I know Ayla, but even if it was possible, Brun would never allow it…and it's not possible right now anyway. You have something far more important to do; protect the baby." The man knelt down beside her and put his hands on her belly, and kissed her lips tenderly. Ayla kissed back passionately, then smiled at her mate.

"Yes Grov, and this woman is so happy to be having _your_ baby." The two of them sat there for some time watching the bison off in the distance, and the people below them, before returning to the encampment.

**XxX**

**Danger**

The next morning came very early. The women got up to serve the men their morning tea, but that was all; the men would not have a meal. The men, and the two boys, Brac and Vorg, sat by the fire, drinking their tea, then got up silently and left the women alone. This part made the women very nervous, but there was no other way. Ebra was left in charge, and Brun knew that Ayla would be the women's only protection. He had considered leaving a man behind, but didn't do it. Ayla would do fine. She could chase off many animals with her sling, and their fire and movement would keep many others away.

Ayla watched the backs of the retreating men still wishing she could go. _But_, knowing that it was not to be, she sighed, and then joined the women in the making of a morning meal. Where the men thought it better to fast before a hunt, the women and children were under no such restriction; they would eat heartily, and have food waiting when the exhausted men returned.

Some women worked together on the meal, while others gathered for later. Ika had been cooking when her two-year-old son, Dorv, began to fuss, so Igra under Oda's watchful eye, took over for her. Ika was nursing her son when the meal was ready, so Ayla prepared a plate of food for the woman. The other women, and the three young boys, sat with Ika in a semicircle around the fire, enjoying the calm of the morning.

The women didn't have much to do. Some cleaned up from the meal, while others went back to their gathering. Ebra sat down with Ika, who was working on weaving a new cooking pot, and showing her daughter the finer points of her intricate basket design. Ebra had just picked some of the heavy prairie grass, and wanted to make a large, shallow platter.

Time passed quickly as the women happily conversed and worked together. Soon it was time for their afternoon meal, which went about the same as the morning meal.

When the meal was done, Ayla wanted to go up on the hillside to watch the far off hunt, but decided to take the three young boys. "Durc, Grev and Breg," she called. "Come with the Woman Who Hunts. This woman wants to do something with you."

The young boys were excited to be going up the hill with the Woman Who Hunts. They knew she would not have called herself that if she wanted them to do something that was not hunting related, and it got them out of cleaning up after the meal.

Ayla and the boys hiked up the hill, and sat down. Ayla had not expected the men to be so close to the beast already, but they were there, and apparently the hunt had started. Ayla could see one downed beast, and pointed it out to the boys.

"See Grev," she said, recognizing that it was Broud's form that she could see hovering over the dead animal. "Broud had made a kill. You should be very proud." Grev looked on amazed as did the other two boys.

"And look at Brac and Vorg," she said, pointing to the two boys that had been placed off to the side. "They are very close to the bison. This woman is sure they are learning a lot."

Down below, the women had continued on with the activities that they had been working on during the morning. Ika had just put Dorv down for a nap when the breeze changed directions. No one commented on the warm and dry breeze, nor did they mention the change, but all of them noticed it.

When Ayla felt the change she thought nothing of it…at first. She watched the hunt with excitement, and continued to explain what was happening to the boys. Then, for some reason, the bison stopped milling around, and began to dart off in different directions. Ayla felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end, as she watched in horror as one of the beasts ran straight for Brac and Vorg. Ayla stood up feeling helpless, realizing that the change in the wind had brought the bison their scent, and that of their fire. Brac and Vorg were off to the side of the hunt, but not far off. Ayla relaxed somewhat as she saw Grov and Brun down the animal that was about to assault the children. She took a deep breath.

Then, before she could relax fully, she saw that a few of the animals had turned and were stampeding toward them. She watched closely, and considered the size of the opening to the prairie. We should be fine, she thought. The bison have plenty of room to run by us.

It was not long before the women could feel the ground shaking under them. They could see a dust cloud, but nothing else. They were frightened, and looked up at Ayla, knowing she could see more from her perch.

"Ayla," Ebra called out questioningly?

Ayla turned to look at Brun's mate. "The bison are stampeding. They are heading for the opening to the prairie," she gesturing, then pointed toward the opening. "We should be fine, Ebra." But as Ayla turned to look back at the bison, she saw that two of the beasts had veered off from the others, and were heading directly for the women.

"EBRA," Ayla screamed, but the woman didn't look up. "EBRA," Ayla tried again, but now it was too late. The dust cloud had become enormous, the ground was shaking violently, and the bison were grunting and groaning as they madly approached what they saw as escape from certain death.

Ayla turned to look at the men. Several were already running back to their camp, then Ayla turned toward the three boys that were watching, unaware of the coming danger. "This woman wants you all to wait here. Do you understand me? DO NOT leave this hill!" The boys' eyes widened and they all nodded, wondering what was going on.

With that, the Woman Who Hunts left the hillside, hoping to get to the women before the bison did.

**XxX**

**Ayla's Transgression**

Ayla ran down the hill as fast as her pregnant body would allow. Ebra had seen the frantic woman coming, and became nervous. She had not missed the growing dust cloud. Ayla arrived with some time to spare, but gasping for breath. "The bison are coming this way," she gestured holding up two fingers and pointing. "Take the women up the hill," she ordered Brun's mate. Ebra nodded. The women were already running for the steep hillside, but as first medicine woman, Ayla would go last. She helped the women up the initial first step, which was steep, then looked behind her to make sure everyone was gone. To her dismay, Orga was still standing by one of the tents, completely terrorized by the imminent assault. Ayla had no choice but to go to the girl, despite the danger to herself.

"Orga, what are you doing," Ayla gestured when the girl focused on her? But Ayla didn't expect an answer, she just grabbed the girl and ran for the hill. Luckily Ayla looked over her shoulder in time to see that they would not make it to safety, and instead veered to the left. The two bison veered with her, and were closing in. Ayla turned again, now heading back toward the area where the woman had been only moments before. The woman circled one of the tents, considering hiding in it, but knowing that the bison could trample it easily. As one of the bison came around the tent, the other continued to run away from them. Ayla, pulling the girl with her, ran around the tent again. Ayla and Orga were heaving with exhaustion; the two could not last much longer, but then Ayla saw something across the camp, and had an idea.

As the frightened and angry bison came around again, the two frightened people dodged, and when they came to the tent opening, Ayla quickly shoved the child inside and kept up the chase. The bison had not seen her hide the child, nor would he have cared; he chased after the movement.

When Ayla rounded the tent for the fifth time, she darted toward the fire, and the object she had spotted; a lonely spear that the men had left behind. She did not hesitate to pick up the hunting weapon; it was her only chance. Ayla adjusted the weapon so that she was holding it as she had observed the men holding theirs, and in the next instant, the woman was thrusting the spear into the bison's angry, bloodshot eye. The spear pierced the eye with a popping sound, and entered the animal's brain, causing the beast to topple before her.

Ayla had blood all over her hands, and there was a stripe of blood that ran down her face, onto her wrap, and down her leg. The bison had definitely marked her as the hunter of the kill.

When the woman noticed that both of her hands were still on the spear, she removed one hand, and grabbed her amulet, sending thanks to her totem that the bison had not been charging, but had instead been coming at her with slow exhaustion. She knew that that was all that had saved her from having the animal land right on top of her.

The woman was shaking, and realized she was using the spear to hold herself up. She feared that without it she would have fallen. Then, she began to comprehend what she had done, and she paled. Oh no, not again, she thought. She looked over at the women, they were all staring at her with wide, disbelieving eyes. Oh no, I have saved myself only to be death cursed. I should have let him kill me.

Ayla felt the blood in her veins and in her heart pumping wildly. She was shaking violently with fear and loneliness, and her eyes were becoming unfocused. She was beginning to feel light headed and dizzy, and then she felt nothing as she slipped to the ground unconscious, one hand on her amulet, and the other hand still tightly gripping the spear.

**XxX**

**Back In Order**

The women had watched the battle rage before them, and all were stunned that the great beast had not gored the Woman Who Hunts. They had watched her protect the child, they had watched her give chase, they had as she hid the girl, and they had audibly gasped as she grabbed the hunting weapon. Now they stared at her, covered in blood and sinking to the ground. They all continued to stare.

Durc was the one to recover first. "Mama! Ebra, we have to help Mama."

Ebra shook her head, as if to dispel the scene from her mind, and she saw the fear in the boy's eyes. "I will go. Everyone else stay here."

The leader's mate crept down the hill, and jumped down the steepest part with ease, and went to the crumpled woman. Orga had come out of the tent, and was gawking at the spectacle before her. Ebra quickly went to the downed woman. Ayla lay on her back, but had fallen into the bison, so she was slightly propped up. Ebra knelt down beside her and put her ear to the woman's mouth. She breathes, Ebra sighed, but she's covered in blood.

Ebra looked the woman over, she turned the Ayla's head from side to side. No cuts, no injury. She looked at her arms; no injury there either. The leader's mate gingerly touched Ayla swollen belly, and felt the baby kick violently within her. The baby is okay, she thought, thank Ursus. Then she ran her hands along each of the woman's legs, finding nothing of concern. When she did not see any injury she decided that the blood belonged to the bison.

Then Ebra noticed that Ayla's hand still clutched both her amulet and the spear. She tried to pull Ayla hand off the spear, but the woman's grip tightened as she pulled, and Ebra did not want to touch the spear to remove the woman's hand.

Ebra turned to the child, "Orga, get water!" Then she looked up at the women and gestured to them. "I think it is safe, and I need some help."

Aza came to help Orga with the water, and Ika joined Ebra. "She has fainted, but she will be live. . . at least until the men return and Brun curses her." Ebra was distraught over the thought of losing Ayla to the spirits.

Ika put her hand on Ebra. "Just wait and see Ebra. Let's get her cleaned up first." As Ika was saying this, Grov came running up completely winded from the long run. Ebra gasped to see him standing there staring at them.

As he knelt down beside Ayla, he turned to the women, and demanded to know what happened, even though it was plainly and painfully obvious as to what had happened. Ebra was so frightened that they could not even answer the man.

Eka came up behind him, and told the man the story of how Ayla had come and saved them all; she had gone back for Orga, who had not run to the hill. She had hid the child in the tent. She had made the bison tired by running it around, and then Eka told him how Ayla had finally killed the bison with the spear.

Grov looked back at his woman, who lay peacefully against the dead bison, then looked up to see Brun, Daub and Norv running toward them. Grov feared what would happen to her, since she had touched the weapon, but right now he just wanted to help her. He reached out and prided her hand off the spear, gathered the woman into his arms and held her as if she were a baby.

Brun approached and Ebra told him the story, flinching as she told the part about the spear. Brun frowned. "She killed the bison all by herself?" Ebra nodded as he looked at the dead animal.

He turned to Daub and Norv. "Look at this kill. She stuck the spear right into the bison's eye. That is a very difficult target."

Daub looked at the spear. "Yes, a very difficult target, but the best one for certain death. She could have gone for somewhere else, and easier place to hit, but that would have angered the beast had she been unsuccessful. She made the right choice." Brun was nodding.

Norv was watching the three men. One was holding the unconscious woman with watering eyes, and the other two were discussing the merits of her hunting. "Who cares if she made a good kill. She is a woman who used a hunting weapon. It is bad enough that she is allowed to hunt with a sling. She should be cursed for this."

Brun looked at the young man. "Yes Norv, that _is _the custom, but we sometimes have to consider other things. The spirits do not like to see Ayla punished so severely. She has been death cursed twice before. The first time it was temporary, she came back to us, and the spirits did not object. The second time she was cursed the earthquake that destroyed all of our caves came. The spirits were not happy that she was cursed. I will not unsettle them or us again.

I also have to consider other people. This woman has a mate and two children, _and_a baby on the way. Ebra says the baby is fine, so I cannot condemn a pregnant woman. That would condemn her child, and possibly her family."

Norv's face had turned red at the leader's words. This clan was so different for the one they had lived with. His previous leader would not have hesitated in cursing a woman who touched a weapon. . . but then his previous leader would not have had to, no woman would have touched one.

In just a short time, the women had all come back down, and started getting things back in order. After they had everything picked up, three of them worked on a meal, while three of them butchered the bison, which Brun had deemed they would keep, and Ebra and Ika began to wash to woman up.

When Ebra touched the wet cloth to Ayla's face, she groaned and her eyes flickered open. She stared around her, and realized she was in Grov's arms, and that Ebra and Ika were there with her. She began to cry knowing the consequences for what she had just done.

Ebra shooshed her, and continued to clean her up. "Ayla, just relax. No one is going to curse you yet. Please just let this woman clean you up."

Ayla nodded, stifled a sob and closed her eyes. Then her eyes flew open again. "What about my baby? If I am cursed, I cannot take care of my baby alone."

"Ayla," Ebra said sternly. "You need to relax. Right now your baby is fine."

Grov squeezed her and kissed her forehead. "I will go talk to Brun, Ayla." He eased her to the ground, where she sat up on her own.

"I think I should just go rinse off in the river. It is not too far," she said looking at the water wistfully.

Ebra nodded, "I will go with you."

As the two women got up to leave, Shriek took off and followed. He had been perched on top of one of the tents watching, but now that she was up, so was he.

Grov was nervous as well. He had already decided that he would leave with Ayla if she was cursed, but he didn't think she would be. She would most definitely be punished, but not cursed. He approached the leader.

"I see that your mate has woken up," Brun started off before he could even sit down.

"Yes, she has, but she is very nervous."

Brun was considering the dilemma he was in. He couldn't curse her, but he couldn't just do nothing, and he couldn't even curse her temporarily; she might give birth during the temporary curse and die. The leader remembered the birth of Durc; no, she could not be alone for that.

"Tell her that she will not be cursed. I will now endanger the clan or her family with a curse. I will have to talk to Mog-ur though, before I can know what to do. Tell her also that I do understand she had no choice."

Grov looked at the leader, whom he considered a wise man, and nodded.

It was evening before the rest of the hunters arrived back at the camp. They had had a heavy load to carry back, and two less men to do the job. As they set the beasts down, and came up to the fire, the women brought water. Brun had ordered no gossip, so the men wondered about the butchered bison, hoping the leader would fill them in soon.

**XxX**

**Shriek's Discovery**

The rest of that day, and a few days afterward, were filled with work for the women. The men had done the hunting, now it was time for the women to butcher the dead bison. As some women worked on the butchering, others quickly constructed racks to hang up the meat, which were situated by the fires. Grod started several fires for the women's purposes.

Ayla and Oga were in charge of hanging the meat up, as it was the easier of the two jobs, but Brun had let them know that they should also service all of the men's needs as well, so the other women would not have to stop what they were doing to bring water, and such.

Oga was a little apprehensive of Ayla to start off, considering the incident that had just happened, but both the women were happy that they could work together; they had become extremely close during their time living in the same hearth. Ayla too was nervous, but with each passing day she relaxed more. Brun still had not spoken to her about what had happened, but he did not appear angry, just pensive.

Brun watched the two women as they worked, and was pleased that the two of them had finally found friendship. Ayla was a strange looking woman, but she was a good woman, despite the things she did that were unclan like. Had she not been one of the others, they would be short several members: Ona, Brac, Ebra, Oga, and now Orga. Who had he missed? Broud? She had definitely saved the son of his mate, though not from death.

After days of butchering and drying, the bison were picked clean, and the meat was ready to be stored. Brun noticed that they had more meat than one hand full of women could carry. Ayla and Oga could only carry limited loads, and Ika had to carry Dorv. Brun didn't know what to do. It was Grov who suggested that the men help. Brun's sense of propriety was offended by the idea of doing woman's work, but he also did not want to loose what they had worked so hard for. Each person, including the six children, were instructed to prepare a pack of meat. The men balked at first, but a sharp look from their leader set their hands on the task.

As they lined up to leave, Brun looked at his people; no one was _heavily _burdened. This is a good idea, he thought. The women are no so weighted down, so they will not slow us down. The man wondered why he had not thought of this before.

The trek back to the cave started off as a happy one. The people were tired, but pleased that they had secured so much meat. No one made mention of Ayla's transgression, and she soon let it slip from her mind, though not completely.

Toward the evening on the first day of travel, Shriek suddenly took flight. Ayla tried to call him back, but the bird was unresponsive. They had been walked through the tall grasses most the majority of the day, and Ayla could not see where the bird had gone. Then, just as suddenly as the bird had left, he appeared over the people again, and true to his name he shrieked loudly. Ayla did not know what was wrong with him. She called him again, but he flew away.

Brun could see that the hawk was agitated, and it made him nervous. "Ayla," the leader called.

Ayla went to the leader and kneeled at his feet, and when he tapped her shoulder, he immediately asked, "What is wrong with that bird?"

Ayla frowned up at him, "This woman does not know Brun." Shriek shrieked again, and was hovering over them. Ayla held out her arm and the raptor landed on it, shrieking loudly in her face. Then he took off. "I think he wants me to follow him."

Brun nodded in agreement. "Take Grov with you, and Broud. The rest of us will make camp here for the night."

Ayla got up and went to Grov first to tell him what Brun had instructed her to do. Then she went and kneeled at Broud's feet. Broud knew that something was up, but did not know what and was very curious. He tapped the woman's shoulder.

"Brun is allowing me to go see what all the squawking is about, and he wants you and Grov to go with me." Broud grunted acceptance, and pulled out his spear. Shriek appeared over them again, and called out urgently.

The three people followed the bird for what seemed like a long time, when finally they began to hear a whimpering sound. Ayla was very curious as to what it could be, but as they got closer, it was obvious that it was the sound of a human crying. A human child of the others, Ayla thought.

They approached the sound cautiously, wading through the tall prairie grass slowly, not wanting to frighten the person, but also not wanting to interfere if there was no need to. Ayla was the first to see what lay before them.

As they parted the grass they saw a child of the others, a girl child, sobbing and crumpled over the body of a woman. The child did not see them approach.

Without haste, Ayla went to the girl, and kneeling down beside her, she lay a hand on the girl's arm. The girl sat bolt upright, and stared at the woman. The girl was blond and blue eyed, and her face was dirty and covered with tears. Ayla took out a leather towel, and wiped the child's face. "What happened here," Ayla gestured to the girl? But the girl did not respond. Ayla tried the ancient language, but that too elicited no response. The child was babbling, but Ayla did not know what she was saying.

Grov and Broud watched from behind the grass, but something made Grov step out of the grass and into the girl's view. She stared wide-eyed as the mixed man approached, and then gasped out loud when Broud came forward. She had never seen a flathead before, but she was told that they were animals.

Ayla followed the girl's eyes, and could tell that she was frightened of the men. "Grov, she does not know how to speak properly. I do not know what to do, but the woman is injured and I would like to look at her."

Grov knelt down by the woman, then looked at the girl. "You Sa-gay-ah," the man asked, pointing at the girl. When she nodded, the man smiled at her. He had heard her babbling, and had recognized the language. It was the language that Nora had spoken. Nora had given him many lessons in her language; he never thought that he would need it.

Ayla was shocked that her mate could speak to the child. "Grov, what did you say to her?"

Grov looked at his mate. "The child is from the same people that Nora was from. They are called the Sa-gay-ah."

"Sungaea," the child corrected.

Ayla looked at the girl. "Sugaya." Then shaking her head, she tried again, "Sun-gay-ah." The girl smiled.

Grov pointed to the woman. "What wrong? Where people?"

The girl began to cry again. "This is my auntie. We're lost."

Grov was struggling to remember all that Nora had taught him. Auntie. . . he knew he had heard that before, but couldn't remember what it meant. Lost. . . he did know what that meant.

"They're lost, Ayla." The woman nodded and started to look the woman over. What a strange wrap she's wearing, Ayla thought. Ayla touched the woman's skin and found that it was dry as a bone, then on closer inspection, she noticed that the was no moisture in the woman's eyes or mouth either. "She's dehydrated Grov. How can that be? The child seems to be fine, but the woman is dehydrated."

Grov just shrugged his shoulders, while Ayla examined her further. "She has a badly twisted ankle, and a bump on the head, but I am more worried about giving her water." Ayla pulled out a skin, and first offered it to the girl. The girl took it and drank heavily, then smiled at he woman. "We have to get her to drink some water, Grov. Will you try to sit her up so she does not choke?"

Grov went around the woman, and picked her up. He propped her up against his chest, tilting her head back against his chest. Ayla put the skin to the woman's parched lips, and poured gently. The water went into the woman's mouth, but then dribbled back out and onto her wrap. Ayla tried again. The same thing happened, but this time the woman licked her lips. Her eyes did not open. Ayla tried a third time, and the woman appeared to try to swallow, but chocked and coughed as the water went down her dried out throat. The woman's eyes fluttered, and she groaned, but she did not awaken.

Broud had not said or done anything; he just stood there. He could tell that the child was frightened of him. The child brought back memories; memories of when Ayla had been found. The girl appeared to be older than Ayla had been, but the resemblance was uncanny. Did all the others have yellow hair and blue eyes, he thought? He glanced at the unconscious woman; her hair was blond too, though not as light, but he could not see her eye color.

Ayla looked at the girl, and tapped her own chest, "Ayla."

The girl smiled, "Ayla." Then she tapped herself, "Braydalana."

Ayla cocked her head, and tapped the girl's chest, indicating that she wanted the girl to say her name again.

"Bray-da-la-na," the child spoke slowly, drawing out the word.

"Ba-da-la," Ayla said. That was as close as she could come on her first try. "Bra-da-la-na," Ayla said, clearly upset that she could not seem to pronounce the child's name. She tapped the girl's chest again.

"Bray-da-la-na," the child said smiling, and thinking this was a fun game.

Ayla concentrated, then made another attempt. "Brayda-lana." Ayla knew she had gotten it, and was pleased with herself. Grov tried the name, and did not have trouble. Nora had trained him to pronounce the other's words well, Ayla thought. Broud on the other hand, could not say more than Ayda, which made Ayla start thinking. . . that was very close to her own name.

After learning the girl's name, Ayla pointed to the unconscious woman. The girl understood instantly that the woman wanted her auntie's name. "Jenadoza. Jen-a-do-za," the girl articulated slowly.

This one was easier Ayla thought. "Zen-do-da."

"Ja. . . Ja. . . Jen-a-do-zza," the child said again.

Ayla smiled, "Jenadoza." She was pleased with herself, and so was the child. Again, Grov had no problem, and Broud skipped over the first part of her name altogether, and called the woman Oza.

Ayla looked at the two men. "This woman would like to take them back to the camp. It would be easier to treat the woman, Jenadoza, there. Do you have any objections?"

Grov shook his head, and they looked at Broud. Broud was struggling again, Ayla could see it. This was bringing back memories for both Ayla and Broud. Ayla didn't remember much, except that Iza had rescued her, and then cared for and loved her. Broud was thinking about all the wrongs that he thought the woman had done to him. He knew she had not meant to, but he was worried about it happening all over again.

"Broud, we can't just leave them here; they will die."

Broud nodded, then walked away. He decided that he should return to the camp to inform Brun of their findings.

Ayla smiled at the girl, then pointed at the man's retreating back, "Broud." Then Ayla touched Grov's hand, and said, "Grov."

The girl pointed toward the tall grass, which now hide the retreating man from view, and said, "Broud." Then she put one hand on Ayla and the other on Grov, and said, "Ayla, Grov." And then she smiled.

Ayla smiled as well, and so did Grov. Then Grov tried to talk to her again. "Come, camp, people."

The girl's eyes opened wide again, she was definitely frightened, and wondered what kind of people were at this camp. "People like Ayla, or people like Broud," Braydalana asked.

Grov, wasn't quite sure of what she was asking, but he thought he knew. Nora had told him that the others didn't like the clan much. What did they call us, he thought to himself? He couldn't remember.

He looked at the girl. "People. . . Broud."

The girl looked even more scared, and was shaking her head. Ayla put her hand on the girl's arm. Grov thought for a moment. "Ayla take care. Ayla, medicine. . .healer," he said, remembering the correct term."

The girl still looked apprehensive, but nodded, and stood up. Grov picked up the unconscious woman, and Ayla took Braydalana's hand, and they headed for Brun's camp.

**End of Part TWO!**

* * *

><p><strong>Post Script<strong>

As stated at the top of this page, there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is unfinished...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an unfinished story. Continue at your own risk!

Again, it took me over an hour to transfer part two from the site where I originally posted it to here (copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past...and so on), so it might be a while before I transfer parts three through ten. I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	3. Part 3

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – any large portions that appear in _italics_ are quoted directly from books and belong solely to Jean M. Auel.

And again...I apologize for the **lack of scene divisions**. They were there when I uploaded this document, I swear! **GRRR!** But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write. Fucking pisses me off!

Further, I'm going to **repeat** that, while this story is LONG, it is **unfinished**! When you get through part ten, don't say I didn't warn you!

* * *

><p><strong>After the Death Curse – Part Three (of ten)<strong>

**Hearth Listings**

**Brun** (34) – Leader (Bison totem)**  
>Ebra<strong> (32) – Brun's mate, Broud's mother

**Grod** (30) – Brun's second in command, son of the mate of Zoug (Brown Bear totem)**  
>Uka<strong> (28) – Ebra's sister, Ovra's mother**  
>~*~ Zoug<strong> (44) – second in command to the leader before Brun, Grod's mother's mate

**Goov** (21) – Mog-ur (Aurochs totem/Ursus totem)**  
>Ovra<strong> (19) – Goov's mate, childless (Beaver totem)**  
>~*~ Droov<strong> (newborn) – Ovra's first twin son**  
>~*~ Creb<strong> (newborn) – Ovra's second twin son

**Grov** (17) – mixed man, master hunter (Leopard totem), first mated to Nora (quake death)**  
>Ayla<strong> (15) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman, "Woman who hunts," (Cave Lion totem)**  
>~*~ Durc<strong> (4) – Ayla's son, Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)**  
>~*~ Ora<strong> (2) – Nora's daughter (Alpine Marmot)

**Broud** (22) – former leader (Wooly Rhinoceros totem), living at Grov's hearth**  
>Oga<strong> (18) – formerly Broud's mate, living at Grov's hearth**  
>~*~ Brac<strong> (8) – Oga's first son**  
>~*~ Grev<strong> (5) – Oga's second son

**Vorn** (14) – Aga's son**  
>Uba<strong> (9) – second medicine woman, Iza's daughter**  
>~*~ Brev<strong> (newborn) – Uba's first twin son**  
>~*~ Berc<strong> (newborn) – Uba's second twin son

**Droog** (32) – toolmaker, mated to Goov's mother before Aga**  
>Aga<strong> (25) – Droog's second mate, Vorn and Ona's mother**  
>~*~ Groob<strong> (7) – Aga's son born to Droog's hearth**  
>~*~*~ Aba<strong> (36) – Aga's mother

**Crug** (23)**  
>Ika<strong> (21) – Crug's mate, Borg's mother**  
>~*~ Igra<strong> (7) – Ika's daughter, recently a woman, unmated**  
>~*~ Dorv<strong> (2) – Ika's son

**Dorg** (21) – toolmaker (Red Tailed Hawk totem), first mated to the mixed woman Ala (quake death)**  
>Uga<strong> (17) – first mated to Dreg (quake death), was mother to Ega (quake death), now Dorg's woman (Lark totem)**  
>~*~ Vorg<strong> (8) – mixed child, Ala's son**  
>~*~ Breg<strong> (6) – Uga's son

**Corg** (18) – takes on leadership role after cave's collapse, takes on an advisory role to Brun, sibling to Oda**  
>Aza<strong> (16) – Corg's mate**  
>~*~ Orga<strong> (6) – Aza's first daughter**  
>~*~ Egra<strong> (3) – Aza's second daughter

**Daub** (18) – Dorg brother, Dreg's twin (deceased)**  
>Eka<strong> (16) – mated to Daub**  
>~*~ Ada<strong> and **Aka** (4) – Eka's twins

**Norv** (16) (Moose totem)**  
>Oda<strong> (13) – Corg's sibling, now mated to Norv (Hamster totem)**  
>~*~ Nouz<strong> (10) – son of Norv's deceased first mate, newly a man**  
>~*~ Nala<strong> (5) – daughter of Norv's deceased mate**  
>~*~ Ura<strong> (3) – mixed child, created by the totem of a man of the others (Red Wolf totem)

**Borg** (10) – (Boar totem), Ika's son**  
>Ona<strong> (10) – (Owl totem), Aga's daughter

**Recently Found Others**

**Jenadoza** (17) – Unconscious woman**  
>~*~ Braydalana<strong> (7) – Jendoza's brother's mate's daughter

**************************************************  
><strong>Braydalana Meets Brun<br>**

When Grov and Ayla returned to the area where the clan was, Ayla gasped at how much work had been done in such a short time. Brun had instructed the women to clear a large amount of space, by flattening the tall grass, set up the tents, and then get the meal started. Oga had set up the medicine woman's tent next to Broud's tent, and was preparing tea when the grass parted and the foursome step out.

Ayla grasped the little girl's hand tightly, but Braydalana was terrified by the sight of so many flatheads in one place, and managed to hide behind the woman's legs. There were so many of them, the child thought. Grov put the woman down on a mat outside Ayla's tent, and went to Brun. Ayla motioned for the girl to sit down, which the girl did, but wasn't sure how she knew what the woman wanted; the woman had not said a word. Ayla began to assess the women's condition further.

Brun watched them as they came into the clearing, and frowned at seeing the Others woman draped over Grov's shoulder. And then there was the girl. Was he going to have _another_child of the others to be responsible for? And the woman, he thought...he had heard that Ayla was rather tame in comparison to other Others women. That was what Broud had told him that Grov had said. Brun was feeling so unsure, and that was not good if he was going to continue to lead this clan.

As Grov approached the leader, Brun tried to mask his inner concern. Brun looked up when the younger man sat down. "This leader can see that you found what the bird was wanted the medicine woman to find."

Grov could tell that Brun was troubled about having more people to be responsible for, and the fact that they were others made it even worse. "Yes Brun. We found a woman and a girl...and they are of the same people that my first mate was from."

Brun frowned, "What do you mean, 'of the same people?' Aren't they all Others?"

Grov was shaking his head. "No, my first mate, Nora, said the Others divide themselves up by territory, and their languages are different, just as the each of our clans have their own everyday language. These people are Sungaea."

Brun was looking interested. "And do you know this Suga language?"

"I used to know quite a bit of it, because Nora wanted me to learn it, but it is very different than the clan's language."

Brun's was seriously thinking about these Others. "How is it different?"

"Their language is spoken."

"What do you mean, Grov. How do they say so much that way?"

Grov tried to think of a way to tell the leader, and then decided to show him. "Braydalana, come!" The child looked up, but did not move. It took Ayla's shove to get the child to move. The girl walked through the encampment of flatheads, shaking with fear. When she got to Brun and Grov she just stood there staring at both of them. Brun decided the girl was older than he first thought she was. Definitely older than Ayla had been when they found her. He could not help but think the child to be extremely rude. Didn't Others teach their children what was proper?

Using clan gestures, so that Brun would understand, Grov pointed at Brun and spoke out loud, "Brun...hed-man." Brun saw, "This man, Brun, is leader."

Braydalana looked at the 'headman' of these flatheads, and tried to smile.

Brun grunted acknowledgement to the girl, but she thought he growled at her, and she began to shake more than she had been. Brun knew the smile was natural for the child; he had seen Ayla smile often enough, but why does she stare? Grov noticed Brun's annoyance.

"Not stare man, Braydalana. Clan not like people stare." The girl did not understand the word clan, but looked at the ground; her eyes filling with tears of fear.

Grov turned toward Brun, and speaking with signs only, said, "The Others do not see our hand signs. They are capable of more speech than the clan is. This man knows some of the spoken language of the Sungaea, because of Nora, but the girl is frightened of us."

Brun could not help his interest, probably because he had experienced this situation before. He wished someone had been with their clan that could have explained these differences back when they had found Ayla. He wondered what other differences there were.

Grov looked at the girl. "Not cry. Go Ayla." Braydalana wiped her eyes, then did what she had been told to do.

Ayla had watched surreptitiously, and felt for the girl; she knew what it felt like to be surrounded by people so different, and she knew what it was like to not be able to communicate. She will have to learn to speak properly, the medicine woman thought, and, I will learn her words; if Grov can do it, then so can I.

When Ayla saw the girl coming back with tears on her face, she pulled out a cloth, wet it, and then handed it to the girl when she sat down. Braydalana took the cloth, and smiled at the woman that was helping her auntie. Ayla handed the girl a cup of water, and gestured, "water."

"Thank you," the girl said. "I am so thirsty."

Ayla wished she knew what the girl had said. She felt like she should understand her. Ayla turned back to the unconscious woman; she had managed to get the woman to drink some water even though she had not woken up. When Braydalana had finished her water, Ayla gave her a bowl of meaty broth. The girl just looked at it, so Ayla took some for herself, and began to eat. The girl put the bowl to her mouth and drank the soup. "Ummm, this is good."

Ayla did not understand the girl's words, but there was no mistaking the meaning. Ayla smiled at the child, and was rewarded by a smile in return.

When Brun and Grov were finished, Brun sent Grov to get Ayla. He wanted to talk to the medicine woman about the new visitors.

Grov came up to Ayla and sat down by the fire, "Brun wants to speak to you. I will talk to Braydalana." Ayla nodded and went to the leader. Braydalana watched the woman go, and got nervous to be left with the man.

"How you get lost," Grov asked the girl?

"Jendoza wanted to gather herbs, but she fell and bumped her head. I think she did not know where to go when she woke up."

"Is mother," Grov asked the girl?

Braydalana shook her head. "No, Jendoza is my auntie."

"What mean auntie?"

Braydalana smiled again. "Jendoza is my mother's mate's sister. We call that person aunt."

Grov frowned, trying to remember what Nora had told him. "Man have sister?"

Braydalana nodded. "Yes."

Grov continued to ask the child questions, and the more he did so the more he remembered of the Sungaea language.

"Is Ayla your mate," the girl asked? Grov nodded.

"What will happen to us," the girl asked, obviously fearful?

Grov considered the question, not really sure. "I think you come back cave, but not know. Only hed-man decide."

Ayla knelt down at Brun's feet, and waited patiently for the man to tap her shoulder. When he did, she looked up into his troubled eyes.

"So, Ayla, more surprises? This leader can see you have a patient. Is she okay?"

"This woman apologizes for bringing Others back to our camp, but the woman is injured, and the child was scared. This woman did not want to leave them alone. I have looked at the woman; she has gone without water for a couple of days, and she has twisted her ankle, and she has a bump on her head. The twist will heal, and the bump should heal. She suffers most from no water."

Brun grunted, "This man supposes you want to take them back to the cave with us?"

Ayla smiled, knowing that Brun was going to allow her to care for these people. "Yes Brun, they will both die if we leave them behind, _and_this woman would like to learn about the Others, since I am one."

Brun grunted again, he too would like to learn about the Others even though they made him nervous. "I will have a stretcher built so that we can leave in the morning. Teach that child some manners. She should not stare." Ayla nodded and followed his gaze; the girl was watching them without even trying to hide it.

**************************************************  
><strong>Relations<br>**

That evening Ayla wrapped the injured woman's ankle. It was not broken, but it was a bad sprain, so Ayla wanted it to be immobilized so she wouldn't inadvertently move it and cause more damage. With Grov's help again, Ayla gave her some pain killing medicine in the water, which the woman drank by licking it off of her parched lips. When the medicine woman was finished with her, Grov put her back down on the map, and Ayla covered her with a warm leather blanket. Ayla thought she would be just fine, but she wished the woman would wake up soon, so that she could give the woman food.

Later, after the evening meal Grov and Ayla sat down with Braydalana, and tried to explain their language of signs. It was much more easy when there was someone that could speak at least some of both languages. Ayla was happy that Grov could do this.

"Braydalana, clan speak with hands," he started out, and gestured as well for Ayla's benefit.

The girl looked confused. "What do you mean? I did not think flatheads could talk at all."

Grov had heard the word flathead before, and did not like it. "We clan, Braydalana, not flathead."

The girl blushed, knowing she had insulted the man, then asked, 'How does the clan talk with their hands?"

Grov didn't know what to say, then he held up his empty cup, and said cup, both in signs and words. The girl frowned, and slowly raised her hands to make the same motion as the man did. "Cup?"

"Yes, is right. Cup," he said again. "But we want learn Sungaea."

The little girl brightened, "I will teach you Sungaea, but I want to learn clan language too."

Grov smiled at her. "But other things you need learn too. Girl no look at man. Woman no look at man. Not unless man say okay. In hearth okay talk me, but outside look down and wait talk."

Braydalana frowned at the man. "But why?"

"Is clan way. Not make leader angry. We call hed-man leader."

The girl nodded. "Who is headwoman?"

Grov knew about this too. "Clan not have hed-woman. Only man lead."

Braydalana held up the cup again, and said, "cup," and Grov and Ayla repeated her. When Durc saw what they were doing, he came over to investigate. "Mama, I want to learn words too." Ayla patted the ground next to her, and soon Grev had come over too. He could not make the sounds very well, but not for lack of trying.

The girl had gone through many, many words, and the people seemed to be able to memorize them as fast as she could give the words to them. For Ayla, she had learned to memorize well, because she did not have the clan memories. For the mixed clan people, they only had to access their memory banks to recall the unused words that Ursus had stored in their brains, and combine that with their unusual ability to make sounds. For Grev, he could recall the memories of these unused words, but due to the fact that the clan could not fully articulate aloud, he would never master a fully spoken language. But that did not stop the boy from trying.

Soon they realized that almost everyone had gone to bed. Ayla looked around to see that Broud, Oga and Brac sat watching, but not participating. Brun and Ebra were watching too, and seemed interested. Ayla hid her smile, then said her first two sentences. "Almost everyone sleep. I think we sleep too."

Grov nodded, thinking that morning would come too fast. Ayla asked him to carry Jendoza inside their tent, and told Braydalana to sleep with her 'auntie.' It was going to be a crowded night, but Ayla did not mind; she was learning a language of the others.

The next morning did come early, just as Grov had suspected. Brun had had a stretcher made to carry Jendoza, and had ordered Dorg and Daub to carry it. There packs of meat were dispersed between the other members of the clan, and the girl, Braydalana, was given some to carry as well. Grov suggested that Ayla take some of the child's load and put it in his pack. "The child probably isn't used to carrying so much."

Ayla looked at her mate's pack. "Grov, you have too much too. I will carry some of it; I have next to nothing." Then seeing his look, she added, "I said I shouldn't be heavily burdened. I didn't say that I couldn't carry anything. I will be fine."

He nodded at her, and kissed her nose. "Okay my mate, but you be careful."

That day passed quickly, just as the night before had, and soon they were stopping again for the night. Ayla gave Jendoza more to drink, and despite the woman's unconscious form, she seemed to drink the liquid just fine. Ayla decided to give her some of the broth from the meat stew, but strained out the meat first. The woman never opened her eyes, but her eyes fluttered at the taste of the warm broth.

When Grov and Ayla were finished with the woman, they called to Durc and Grev, then sat down again with the Sungaea girl, and began to learn more of her words.

"You are learning very fast. I have never seen anyone so fast."

Grov smiled, "Well, I knew some already, so I not count, but Ayla fast at everything."

The girl was very curious. "How did you already know some Sungaea, Grov?"

"I was mated to Sungaea woman before. She taught me."

Braydalana frowned at this. "Where is your first mate now?"

Grov looked at the curious child, and a pained look crossed his face. "Nora is dead. She died in earthquake.

"Nora? Her name was Nora? That is not a Sungaea name."

Grov remember that Nora's mother used to call her something else, what was it, he thought? "That was her clan name, because the clan could not say her name. I think it was Evanora."

"Evanora? Are you sure her name was Evanora," asked the child?

Grov nodded. "Why?"

"There was once a Sungaea girl from my cave named Evanora, but her family left before I was born. I've heard stories though because Evanora is auntie's cousin."

Hearing a new word, Ayla leaned forward. "What means cousin?"

"Cousin is used to mean many things though some are related more closely. The closest related cousins are someone's mother's sister's children. But then there are your mother's mate's sister's children, and your mother's brother's mate's children, and your mother's mate's brother's mate's children."

Ayla was shaking her head; it was too much. How could this child understand these complicated relationships. Then Ayla realized she didn't know how old the girl was. Maybe she's older than we think. "How many years are you Braydalana?"

"Seven."

Ayla looked at her, not knowing the word. "What is seven?"

The child held up seven fingers, then put one down at a time and counted each finger as she did so, then put the seven fingers up again.

"Seven," Ayla said out loud, and then thought for a minute. "Igra is seven too, but she is woman already. I not become woman until. . .say counting words again."

Braydalana smiled, it wasn't often that she got to teach someone something. "One, two, three," she said holding up three fingers. Then, "four, five, six, seven," she finished holding up seven fingers.

Ayla thought about it, it is like the marks I made on the sticks when I was death cursed the first time, she thought. "I was two years older when I become woman. Iza thought something wrong."

Braydalana shook her head. "No, that is right. And nine is young too."

Ayla said the new counting word over. "Nine. What is after seven and before nine?"

"Seven, eight, nine and ten," the girl provided, putting up all of her fingers to show two full hands.

Ayla smiled and said the counting words over and over, adding them to her memory, but Grov was very thoughtful. This girl claimed to be related to the woman that was related to his first mate. If that was the case, then they were his kin.

**************************************************  
><strong>Return to the Cave<br>**

Once again, they rose early, ate a quick meal and then packed up to go. They were thankful that the tall grasses had become short once again, and visibility was better. Brun was driving them hard. He was very anxious to get back to the cave, and to talk to the Mog-ur. He had so much to go over with the man, and he was tired from their travels.

Braydalana was starting to wonder how far they would have to travel to get to their cave; she was getting tired. Ayla kept looking at the child, and realized she was exhausted. "Braydalana, do you need water?"

The child looked at her and nodded. After she drank her fill she smiled at the woman gratefully. "How long until we get to the cave?"

Ayla looked at the sun, which had passed its highest point, then turned back to the girl. "Very soon. We be there not much longer."

Ayla was not wrong, soon they came around a bend, which opened up into a wide valley. "See Braydalana, look at hole in hill, that is cave." Braydalana smiled widely, glad that the trek was almost over.

The people that had been left behind at the cave had had a very relaxing ten days without the hussle and bussle of so many people constantly around. Uba had spent all her time doting on her mate and sons, just as Ovra had. Vorn and Goov were absolutely thrilled that their mates had come through so well.

Zoug and Droog had managed to spend a considerable amount of time with Groob and the boy was much improved in his hunting. Zoug had worked with the boy on his sling, and Droog showed him the finer points of the spear, and actually spent many hours showing the boy how to make the weapons. Aga was thrilled that her youngest child was doing so well, and that he was enjoying this time with Droog. She knew Groob wanted to go on the hunt with the rest of the clan, but she was sure that the boy was glad he had stayed.

As for the little girls, Nala, Ada, Aka, Egra, Ura and Ora, they had much fun playing together without their mothers there to end the play early. Many nights the three women caring for the girls just stayed in one of their hearths together, enjoying new friendships, and allowing the girls to play.

On the day of Brun's return, several people were outside watching and waiting. They had been getting nervous, but were elated to see the people far off in the distance, and carrying meat.

Zoug strained to see them, but his eyesight was steadily getting worse, and he returned to the cave to inform those inside that the hunters had arrived. Goov and Vorn left the cave to be ready to help, and the women within starting getting things ready for a meal. They knew everyone would be tired and hungry when they finally got to the cave, and cooking would not be what the returning women would wanted to do.

Outside, Goov and Vorn joined Droog, and the others as they watched the people approaching. Goov watched closely. "Someone is injured. They are carrying a stretcher."

Vorn and Droog were nodding, then Vorn squinted his eyes. "But, no one is missing."

Droog and Goov looked closely. "There is someone else with them," Droog said.

Goov was nodding. "A child."

When the approaching people were close enough, the three men and Groob went out to them, and were shocked by what they saw; another girl of the Others, and an injured woman of the Others. _And,_they were stunned that the men were carrying much of the meat.

"This man is glad that you are back Brun. We were getting worried."

"Mog-ur," Brun gestured. "It was a successful hunt, but we are glad to be back." Brun gestured after he had handed his pack to Groob who stood there waiting. "This leader has much to discuss with you Mog-ur. Tonight." Goov nodded, understanding that much more had happened during the hunt than was visible.

**************************************************  
><strong>A New Hearth<br>**

When Ora caught sight of Grov and Ayla, she ran as fast as her chubby legs could carry her. "Mamma back," she gestured. "Grov here," she said as she flew into the man's arms. Grov picked her up, and swung the child over his shoulder, much to her delight. Many stared at them, but knew that this man loved the child dearly. When Grov had hugged her tightly enough to make her cry out, the two year old reached for Ayla. "Mamma, want Mamma."

Ayla smiled at the child, and took her from Grov's arms. "Missed Mamma," Ora gestured. "Where's Durc?"

Ayla smiled again, thinking that the child grew while they were away. "Ora, you have grown since we left. Mamma is sure of it. Durc is over there," Ayla said pointing. "But, I have someone for you to meet. This is Braydalana," the woman signed and said at the same time. The woman lowered the child to the ground and knelt beside the newcomer. "This is Ora, Braydalana."

Braydalana smiled shyly at Ora, then took the girl's hands and spoke, "Greetings."

Ora cocked her head and looked at the older girl closely. "Mamma, Ora not know what she say."

"Ora, Braydalana _speaks_with words, but don't worry she will teach you. Braydalana will teach all of us."

Ora nodded, not really caring. Then, seeing Broud, the child toddled off to annoy the man.

Goov watched the people returning, and was interested in the Others people, though he did not show it outwardly. He carefully observed the girl, who reminded him so much of Ayla when she had been that age, and wondered about the first medicine woman's true people. Goov was flabbergasted that Ayla was speaking to the child in the child's language. How had she learned it so quickly, he speculated? Shaking his head, he focused in on what the hunters were doing.

That too was strange to Goov. He could not believe that the men had carried meat back. It was obvious that much would have been wasted had they not helped the women, but what had made Brun think of it? Men carrying meat, a woman and child of the Others…what else could Brun have to talk to him about?

Ayla and Oga followed the men as they carried Jendoza back to her hearth, but they all wondered what they should do with the woman when they got to the hearth. Originally, the hearth connected to Grov and Ayla's hearth was supposed to be for the medicine woman's medicinal purposes, but now that Broud, Oga and the boys used it as their hearth, Ayla did not have a special place to put the injured.

Grov and Broud had followed the people to the hearth, and Grov suggested the hearth that was opposite the connecting hearth. Broud was nodding, "Oga and I could move to that hearth, but I do not think Oga would want to move out of this hearth."

Grov did not mention that Broud could move to another hearth, if Brun allowed it, but that Oga would probably have to stay within their hearth; at least until the man's punishment was over. Instead, considering that Broud was thinking about someone else's feelings for a change, Grov said, "no Broud, that hearth is too small for you anyway, but it would be good for a medical hearth. What do you think Ayla? Could you treat the woman there?"

Ayla considered, then nodded. "I think that would be good. I like having Oga close too, and I would not want her to move, but this woman thinks the leader should make such an important decision."

Grov and Broud were nodding, of course Brun should decide. "I will go ask the leader," Broud gestured and left.

While the man was gone, the men carrying the stretcher put the unconscious woman down in Grov's hearth, and left. Ayla and Oga stoked the fire and got some water boiling to make tea. Ayla decided to feed Shriek, and then sat rubbing the raptor's neck and head when he was finished. He seemed to almost fall asleep as she did this. Braydalana watched the woman with the hawk, and wondered why the bird allowed her to do that.

When Broud returned, he informed them that the leader had agreed, and that he would be coming shortly to inspect what they were doing. Oga was obviously pleased that she would not have to leave the hearth; things had been much better lately, and she was not ready for change yet.

After the tea was ready, and Ayla and Oga had given their men some tea, they went to clean up the new area, make beds, and prepare a fire there. They cleared out as much dust as they could, then Ayla began digging two trenches to put bedding in for the woman and child. Oga left to gather some grass to make the bed more comfortable, and returned quickly with grass and several leather blankets. When the beds were ready, they asked Brac to go get wood, and stack it for a fire within the hearth, and then they returned to Grov's hearth. While the boy was gone, Uba arrived carrying a baby in each arm, and Oga went to her own space.

"Oh Uba, this woman missed you very much," Ayla gestured, hugging her sister, then taking one of the babies from the woman. "Which one is this?"

"The child is Berc, but this woman can see you have someone for me to meet too. Who are our new visitors?"

Ayla smiled at Uba's curiosity, thinking that Uba had been a curious child and it had carried on to adulthood. "The woman is Jendoza," Ayla gestured pointing to the woman on the ground. "And, this is Braydalana," Ayla said in both signs and gestures.

Uba frowned, "Ayla, I can't say either of those names, and what are those noises you are making?"

Ayla smiled again, "I have found out that the Others speak with sounds, and that they do not understand hands. I am learning her words so we can talk to her, and she is trying to learn some hand signs too. Braydalana is from Others called the Sungaea. I think she is related to Grov's first mate."

Uba's eyes had gotten wide, and then she tried to say the girl's name. "Ayda," the woman said aloud. She tried again, but the same thing came out.

Braydalana smiled at the flathead woman, and turned to Ayla, "Ayda is okay with me. That is what the other man called me before."

Ayla nodded, and then turned back to Uba. "Braydalana says it is okay to call her Ayda." Then the first medicine woman turned back to the girl. "This woman is my sister, Uba."

Braydalana's eyes opened wide. "Your sister? But she is. . . she is. . . ." The girl did not finish. She had already learned that the name flathead was not nice to say around these people. All her life she had heard that word, and was told they were animals, but she could tell they were not.

Ayla understood that the girl did not comprehend how she, obviously one of the Others, could be the sister of Uba. She didn't know why the girl had a strange expression; she didn't know what the Others thought of the clan. "Uba's mother adopted me, that why Uba my sister."

Braydalana's expression became one of understanding. "Uba," she said, and looked at the babies. "What are the baby's names?"

Ayla looked down at the baby in her arms, and said, "This is Berc, and he is Brev." The girl repeated the names twice, and then fell silent, not knowing what else to say.

Ayla looked at the sons of her sister, and wiped dribble off Berc's lip. "They are beautiful, Uba."

Uba blushed at Ayla's praise. "I think so too, but what mother doesn't think so about her own babies?"

Ayla nodded at the humor in Uba's comment; nearly all women thought their babies to be the most beautiful. Ayla cuddled the baby to her chest, then suggested Uba leave the infants in Durc's sleeping place, so that she could come look at the hearth they had set up for the visitors.

"Braydalana, stay here, watch babies," Ayla said to the girl and left with Uba.

Uba looked over the hearth. "It looks good to me Ayla. It will be good to get your medicinal things out of the hearth. You will have much more room for the things you need for the hearth, and have a whole extra place. _But_, before you distract me, you are almost ready to give birth, just over one moon cycle left, and I need to examine you. Lie down," she said pointing at the new sleeping place in the medicine hearth. Ayla rolled her eyes, but did as she was instructed.

Uba felt the woman's forehead to check her temperature, and then checked her extremities for swelling, "Ayla, your ankles are swollen. Do they hurt?"

Ayla shook her head. "No Uba, we just got back from traveling; that is why my ankles are swollen."

Uba nodded and went back to the exam. She inserted her fingers into the woman to check her insides, and then looked up at the woman, "Ayla, this woman would say that your body is getting ready. You are starting to open up." Ayla smiled, and patted her bulging stomach.

When Ayla and Uba were done, they went back to the other hearth to inform the men that Jendoza could be brought over to the medicine hearth. Grov and Broud got up, and moved the woman. Ayla had Uba examine the woman, which brought a few moans out of the unconscious woman. Ayla thought she might wake up, but she didn't. Uba helped Ayla feed her, and both were amazed that the woman was consuming broth while still sleeping, but she did, and Ayla was extremely pleased. The woman would wake up very soon the medicine woman thought.

After Ayla returned to the hearth, they all went to the main cave area for the communal meal that the other women had been working on. It was good to be home!

**************************************************  
><strong>Tears of Terror<br>**

Brun had instructed the people to eat, and to enjoy being home with their families, but called a meeting with Goov in the men's cave. He wanted to talk to him before the night was over and thought that immediately would be best. The two men entered the cave, built the fire up, and sat down promptly.

"Well Brun, you must have more to discuss with me than just the woman of the Others. This man can see it in your eyes."

Brun sighed. "Yes Mog-ur. It is Ayla again. She has touched a spear, and has killed with it."

Goov's eyes opened wide, wondering why Brun had not immediately come to him. "What did she kill?"

"The Woman Who Hunts killed one of the bison. It was stampeding toward the women, and chasing her around the fire, and she just picked it up and used it. I am not even angry that the woman has done this, because she was protecting our women, but for some reason, I feel like I should be angry; a woman is not supposed to touch hunting weapons," he said with a furrowed brow. "I have already told Grov _and_Ayla that she will not be cursed; it is too dangerous, and I have many more clan members to be concerned about now; I cannot take the chance, but she should be punished. What do you think, Mog-ur?"

Goov was nodding, agreeing that the woman needed to be punished, but didn't know what else they could do to her except for cursing her. "I will have to meditate on this Brun. This has never happened before."

Brun nodded as well, knowing that the Mog-ur would tell him he had to meditate on the problem. Goov said that he would work on it the next day, and the two men left to join the people, and eat.

Not long after the people left, the woman began to stir. "Ummmmm," she moaned, as her eyes flickered open. At first everything appeared blurry, but within moments that changed. The woman starred at the ceiling. What I am looking at, she wondered? Then she turned her head, and saw a low fire. I'm in a cave, she realized, closing her eyes again, and sighing.

Moments later, though she thought it had been longer, her eyes flew open again. "Braydalana," she whispered with a hoarse voice. Jendoza tried to sit up, but a splitting pain shot through her head, causing her to grab her temples, and moan. It took her a minute for the pain to subside, allowing her to focus again. Then she realized that her ankle was throbbing as well. What did I do to myself, she thought?

Now sitting up, the woman looked around again, and spied a cup of liquid sitting next to the low fire. She realized that she was very thirsty, and crawled over to the cup, and sniffed what was inside. She didn't smell anything; it was water. The woman drank it, and then stared at the fire, wondering where Braydalana was, and where the people were that had saved her. She hoped the child had been saved as well.

Time seemed to pass slowly for the woman who sat there all alone. The thoughts that were going through her head terrified her. What had happened to the daughter of her brother's mate. Her brother had already lost the child's mother seven years before in childbirth; she had been only thirteen years old at the time. Jendoza thought about her brother's loss, with tears in her eyes; she did not think he could not take another one. Then she paled, he may never forgive her if she returned without the child that he loved beyond anything else.

As Jendoza sat there by the fire, she began to get hungry, but there didn't seem to be any food nearby, and she couldn't walk to go find some, or could she? She looked toward the entrance of the hearth, and could see another fire in a nearby hearth, and wanted to see if there was food there, but didn't know how to get there. The woman crawled over to the cave wall, and managed to pull herself up to a standing position. She tried to put weight on her injured foot, but severe pain radiated through her foot and ankle, and up her leg. With a sharp intake of breath, she yanked her foot up off the ground, and closed her eyes. When the pain subsided, she took a deep breath and decided to try hopping along the cave wall.

When the woman got the edge of the hearth, she looked both ways. To the left, it was just a dark passageway; Jendoza could see nothing down there. To the right, the woman could see the small central fire of the western side of the cave burning brightly. She frowned, wondering where all the people were. Then she looked straight ahead, toward the adjacent hearth; the fire there burned low, and no one was visible there either.

Jendoza wasn't sure what to do, then decided to hop across and enter the hearth. When the woman did this she noticed that the hearth was connected to another hearth, and for a moment forgot her hunger as she visually inspected her surroundings. The fire was in the center, and there were four sleeping places, all along the wall to her left. Also to her left were some strange looking spears. The woman ran her fingers over the wooden spears, and wondered how anyone could hunt with them; the size was not right. Jendoza looked to her right and saw a huge pile of wood. That must be for their fires, she thought as she hobbled over to the opening that led to the connecting hearth.

Again, that hearth contained a low burning fire, almost in the center, and again four sleeping places. She noticed a couple mats on the ground, and more of the strange looking spears. She could see that the owner of this hearth must be the cave's healer; there were herbs drying on a rack on a shelf on the back wall. She felt some comfort that the cave's healer was the one taking care of her, but where was he or she, she thought? Then she saw something else that was very strange. There was a very large hawk sitting on the cave shelf, just next to the drying rack. He was eyeing her carefully, but making no noise whatsoever. Jendoza's stomach growled loudly, reminding her why she had gotten up.

She looked around the hearth for some food, and spotted a woven basket full to tart apples against the cave wall directly under the bird. The woman eyed him carefully, wondering why a bird would be in the cave, but edged herself nearer so that she could get one of the apples. The bird cocked his head, as she neared, but still did nothing. The woman grabbed the piece of fruit and backed away. When the woman had reached the hearth entrance, she looked out at the small area, and saw the central fire again. Then, behind her, the hawk shrieked with the most piercing sound the woman had ever heard.

The meal had been going well for everyone. Everyone was eating merrily, and the people that had been away were telling the stories that often went with a journey. Everyone avoided mention of Ayla's transgression, though everyone else knew something was being left out; they would find out about that later.

The meal consisted of many dishes, but all ones that were made with short notice; it didn't matter, everyone was enjoying the meal, and the company. When it came time to clear away the picked over food, the women got up quickly to do their duty. Everything was just cleared away when the loud shriek rang through the cave, causing the people to look up and stare toward the passageway that led to the western hearths. Ayla got up to go investigate, but Grov stopped her.

"Ayla, I predator could have gotten in the cave. You are in no condition to go see. Stay here." Not waiting to see her reaction to his command, he turned toward Broud, Daub and Dorg, and motioned for them to follow him. Ayla had turned red, and was slightly upset at having been brushed off like that, but sat back down as the men walked off.

Jendoza was startled by the bird's earsplitting squawk, and spun around in fear, causing herself to lose her balance and fall hard on the ground; her apple rolled out into the open area.

Displeased that she had been startled so easily, she sighed and began to crawl after the apple, but as she approached on hands and knees, she came upon four pairs of feet. The woman looked at the. . .shoes? On the feet for a split second, then looked up.

Jendoza's eyes followed the bare legs of the men that stood in front of her, and noticed that their chests were bare as well, but when she focused on the faces of the men, her eyes became the size of large river stones, and she let out a scream, as she backed away from them in sheer terror. The woman was now on her backside, and was scooting down the passageway as fast as she could, and holding an arm up in front of her. Flatheads, she thought, she was in a cave of flatheads. Oh Sumata save me, she prayed to the Mother, as she continued to back away, tears of terror running down her cheeks.

The whole clan had heard the woman's scream, but it was Ayla that had reacted to the sound first. The medicine woman got up and went to the leader, then dropped to her knees at his feet. Brun wondered what was happening down the passage, but knew that the woman would need Ayla. He tapped her shoulder, and said, "Ayla speak."

Ayla's breath exploded. "This woman would like to go see if the woman needs my help."

Brun grunted, and gestured that Uba should go as well. Ayla turned to Braydalana, who had been sitting with Igra and Orga trying to learn some of their signs, and beckoned the child to follow the two medicine women. "Jendoza need us. We might need help. You stay behind." Braydalana nodded, she didn't want to be left alone with these people anyway.

The four men stood there staring at the hysterical woman, wondering what was wrong with her. Grov approached the woman, and tried to calm her, but she was struggling, and pummeling his chest in fear. The other three men looked on, confused that a woman would rebel against a man so forcefully. Broud had a sudden memory of Ayla; this was how she had reacted when he had given her the signal. Grov grabbed the woman's hand so she could not strike him again, and held her still with his strong clan muscles. "Calm yourself woman!"

Jendoza looked at the man, as if he were an animal that was attacking her, and shook with fear. She stared at him wide eyed as she shook, and then looked back at the men standing behind the one holding her still. They were all flatheads, she thought, except the one holding her, he was of mixed spirits. Oh Sumata, where am I, Jendoza wondered?

**************************************************  
><strong>Getting Acquainted<br>**

Ayla, Uba and Braydalana came around the corner and saw Grov restraining the shaking woman. The girl tried to go to her auntie, but Ayla prevented her from going to the woman for the moment. Instead, Ayla approached the three other men, and kneeled at their feet. Since Broud was the one in front, he was the one to tap the woman's shoulder.

"This woman would know what happened."

Broud looked over her shoulder at Grov and the strange Others woman. "Grov is trying to stop her from hurting herself. The woman was thrashing about. The medicine woman should make sure the woman has not been injured further, and try to help her behave properly."

Ayla nodded, and turned back to Grov and Jendoza, and then went over to them and kneeled so she could look at the woman. Grov let go of her, and the woman looked at Ayla, but did not say anything. Then Uba approached as well, causing the woman to blanch at the sight of the flathead woman.

Ayla looked into the woman's eyes. "Jendoza, you okay. Just relax. Me Ayla. This Uba," she said indicating the younger medicine woman. Jendoza looked at the two women, and wondered why this woman was with the flatheads.

Ayla turned around and called for the child, who promptly stepped out from behind the three men.

"Braydalana," the woman called, and embraced the child as she came forward. "What has happened, and where are we."

The child smiled at her auntie. "These people saved us Auntie. Ayla, Grov and Broud are the ones that found us, and they brought us back to their cave. I was so scared."

Jendoza hugged the girl tightly, glad that she would not have to return home empty handed, but still scared about the predicament that they were in.

Ayla watched quietly while the woman and girl were reunited, then said. "Need go back to hearth to rest Jendoza. You suffered bump on head and twisted ankle. I think you need some food too, yes?"

Jendoza eyed the woman, then looked at the flatheads, then nodded; she was exhausted and hungry; she could not deny it. Ayla and Uba helped the woman up, and supported her as they took her back to the medicine hearth. Jendoza was surprised at the strength of the smaller woman, as Ayla went to make her a calming tea. Uba eased the woman down on the furs, and felt the woman's forehead for temperature.

Jendoza watched the two women with fear and curiosity, and sat holding Braydalana. Braydalana tried to reassure the scared woman that the people were okay, different but okay. "How long have we been here," the woman asked the child?

Braydalana thought for a moment. "We got here today, but. . . ," she thought to herself. "It has been two days since they found us, right Ayla?"

Ayla turned toward them, and nodded. "Yes, two and half days. We out on hunt, and find you both. Why out alone?" Ayla approached them and handed the woman the tea. Jendoza looked at the cup suspiciously, and smelled it, but did not drink.

Ayla, seeing the woman's hesitation, took the cup back and took a sip herself, then handed it to her again. "It just Chamomile tea, good to make calm," Ayla said to her. Jendoza accepted the cup this time, and smiled at the woman.

After taking a sip of the tea, Jendoza smiled at Braydalana again, then turned back to the medicine woman. "Why are you here with them," Jendoza said, indicating the people of the clan?

Ayla was not sure what she was talking about. "These are my people. I have lived with them for as long as I can remember." Ayla was frowning, thinking that she was missing something. Grov saw her frown and came forward; he had followed the women to the medicine hearth.

"Ayla, many of the Others, including the Sungaea, do not like the clan. They think we are animals. They call us flatheads." Grov watched his mate to see what she would think. He had spoken in words so that Jendoza could understand him, and know that he did understand her.

Ayla listened to her mate, and frowned again, then turned back toward the woman. "Why not like us, Jendoza? I not understand." Ayla obviously saw herself as one of the flatheads, which confused the woman. "My mate, Grov, he say you think he animal. Is this true?"

Jendoza wasn't quite sure what to say, she was frightened, and concerned about what she would happen to her and the child, but she was curious too. The mixed flathead man had spoken her language, and no one thought they could speak. Instead of answering Ayla, she took a sip her tea, then said, "I do not know what I think right now. Most of my people think of these flat. . . ahh, people as animals, but animals do not talk. I would like to know how the man knows my language, and why you live with these flatheads."

Braydalana interrupted then. "Auntie, I can answer the first question, but first, they do not like to be called flatheads. They are clan."

Jendoza looked at the girl. "Glun."

"Very close Auntie, they say cl-an."

Jendoza glanced at the three adults that sat near her, and tried again, "clan." Then she looked at the girl again. "And how does this man know how to speak Sungaea?"

Braydalana smiled. "Because he was mated to Evenora."

Jendoza blanched at the sound of her cousin's name, and looked at the mixed man, then laughed. "No, this cannot be right. My cousin would not mate him. He is a flathead; mixed but still a flathead." Then she looked at Ayla. "How can you be here, and mated to this man?"

Grov did not say anything. He was well aware of what these people thought of him and the clan, Evenora had told him many times. Ayla sighed, and looked the woman in the eye, then defiantly began. "I not know who my people were, but clan find me long time ago. I was five seasons at time, and lost like you, but they take me in and care for me. They are not animal like you say; they are people. Can't you see they are people?"

Something about the woman's story bothered the woman, but she could not put her finger on it. Jendoza looked at them. They were dressed strangely, actually hardly at all, Jendoza thought, and most of them had not said a word, but yes, she decided, they are people. "I can see that they are people, Ayla, but most people do not think they are. I think it is because we have never been so close to them before. I did not know they could talk."

That was where Braydalana broke in again. "Jendoza, they do not talk with their mouths like we do. They talk with their hands; I have been learning some." The child seemed truly excited by what she had learned, but the woman did not understand. She had not even noticed that Ayla had been constantly moving her hands around, politely gesturing every word said so that Uba would know what was going on.

"What do you mean Bray? Ayla, can you show me?"

Ayla smiled, "Yes, I show. I will talk Uba, tell her something." Ayla turned to her sister, and with gestures only, said "Uba, go get Durc and Ora. I want our new visitors to meet my children." Uba nodded and left the hearth.

Jendoza looked puzzled. "What did you say to her."

Ayla smiled, but it was Braydalana that answered. "She told Uba to go get Durc and Ora," Braydalana said with a big smile. Jendoza was speechless.

"Very good Braydalana. You learn fast," Ayla said in Sungaea, then turned to Jendoza. "Yes, I want you meet my son Durc and Evenora's daughter Ora."

Jendoza was again speechless. Her cousin had a daughter while living with these. . . these people. Then it occurred to Jendoza that no mention had actually been made of Evenora herself. "And Evenora, where is she?"

Grov's face suddenly fell, and Jendoza could not mistake the pain that he felt, or the cause of it. "My mate died in earthquake that killed many almost a season ago. Her mother and mother's mate died then too."

"Vinoza and Teglodia? They are gone too?" Jendoza's eyes had misted over, and she looked at the mixed man.

Grov was nodding. "Yes, we called them Oza and Teg. They came to our clan. . .hummmm. . . ten seasons ago," he said holding up both his hands with all fingers extended to show the years. "I was seven and Nora was nine, and I liked her right from start. She was one that teach me some of language. They were good people, sad people. Nora say her brother died; gored by a rhinoceros."

Jendoza was nodding. "Yes, I do remember that, I was only seven, but Evenora was my best friend as well as my cousin. Her family was so sad after Tegasia was killed, and left to journey right away. My mother's mate was so sad that his sister was leaving, especially since their only other sibling had also just left on a journey shortly before. He too had lost his family. We did not see _him_for a long time, but he is back now, and has a new mate, and more children. They will be very sad to hear about Vinoza."

Jendoza was relaxing with these people, and they definitely were people; she had not doubts. They talked about family ties for a little while, and then Uba returned with Durc and Ora. Jendoza was first surprised to see that Ayla had a mixed son, but then why wouldn't she, the woman thought; she lived with here, who else's spirit would have blessed her? Then, when she saw Ora, who had come in behind the clan woman, and quietly sat down on Ayla's lap, Jendoza paled. She could not have denied that this child belonged to Evenora; the toddler looked identical to her cousin. _Though_, the woman thought, the child looked almost identical to Ayla as well. She wondered why the child did not come out mixed, as Durc had, but couldn't form any thoughts fully to explain it to herself.

Ayla watched the woman, and smiled. "Ora, this is your mother's cousin. . .clan," she said, changing the word to something the child may understand. The two year old didn't care, she just wanted to sit on Ayla's lap and twirl her own hair with her index finger.

Jendoza smiled. "I can vaguely remember Evenora doing that," she said pointing at the sleepy child. "She always had a knot in her hair from doing it. I can remember her mother getting so upset over it."

Durc had been watching, not really understanding what was happening. "You related my sister," he asked in his choppy Sungaea?

Jendoza looked at the boy, and decided that he had more clan in him than the man, Grov, did. "Yes, I am cousin to her mother. Her mother's mother was sister to my mother's mate."

They talked a little more that night, but Ayla soon decided that the woman needed to get some rest, and shooed everyone away. "Here Jendoza, drink this, help you sleep." The woman took it, and smiled at the woman, then rolled over to sleep.

Not far to the north, three Sungaea men returned to their lodge, only to discover that Jendoza and Braydalana had not come back on their own.

"What do you mean they are not here," Ivanolia demanded?

The people were puzzled. "Ivanolia, they were out with _you_. We were not watching for their return."

The man was frantic with worry, both his dead mate's daughter and his sister were missing. He began throwing his belongings back into his pack, he would go out and look for them. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. "WHAT!" he shouted not even looking to see who it was.

"Ivanolia, we cannot go back out, and search. It's after dark, it would be too dangerous."

Recognizing the voice, he turned around, "Donzolnia, how can you say that? Jendoza is your mate, and she is pregnant, and Braydalana is just a child. We have to go," the man said with tears desperation in his eyes.

Donzolnia nodded, but grabbed the man's shoulders, and shook them gently to get the crazed man's attention. "We cannot see in the dark. I will definitely go search with you, but not until morning. There is nothing we can do until we have some light."

The man was about to protest, but he saw everyone agreeing with Donzolnia, and he relented. "We leave before dawn then. We will go back to where we last saw them, and start from there. Who will go with me." Donzolnia raised his hand, Ivanolia knew he would go; after all, Jendoza was his mate. Brulenzia raised his hand, Donzolnia's younger brother was always with them. And Tinozia raised his hand, he was the best tracker they had; an obvious good choice.

Everyone was nodding, and going to their beds. Ivanolia reasured his mother that they would find Jendoza and Braydalana, and then sent her to bed.

The four that would travel, slept in the visitor's hearth and discussed the search, and what they would take with them. None of them slept that well, but it was Donzolnia that quietly kept an eye on everyone, especially Ivanolia; he was afraid the man would sneak off on them, and he wanted to prevent that from happening if he could.

**The Oak Camp of the Sungaea**  
>***ALL of these people have been named, but I'm not going to fill in the "TBA" names at this time...sorry. And...it takes too much time to add the ~*~ in front of the children (and grandparents), so I didn't do that either. Further...some names <em>may<em> have been changed in the more recent parts...sorry about that too. =/

**Tagnolia** (40) – **Headman** of the Oak Camp of the Sungaea, brother of headwoman**  
>TBA<strong> (38)– mother of Donzolnia (as well as children below)**  
>Brulenzia<strong> (19) – second son of headman's mate, Donzolnia's brother, Evanora's closest childhood playmate, unmated**  
>Frala<strong> (13)**  
>Morina<strong> (11)

**TBA** (39) – mated to headwoman**  
>Tiflona<strong> (38) – **Headwoman**, sister of headman**  
>Tinozia<strong> (18) – first son of headwoman, unmated**  
>TBA<strong> (15)**  
>TBA<strong> (12)

**Gredenzia** (35) – mated to Fraylora, **Shogur  
>Fraylora<strong> (35) – Nemlora's mother**  
>Furlasa<strong> (15)**  
>TBA<strong> (13)**  
>TBA<strong> (9)

**Vilognia** (40) – Vinoza and Vincenzia's brother**  
>TBA<strong> (40) – mother of Ivanolia and Jendoza**  
>TBA<strong> (14)**  
>TBA<strong> (11)**  
>TBA<strong> (8)

**Vincenzia** (36) – Vilognia and Vinoza's brother, travels often, returned recently from one of his journeys to the Mamutoi, lost first mate and daughter in such a travel**  
>Darvie<strong> (25) – second mate, Mamutoi woman**  
>Crisana<strong> (Crisanie) (7) – Darvie's daughter**  
>Brenevia<strong> (Brenev) (4) – Darvie's son

**Teglodia** (would be 35 if not **dead**) – headman's best friend, left to go on a journey 10 years ago when mate's youngest child (Tegasia)was killed in a hunting accident**  
>Vinoza<strong> (would be 33 if not **dead**) – gladly journeyed with her mate, too sad to stay**  
>Evanora<strong> (would be 19 if not **dead**) – was mated to Grov (Nora), mother of Ora**  
>Donzolnia<strong> (21) – first son of headman's mate, Jendoza's mate**  
>Jendoza<strong> (17) – injured woman with the clan, Evanora's cousin, Ivanolia's sister, pregnant

**Ivanolia** (21) – Jendoza's brother, Evanora's cousin**  
>Nemlora<strong> (**dead**, died giving birth at 13)**  
>Braydalana<strong> (7) – Nemlora's daughter

**************************************************  
><strong>Search Party<br>**

When morning finally came, the search party rose, though none had really slept. Ivanolia was the first to get up, and made plenty of noise to let the others know he was up. Donzolnia got up quickly, not as afraid for the woman and girl; he knew his mate was quite capable of caring for herself and the child. There was that fear, which he pushed back in his head, that told him something really bad had gone on, but he didn't think so. The other two men got up promptly as well.

Though only four would go search, the rest of the lodge would be waiting anxiously for news of the missing woman and girl. Ivanolia's mother came up to him while he and Donzolnia packed their rucksacks, and with tears in her eyes grabbed his face and pleaded with him to find her first daughter. Ivanolia promised he would do everything he could, and Donzolnia hugged his mate's mother and promised the same thing.

When Ivanolia turned to go, he saw Fraylora, who looked just as distraught over the disappearance of her granddaughter, all that she had left of her daughter Nemlora. He promised her as well that they would do their best.

Donzolnia and Brulenzia finally hugged their mother, as did Tinozia, and the four men walked off.

For Brun's clan the next day was one of rest for most. Brun met with Goov to discuss Ayla's punishment, and they had agreed that the woman would not be allowed to hunt at all for half a season, and that her weapons would be burned to make sure she was not tempted. Brun knew all too well that Ayla would have trouble if her weapon was not out of sight.

In Brun's opinion, this would be a suitable punishment to let her know she had done wrong, but not so long as to anger the spirits. She did after all save the child Orga, and she would have died herself had she not thought of picking up the spear. Goov said that they should tell her what her punishment would be right away, so that the woman would not think that she had gotten away with her transgression. Brun called a meeting of the men, and sent Droog and Crug to go get the woman.

Ayla and Uba had gotten up early, and were both sitting with Jendoza and Braydalana, when Oga came in to see if she was needed. Ayla gestured that she did not need help, but that she was welcome to stay. "This is Broud's mate, Jendoza. Her name is Oga."

Jendoza smiled at the strange looking clan woman, and repeated her name. Oga could not say Jendoza, but instead called her Doza. "So, I can see that you both are pregnant," Jendoza said trying to make small talk. "When are you due?"

Ayla unconsciously touched her belly and smiled. "Hummm, very soon. Just over one moon cycle left. Oga four more moon cycles," Ayla said holding up four fingers.

Jendoza smiled, "I think I am pregnant too." Then she frowned. "But I have not told my mate yet. I was going to tell him at our summer meeting, because I will be sure by then, but now, I don't know if I will even find them again."

Ayla sympathized with the woman. "Don't worry, we help, soon as your ankle better. It won't be too long; maybe half moon cycle."

The women had not been talking long when Droog and Crug appeared at the medicine hearth opening. They hesitated to interrupt the medicine woman while she was working, but could tell that nothing important was happening, so they stepped in and they each grabbed the Woman Who Hunts by her upper arm, and picked her up, and carried her out of the hearth.

Uga and Oga figured that Brun had called a men's meeting and that Ayla would be learning her punishment for using a spear on the hunt, but they had no way of telling Jendoza, or did they?

Braydalana had jumped to her feet, and was watching the scene, and being protective over her auntie. "Where they take Ayla?" the girl gestured to Uba.

Uba watched the girl's gestures. It was not hard to know what she was asking. "This woman does not know, but she thinks Ayla is going to be punished for hunting with a spear."

The child wasn't sure she understood, but told Jendoza anyway. Jendoza was confused as well, and thought the child must have misunderstood; who would be punished for that?

At the men's meeting, Ayla was brought in, and put down in front of Brun. She immediately crouched down in the formal clan woman posture, hoping that the leader would not punish her severely. Brun reached out and tapped the woman's shoulder.

When she looked up at him, she did not see anger. Instead she saw the look of calmness that was almost always on this man's face. "Ayla, you have defied clan traditions again; this time you have hunted with a spear. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

Ayla didn't know she was going to be given a chance to speak, and didn't know what to say. "This woman is sorry that she has broken a clan tradition again. I know I have trouble following some rules, but I am not sorry that I saved Orga; she would have died if I did not use the spear."

Brun grunted. I know that, he thought. "It is wrong for a woman to touch a weapon, but yes, the child would have died if you didn't. I have decided that you will no longer be the Woman Who Hunts, and will not be allowed to hunt for half a season. Grov."

Ayla paled, not hunt. Brun was taking away her hunting, _and_the title he had given her. Grov was coming forward with something in his hand. Ayla recognized it immediately as her sling. With a pained expression, her mate handed it to Brun, who handed it to Goov, who threw it into the fire. Ayla gasped as it went up in flames and tears slid down her cheeks.

Next, Brun grabbed her amulet and pulled it off of her with a quick snap, and handed it to Goov. Ayla was terrified that the Mog-ur was going to toss it into the fire as well, but he did not. The Mog-ur opened it and fished around inside instead. When he found what he was looking for, he pulled it out; it was the small piece of ivory from the tusk of the mammoth that they had killed many seasons ago. "This will be given back to you after your punishment has ended," Goov said, at which point Brun handed her back her amulet to tie on again, and then signaled Droog and Crug to carry her out again.

When they deposited her back in the medicine hearth, everyone was waiting expectantly for her return. Uba and Oga were not surprised to see the woman crying, but Jendoza was incensed that she had been treated the way she had. "What in the Mother's name did they do to you?" she demanded angrily when the men were gone.

Ayla wiped her tears away, and explained. "I am being punished for hunting. They have taken my hunting charm away, and forbid me to hunt for half a season."

"Punishment for hunting? Why aren't you allowed to hunt?"

Ayla looked at her squarely. "Clan women not allowed to hunt, but totem demands I do. I am only clan woman that hunt, but not now," Ayla said, and took a deep breath. Oga handed her a leather cloth to wipe her face further, and Ayla calmed down. "Woman of Others hunt?"

Jendoza wasn't sure what Ayla meant by woman of others. "The women of my camp can hunt if the wish to, though most do not after they have children. I like to hunt. My mate and I like to go hunting together, and I like to go hunting with my brother."

Ayla thought for a moment, "I would like to meet your clan sometime."

By late afternoon, the four men had reached the spot where they had last seen Jendoza and Braydalana; it was where to grasses had grown very long. They walked around the area, trying to see which way the two females had gone. They found their own tracks leading away in one direction, and saw where Jendoza had been gathering the grasses. The men separated and branched off to cover a larger area, until finally Tinozia called the men to him. The other three men joined him.

Ivanolia arrived first. "Well, which way?"

Tinozia waited for the others to catch up, and then pointed. "They went this way," he said pointing.

They started off immediately, but had to stop at dusk. They set up a functional camp, and went to bed.

The next day, the men woke up early, and began travel again. They ate while they walked to save time. When the sun was high in the sky, the came to a small clearing, and Tinozia had to look hard to find their tracks again. When he did, they went on.

For a seven days, the search was going the same way. The woman and child had gone quite a distance from the spot that they had all been in, and Ivanolia was berating himself for leaving his sister alone for such a long time. Donzolnia tried to comfort him, telling him that Jendoza had always done fine alone, but Ivanolia was getting more and more upset.

"Why did we leave Jendoza and Braydalana alone for all that time. We shouldn't have left them. This is all my fault. If Jendoza wanted to gather and not hunt, we should have insisted that she stay at the lodge."

Donzolnia watched the man pace, and shout, and didn't know what to do. "Ivan! We could not have known. We must keep searching. Not finding them could be good too. It means that they may still be alive."

Ivanolia turned on his friend. "How can you be so calm? This is your mate!" he shouted at the man.

Donzolnia took his friends shoulders, and calmly said, "I am very nervous, my friend, but I am also hopeful. We have found no bodies, therefore there is still a chance."

Brulenzia and Tinozia watched the two men that had something at stake, and waited for them to calm down. Tinozia finally got them to continue.

Later that day, the men were walking through the tall grass, when Donzolnia saw Tinozia suddenly fall down ahead of him. The three men rushed forward to check it out, and found the man on his stomach looking at something.

"Are you okay?" Donzolnia asked, extending a hand to help the man up.

"Yes, but I think I have found blood on this rock. Someone has been injured." The men looked at it closely, and after careful discussion they decided that it had to be Jendoza's blood, and not Braydalana's blood, because the tracks around belonged to a smaller person, indicating that the child had walked around the area, while the woman was down. The men were getting more and more nervous. Even Donzolnia wasn't as hopeful; if Jendoza was injured, then they were both in trouble.

Tinozia got up and looked around some more, then called to the men again. "This way guys. They went this way."

The trail leading off the way it did went for a little while, then complete circled around and was heading back he way the men had come, until finally they came to another place in the grass that had been flattened by the weight of someone. They did not stay there long either, but went through the parted grass and traveled another short distance before finding a huge clearing.

The men got excited when they stepped into this clearing, for it was very large and it was clearly made by people, people that had had several fires burning.

Tinozia looked around. "I think we should stay here for the night. It's too dark to continue, and I am fairly sure they had to have come through here, and must be with whomever these people are."

Ivanolia wanted to object, but he knew Tinozia was right. They would get nowhere after dark, and it was likely that Jendoza and Braydalana were with other people. He nodded reluctantly, and set up his tent.

The time was passing quickly for Jendoza and Braydalana. Ayla was taking care of them impeccably, which caused Jendoza to wonder further about the people of the clan. They had healers; who would have ever thought?

They had also met most of the clan women, all of whom had found some reason to visit the medicine woman at the hearth, but Ayla knew they came to get a glimpse of the Others people. Ayla introduced them all politely, not expecting the two visitors to remember all of their names. Uba came often, and brought her babies most of the time, which pleased the girl. Braydalana loved looking at the clan babies, and Jendoza was secretly happy to see them too. Ovra brought her babies once too, and allowed the girl to hold them, much to the girl's delight.

Braydalana was excited about every new thing she saw, and was picking up the clan's hand signs very quickly. Jendoza was actually quick to learn too, but not as quick as the child.

Ayla's Sungaea was much improved as well; she, along with Grov and Durc, were quite proficient in a very short time. Jendoza had never seen people learn a language so fast. There were some others that were learning it too, but didn't have the close contact, or were learning it second hand.

Vorg was mixed and he could make the sounds easily, but he did not like to sit with the women and learn, so though he understood it quickly he was not doing as much speaking. Ura was learning some, but for her the proximity of her hearth, made it harder for the child to pick up the new spoken language. Ora was learning it quickly as well, but she wasn't learning from sitting with the women either; Ayla worked with her each night, and she was progressing quite well. Others that were learning were Uba, Oga, Brac and Grev. They were not able to say a lot of the words, but it was not stopping them from trying, and it was becoming a fun game. Ayla could understand them; no one else could, but it was okay, and they could understand just fine.

The four searcher rose early yet again, and followed the tracks of the people. Tinozia told them that it was a large group of people, at least twenty, and then told them that they were very heavily burdened; probably from a hunt. The men continued to travel.

The next day the men's traveling brought them to a large valley, where they could see a cave at the other end. They were excited that the had finally come to a cave when the strangest thing happened. The men were talking about their approach; they did not want to frighten the people and cause trouble, but at the same time, they did not want to wait to get their people back. While they were having their discussion, a few people came out of the cave. Ivanolia was watching, and then gasped, "Flatheads! This is a cave of flatheads," he said starting to rush forward.

Donzolnia grabbed his friend, and tried to calm him. "Ivan, we have to see what's going on there. We cannot go rushing in. You know how strong the flatheads are. We have to be careful."

Ivanolia shook his head, and sank to the ground. Brulenzia sat down near the man. "We will watch them, and see what they are up to. We don't even know if Jendoza and Braydalana are here, but if they are, we will get them." The man clasped the other man for reassurance, and they began their spying.

**************************************************  
><strong>Found<br>**

For the next few days the four men watched the flatheads, and saw no sign of their missing people. In fact, they saw no sign that there were actually any women among these men. The flatheads came out in small groups, and appeared to be teaching boys how to hunt.

Ivanolia was getting very tense at the idea that Jendoza and Braydalana may actually not be there and that they were wasting time by sitting by and watching these animals. Donzolnia thought there was no way the woman and the girl could be anywhere else, and figured that if these animals could survive on their own, then they must be able to help an injured woman, and feed a lost child. He was not so worried. The other two men, Brulenzia and Tinozia, tried to be supportive to the other two men.

Ayla had been spending a tremendous amount of time with the clan's visitors, and was immensely enjoying their conversations, and learning about the ways of the Others.

Jendoza too, had learned much of the Clan, and she was rethinking all of her people's preconceived notions of the ones they all called flatheads. They _were_people. Different people that was for sure, but people nonetheless. All she had to do was watch Braydalana play with their children, and she could see the amazing similarities.

Braydalana played mostly with Orga and Nala, though Igra joined them sometimes. Ayla had explained that Igra was a woman, and had other duties besides play, which caused the two women to have a conversation about the differences in ages in Clan and Others people. Ayla was finally relieved that she was not slow to develop those many seasons ago, just one of the Others.

One morning Braydalana spent sometime making something that Ayla had not seen before, but Jendoza thought it was a great idea. Braydalana made the girls dolls. When she gave them to Orga and Nala, the girls did not know what they were for, but the visitor explained that the purpose was for play, and shortly afterward every little Clan girl was wanting one, even Ora, who was only two. The people of the cave found it humorous that their girls carried around the little representations of babies, and acted as though they were actually real babies.

"Kiss it, Mamma," Ora said as she came in with her 'baby.' Baby need you hold." Ayla smiled at her daughter and kissed the doll.

Jendoza was also curious about the hawk, and asked question after question about him. Ayla told her how she acquired Shriek, and everything she had had to go through to keep him. Shriek had actually grow quite a bit, he was now full size, with a wing span wider than many of the clan women were tall, and his tail feathers had matured into the deep red color of adulthood. He was a light morph adult; white underwings with dark carpal bars on the leading edges, dark outer primary tips and a dark trailing edge. He was a beautiful specimen.

Ayla told Jendoza that Shriek was the one that had found her, and led the Clan to her. The woman was impressed that a bird could be trained, and that it was capable of assisting in a search. As far as she knew, it had never been done before.

Ayla also expressed sadness that Shriek did not always stay in the cave anymore, but instead went out on hunts on his own. Ayla hoped that when she was allowed to hunt again, she could go out with him and they could work together. Her only consolation now was that he always returned at night; he knew where home was. Ayla obviously considered the hawk one of her children; Jendoza smiled at the thought.

On another morning, Ayla decided that Jendoza needed some fresh air, and went to talk to Grov about getting the woman outside. Ayla didn't see Grov in the hearth so she approached Broud, and lowered herself to the ground gracefully. Broud had been sharpening one of his spears when the woman came to him. He tapped her shoulder.

"This woman would like to take the woman, Jendoza, outside. If I go prepared a place for her, would you help me bring her outside?"

Broud had not spent much time with the Others woman, but had watched her, and despite not being capable of speaking to the woman verbally, he had acquired many new words sounds and could understand much of what was being said. He was amazed that so much could be understood by mouth sounds. He grunted an affirmative to the medicine woman, and went back to his work.

Ayla returned to the medicine hearth, and told Jendoza that what she wanted to do, then left with Braydalana, and an armload of furs to make the woman comfortable outside. Ayla found Grov in the passages to the northern entrance, and explained what she wanted to do again, and told him that she would like to gather as well. He stopped what he was doing to relieve his mate of her furs, as she was getting huge, and could hardly manage what she was carrying. Ayla gave him a grateful kiss, and took the child's hand.

At the other end of the valley, then four men sat watching the cave entrance and the comings and goings of the flathead males, and didn't expect the sight that was about to be revealed to them.

It was Ivanolia that saw the tall man exit the cave, with his arms full, then a blond woman, who from the great distance, looked very similar to Jendoza, and then finally a child. He did not have to look twice to know that he child was Braydalana, though he had decided that the woman was not Jendoza. The man jumped up, and smacked Donzolnia in the arm. Donzolnia, who had been leaning against a rock and dozing, opened his eyes, and sat up. "What?"

"I see Braydalana, let's go," he said getting up, and starting to walk across the valley.

Donzolnia looked across the valley, and frowned. "Ivanolia, we can't just barge in there. Slow down, Bray isn't hurt. We can see that she is fine," he said holding the man back. "Let's watch a little while longer, and decided what is best."

By this time, Tinozia and Brulenzia were watching closely as well.

Grov dropped the furs, and Ayla arranged them on the ground. Braydalana sat down on the and smiled. "This will be good. Jendoza will be very comfortable."

Ayla looked over everything and decided that they needed some food and drink as well, so she went back in to let Broud know she would be ready soon, and to get some food. Grov stayed with the girl while she left.

Inside the cave Ayla spoke to Broud first, who said he would do it when he was finished with his spear. Ayla then went to Oga, Aza and Eka to see if they wanted to join her in foraging outside. They all agreed, and got their gathering things together, and their mates decided they would go out too, as the boys could use some hunting practice.

The four searchers watched as one by one more and more flatheads exited the cave, and began various tasks, but the blond woman had not returned. Ivanolia was starting to get frantic about his mate's daughter being surrounded by animals. Donzolnia, not sure how much longer he would be able to hold the man back, watched nervously, hoping that they would receive some sign telling them they could approach.

Then, suddenly the blond woman appeared again, this time swinging a small child around. She brought the child over to the furs and sat her down next to Braydalana, who handed the child something. Then, a few boys exited the cave, and joined some of the men that were off to the side practicing with spears. Finally, a flathead came out of the cave carrying a woman, and Ivanolia exploded. "There she is! That's definitely Jendoza," he said pointing angrily. The man jumped up, and started running across the valley. Donzolnia had tried to stop his mate's brother, but he had missed him as the man ran by. The three men had no choice by to run after the man.

**************************************************  
><strong>Ayla Goes Down<br>**

Ayla thanked Broud for his assistance with a cup of water, and got Jendoza comfortable. Most were busy with the tasks they had come out to accomplish, and did not see the approaching Others until Durc came running over. Broud heard the boy talking to his mother, and understanding the language, looked up to see the men crossing the valley at a run. He was immediately up and on the defensive. Grov signaled the woman and children to sit on the blanket with Jendoza, which they did, and stood with Broud. Ayla stood in front of the woman, blocking Jendoza's view, to see what would happen.

Dorg and Daub glanced at the women and saw Ayla standing protectively over them and decided to join Broud and Grov. They did not want these Others near their women; they knew what many of the Others did to Clan woman, and they would not allow it to happen to their women.

In no time flat, the four Others men had crossed the valley and came face to face with the flatheads, who with the exception of the mixed one, where all shorter than them. Ivanolia's face was red from the run, and from rage that the flatheads where holding their people captive, and wanted to fight. Donzolnia, on the other hand, did not want to fight the flatheads; he knew that although they were shorter, they were much stronger, and he attempted to restrain his mate's brother. To his side, Donzolnia could see that Tinozia was doing the same thing with Brulenzia, and the flatheads were standing united against them. The men of the Clan had no idea why these Others were so angry, but they were ready to stand and protect.

Jendoza couldn't see what was happening, but she recognized the voice of her brother, and pleaded with Ayla to intervene. Ayla hesitated, she had been told to stay with the women, but decided that Jendoza was right; the men would hurt each other if she did nothing. Ayla signaled Vorg and Brac to stand up, to take her place, then rushed off.

Ivanolia was so mad that not even Grov could understand him. The Clan men had never seen such a display in a man before, well, except for Broud the season before, and they were confused by the hostility, and the volume at which the man's voice had been raised to. Ivanolia managed to throw a punch, which hit Grov in the chin, knocking him back, but not down. Grov turned on the Others man, and was about to retaliate when Ayla ran up and positioned herself between the eight men.

"Not fight!" she screamed, placing a hand on Grov's chest and Ivanolia's chest at the same time. "This not good. Men not fight each other!" The two men on either side of her were not looking at her, both intent on glaring at the other, but both had heard her. Ivanolia wasn't ready to listen, and instead continued to struggle against Donzolnia, and was able to throw the man off, and go after Grov again.

Ayla again went between them, but this time one of Ivanolia's swings hit her square in the arm, which caused her to cry out, bringing Grov to his senses, so that turned his back on Ivanolia, and pulled his woman out of the angry man's path. The other three Clan men took his position, as he did this. Ayla looked at Grov with tears of pain in her eyes. "He is Jendoza's sibling, they say brother. You must stop this." Then she turned to shout at Ivanolia again, but didn't even get a word out. She instead was racked with pain, as a huge contraction tore through her middle, causing her to fall to the ground. Ayla looked up at Grov. "I need Uba. Someone get Uba." Grov signaled for someone to go.

Everyone stopped what they were doing. Ivanolia was mortified that he had hit a woman, and now she was on the ground in labor. Tinozia and Brulenzia went to the man, as they could see the angry flatheads glaring at him. Donzolnia, who was much more calm than the rest, looked at the woman, and gasped. She bore a striking resemblance to Jendoza, though taller, and possibly younger. When he finally got Ivanolia to really look at her, he gasped as well.

Grov quickly carried Ayla over to the blanket, where the women sat in fear, and Jendoza was finally able to see her brother and mate, but she could not get up to go to them, and they were being prevented to coming to her. Braydalana, on the other hand, was perfectly capable of getting up, and no one cared what the girl was doing for the moment; she got up and ran to the man of her hearth. Ivanolia smiled weakly at the girl, but didn't know what to do.

Braydalana looked at Ivanolia, and then back at the men of the Clan with no fear in her eyes. "This my mother's mate. Not hurt him. He not understand," she gestured to the three Clan men, then turned toward the men of her camp. "This is Broud, Dorg and Daub," she said, and then pointed to the man that Ivanolia had hit. "That man is Grov and he is their healer's mate."

Ivanolia looked at the girl closely. "Healer? They are flatheads, how can they have a healer? What in Sumata's name is going on here? Why is this woman living with these animals? And mated to one of them. . ." The man had walked away from the child, and was pacing around angrily, ranting about the wrongness of the whole situation.

Braydalana went to the man, reached up and pulled on the man's tunic, which caused him to look down at her again. "They are not animals," she said calmly. "Not flatheads. Look at them, they are different than us, but they are not animals." The man was shaking his head, and had a disbelieving look on his face, but the child was insistent. "Ivanolia," she said again to get his attention. "We are related to this Clan."

That got the man's attention. "What did you say? How could that be possible?" The child smiled, and told the man to wait, then she went over to the blanket and picked up Ora, who was completely oblivious to the commotion. She looked at Ayla, who nodded her permission. Grov tried to object, but between breaths Ayla gestured, "it will be okay. Let her take Ora."

Braydalana carried Ora over to the men of _her_clan, and let them look at the child. "This is Evenora's daughter."

**************************************************  
><strong>Brulenzia's Assistance<br>**

The four men stared at Braydalana and the child she held, and three of them were speechless. This time it was Brulenzia that had something to say. "What? How could this child be Evenora's daughter? She disappeared years ago." But even as he said it, he examined the child, and could see the uncanny resemblance to the girl he had once loved, and had always hoped would return one day so they could mate. "If she is Evenora's child, then where is Evenora?" he said looking around, with hope of seeing the woman from his past.

Braydalana leveled a look at the man. "Evenora is dead. She died over a season ago while living with part of this clan."

Now it was Brulenzia's turn to become angry. "What? How did she die? Where is her mother and her mother's mate? Are they here?" Braydalana's look told him that they were all gone, but his anger had upset the child. Ora started to cry. Braydalana carried the child back to the blanket, where to men could see Grov take her and hug her and comfort her.

Brulenzia stiffened at the sight of the flathead touching Evenora's child, and he almost sprang back into attack mode. Now it was Ivanolia that was calm. He could see that Jendoza and Braydalana were safe, so he tried to calm his friend down.

When Braydalana returned, she did so with Jendoza, who was carried by Goov, who had just come out of the cave, with the rest of the clan. The four Others men were shocked at how many people lived in this cave. "I count forty-eight of them, including the children and babies," Tinozia whispered to Donzolnia. The four men paled.

Donzolnia took Jendoza from the flathead man, and hugged her. "Are you okay?"

She smiled and nodded. "I am fine, except for my sprained ankle, but it is healing. Put me down, I can stand on one foot." Donzolnia did as his mate asked, and she turned toward her brother. "Ivan, you should hold your temper. We are fine. These people have been helping us. If it wasn't for them, I would have died, and so would Braydalana."

Then she turned toward Brulenzia. "Yes Bru, that is Evenora's daughter, and the man that you are glaring at used to be mated to her before she died in the earthquake last season. Don't look at me like that, it is true, and he loved her dearly."

Then she looked at all three men, and went on. "And there is something else you need to know. . .I think, though I am not positive, that the pregnant woman, Ayla, is our long lost Andreyta. She has been living with this clan since she was five seasons, and that is as long as Andreyta has been missing. I am sure you can see the resemblance between Ayla and myself, and the child Ora."

Jendoza watched her words register in the men's faces. "These _people_are our kin. We must stop this fighting." She could see Brulenzia's defeat, as the man sat down where he was. Tinozia kneeled to comfort his friend, Ivanolia stood near them in shock, and Donzolnia continued to support his mate.

Jendoza then turned to look at the men of the clan, and knowing they didn't like to be looked at directly, tried to look down at the ground as she addressed them. Her words were nothing more than baby talk to them, but the meaning was clear. "Others not fight. Fight over."

Broud grunted, and went to join Oga, as did Dorg and Daub.

When Uba had arrived, she didn't have time to worry about the trouble. She handed Brev and Berc to another woman, and went directly to her sister. Ayla was calmed down now, but her contractions were continuing. "Ayla, your water has broken. I cannot stop the birth."

Ayla nodded. "That's okay Uba, it is not too soon for the baby to be born. I am pretty sure that I only have half a moon cycle left. The baby will live, as long as I live through the birth. . . aaghhhhhh . . . ," Ayla's gestures stopped and a moan escaped her lips as a contraction tightened her middle.

Uba tried to shoo Grov away, but he had no intention of leaving Ayla at this time. "What does she mean. . . 'if she lives through the birth'?" the man asked Uba urgently.

Uba looked at the man, wondering why he would not go. "Ayla almost died giving birth to Durc. Clan babies are too big for Others women to give birth to."

Grov thought about Nora's birth; she had had more trouble than other women too, but he thought that was because she was so small herself. No, that _was_the reason, he decided, because Ora had been much smaller than the other clan babies were. If the baby was Clan, then it would be difficult, if it looked like Ayla and Ora, it may not be life threatening. Grov looked around with fear; he could not lose another woman. "Uba, what can I do to help you?"

Uba looked at the man, and shook her head, wishing he would just go sit with the other men. "You could start a fire right there," she said pointing. "And get some water boiling. . .wait."

The medicine woman was carefully examining the woman in labor as she gave the man one handed gestures. She had inserted two fingers into the woman's vaginal opening to see how far the woman was into her labor and frowned. Then she looked at Grov again. "Have someone else do those things, you can get me more furs, and Ayla's birthing blanket. The baby will be here soon."

Grov's eyes widened, and he rushed off to get what the medicine woman had asked for. Uba was issuing commands to the other women, and gestured that she wanted Jendoza and Braydalana brought back over to her; she wanted to know what a normal birth was like for the Others.

When the Others saw the flatheads approaching them again, they stood up nervously, immediately defensive again, but Jendoza silenced them. "Stop it, Ivanolia! Brulenzia! It is okay. These people are good people." Then she looked at the girl. "Braydalana, I think we need some help. I do not understand the hand signal as well as you do."

The child came up and looked at the men. It was the one that had carried Jendoza to Donzolnia. "He is their Shogur. They say Mog-ur," she said looking back at _her_clan for a moment. "This girl would know what you want?" she said with the proper hand signs, though not the proper politeness.

Goov looked at the child, and decided he had not choice but to talk through her. "Our first medicine woman is in labor, and our second medicine woman would like to talk to Jendoza, about the birth of Others babies."

Braydalana looked back at her people and translated. "Their healer is in labor, and their other healer wants to talk to Jendoza about our people's birthing."

Jendoza's eyes widened. "But I know nothing about giving birth. I cannot help."

Brulenzia stepped up then. "I could look at her. I did spend some time in the healer's camp at the last summer meeting, and helped with one birth, but I am no healer."

Braydalana told the Mog-ur what had been said, and the man frowned; men did not help with birthings, but then he decided they did not have a choice. Jendoza asked to go too, she wanted to sit down again, so Brulenzia helped her back to the blanket, and Braydalana followed.

Uba, who had not been paying attention to the conversation across the field, was shocked to see the man approaching, but with Braydalana's explanation, she allowed the man to stay. Uba was further shocked when the man wanted to examine Ayla for himself, and Ayla became nervous at this herself, and balked at the idea of a man touching her the way he would have to to examine her.

When Grov came back, and saw Brulenzia kneeling on the blanket, and Ayla looking nervous, he rushed forward to stop the man. "Do not touch my woman!" Grov said adamantly.

Brulenzia looked at Grov, and stood up as well, knowing that this man had been mated to the woman that he had loved as a child, suddenly realizing that he was now mated to Evenora's cousin. The two men's eyes were locked in a battle of wills, which was broken only by another one of Ayla's cries.

Both men looked down Ayla and dropped to their knees. Brulenzia looked at the woman's face. "Among our people, not all healers are men. I am not a healer, but I have helped deliver a child before."

Braydalana told Uba what the man had said, but Uba shook her head. "Tell him I just want to know how long women of the Other take to have their babies. This one is coming fast."

Braydalana looked at Brulenzia and told him what she had said. "I could take days or minutes, depending on the woman and the baby," he answered when Braydalana translated. "But, I cannot know if she is okay if you will not let me look at her."

Uba sighed, and Grov was shaking his head. Ayla went into another spasm of pain, and when it ended she nodded at the man, and quickly silenced Grov with one of her defiant looks. Uba moved over, and watched the man's exam. He did everything she had done, which reassured her that he did know what he was doing. "I can not feel her cervix anymore, the baby has entered the birth canal. It will only be a matter of pushes." While he was still examining her, her uterus contracted again, and she cried out, tears of pain coursing down her cheeks. Brulenzia looked around for a small stick, and when he spotted one, he got up to go get it.

When he came back with the small stick, he washed it, and told Ayla to bite down on it with the next contraction, and push hard. The next contraction came and went and Ayla took a few breaths, then it started in again. On the next contraction, Brulenzia smiled. "Ayla, I can see the baby's head. It's coming."

Ayla smiled when the contraction was over, and looked at Grov. He looked terrible, she thought, but there was no time to comfort him, because another one had started, and Ayla bore down hard. It did not last too long.

Uba had gotten the warm water and was washing the woman's opening when yet another pain began, causing Ayla to whimper quietly, as she pushed hard. The baby's head came out with a pop, and Uba was happy to see that Ayla did not even tear this time. The contraction ended with the baby's head out.

"One more contraction Ayla, and you will have your baby," Uba gestured. Then seeing the woman tense. "Here we go."

Uba guided the baby out, but it was Brulenzia that caught it, and cleared out its mouth. He wiped the child off, and smiled. "Ayla, you have a daughter," he said smiling and handing her the baby.

Uba was surprised at how small the baby was. She had never seen one so small. Soon Ayla's uterus contracted again, and Uba helped her deliver the after birth. Then, the second medicine woman cleaned the new mother up, packed her with absorbent wool, and went to tell the leader about the child.

Brulenzia backed off, and watched Evenora's cousin, and the man that was her mate. They were positively giddy over the birth of the child. Then Ora toddled up to them, followed by a mixed child, wanting to see the baby.

Ayla held the baby to her breast, and smiled at the other children. "Come see your sister," she said, leaving no doubt in Brulenzia's mind that the mixed child was Ayla's son. He must be of another man's spirit though, he thought, he does not resemble the man Grov at all.

Ora looked at the baby, and smiled. "Mamma, she so small," she said with words. "Smaller than me."

Durc looked at the baby too, and said, "she much smaller than any Clan baby I ever see."

Ayla and Grov looked at the baby and agreed with the children, then Ayla looked at Jendoza. "Is this normal sized baby for Others?"

Jendoza smiled. "Actually, she's bigger than many of the babies that have been born in our camp. I think Clan babies must be much bigger than our children, though their adults are not as big as ours." Ayla smiled down at her daughter, and closed her eyes to rest.

Brun and Goov sat together with the men, and waited to the news. The men had kept to topics unrelated to childbirth, but Goov could not help but glance over at the women periodically; he had been in Grov's place not long before and he _was_interested, he could not deny it.

When Uba came forward and dropped to the ground at Brun's feet. When he tapped her shoulder, the medicine woman looked up at him. "This woman is grieved to report," Uba gestured making the customary gesture of sorrow, "Ayla's baby is a girl."

Brun looked at the Mog-ur, they were both more concerned about the health of the child, not its gender. "And is it normal?"

Uba considered. "It is very small, but it is normal for a baby of the Others." The men grunted and went to look at the child.

**************************************************  
><strong>Brun's decision<br>**

Brun dismissed the medicine woman with a wave of his hand, and turned his attention back to the Mog-ur. They both looked relieved, but wanted to see the child just to make sure. The two men crossed the distance between the men and the woman that had given birth, and stood in front of her trying not to look directly at her. Both men noticed that Grov had stayed by her side through the whole birth; much like Goov had done for Ovra, and that one of the men of the Others had actually helped the women with the birth. Goov was extremely interested in this, though Clan custom forbid such close contact. Brun ignored the men and signaled that he wished to see the baby.

Ayla quickly pulled the baby from her breast, and unswaddled her, then held her up to the men as she looked away. As the sun glared into the baby's newly born eyes she roared with anger. Brun and the Mog-ur bent over to see the child, it was indeed the smallest human they had ever seen, and it appeared to have absolutely no control of it's own head. Brun frowned, and Goov counted its fingers and toes, as only the Mog-ur could. "She is tiny, but she seems to have all of her parts," the Mog-ur gestured to the leader.

Brun continued to frown, and looked at the angry baby some more. "But she cannot hold up her head."

Goov nodded, but then reminded Brun that Durc couldn't in the beginning either. Then something occurred to the Mog-ur. "Grov, is this child any different than Ora was when she was born."

Grov thought for a moment, looking over at the daughter of his first mate. . . his daughter, as Ayla said. . . . "No, Ayla's daughter is the same as Ora was."

Brun grunted, thinking that he did not want to have to have the woman dispose of the child. He knew all too well that she would get very upset. But what does it matter, he thought, she is just a woman. She will have to live with it, if that is what I decide. _But_, he thought, it is not good for the clan if the medicine woman is upset, and Ayla gives a lot to our clan. Then he thought of something else. He could ask the man of the Others that sat there watching them. "Grov, ask the man of the Others if their babies are all so small, and if they all not able to hold up their heads at birth."

Grov nodded and turned to Brulenzia. He already knew the answer to the first question, so he only asked the second. "Our leader wants to know if the children of your people always have babies that cannot hold up their heads."

Brulenzia and Jendoza smiled, and nodded, thinking it an odd question, and not knowing why it would be so important. Grov looked back at Brun. "Their babies are usually smaller than this at birth, and they cannot hold their heads up."

Brun grunted, accepting that he child was normal. "The baby is normal," Brun's gesture announced to the group at large. "She may stay with her mother. If she lives until the naming day, she will be accepted." With that, the two men turned and left.

Brulenzia and Jendoza had been part of the questioning, but they did not know what was going on. Jendoza had understood some of the conversation, but just not enough. Braydalana, who now understood a lot of the Clan signs, did not understand the customs, so she could not explain

Brulenzia looked at the new mother. "What did your leader say?"

Ayla looked at Grov and smiled brightly. "Brun said my baby is normal, and will be accepted if she lives to naming day."

Brulenzia looked at Jendoza, both were wondering the same thing. "What if it had not been normal? Then what?"

Ayla looked back at them. "Then I would have to dispose of it. Leave out for spirits to come take. I almost had to dispose of Durc. They thought him deformed, but he is not."

Jendoza frowned and looked at Brulenzia. Brulenzia shook his head, wondering what else Evenora and Ayla had had to live with. He got up and went over to the other three men that were still standing off to the side. When the man was gone, Ayla looked up again. "What is man's name?"

Jendoza smiled and named the man, and the other three, and get the woman their ties. "He is Brulenzia, and he loved Evenora even in childhood," she said looking into Grov's eyes. "They had always said they would mate, and he was crushed when her family left our lodge. He had never mated, though I keep telling him that he has plenty of time." Jendoza paused, then went on.

"The man with the very dark hair, that looks very much like Brulenzia, he is my mate, Donzolnia. He will be headman. . . leader, one day," she said with a smile. "And, I think that I am carrying a child of his spirit. The other dark haired man, the shorter one, he is named Tinozia, and he is our headwoman's son. And finally, the brutal man that hit you both," she said blushing with shame. "He is called Ivanolia, and he is my brother, and was mated to Braydalana's mother before she died."

Ayla waved away the woman's embarrassment. "Always trouble when Clan meet Others, but it okay now, right?" Jendoza hoped that it was so, but she was not so sure.

Ayla and Grov looked over at the men of the Others. Ayla had some questions. "You already explained headwoman, but why have one?"

Jendoza didn't really know why they had headwomen, but tried to explain. "Well, first our people believe that the Great Earth Mother gave birth to everything, and we feel that a woman is closer to her than is a man. You said that the Clan worships the Great Cave Bear Ursus, we worship the Great Mother, Sumata, though she has different names depending on what group of people you are with. For instance, the Mamutoi call her Mut."

Jendoza watched their faces for understanding, and then went on. Second, a headwoman is always the sister of the headman, well usually, sometimes she is an adopted sister if a man does not have a real sister. Like Durc and Ora," she said trying to give them an example. "Someday they _could_be headman and headwoman, if they were Sungaea." Jendoza wondered if it could ever really happen, since they were not Sungaea, and Durc was clearly mixed. She went on before they could ask questions. "We have actually adopted this practice from the Mamutoi, since we are related to them. And actually Ayla, speaking of being related, there is something else I want to tell you, but it might sound strange . . . I think you might be my cousin too."

Ayla's eyes widened. "How can it be? I do not know who my people were.

"Yes, that is true, but my mother's mate has a brother whose mate died ten seasons ago, and she had a daughter of five, who disappeared when she died. I think," Jendoza paused and swallowed, "that that child was you."

Ayla and Grov were thoughtful, and then looked over at the men. "Does that make Ivanolia my cousin too?

Jendoza nodded her head. Ayla looked over at the men again, and then smiled at Jendoza.

Grov, who had been listening but saying nothing, finally cut in. "Jendoza, did you say your mother's mate _has_a brother?"

Jendoza smiled at the perceptive man. "Yes Grov, Vincenzia is still alive."

Ayla sat there stunned for a minute. This was too much. First, Jendoza and Ivanolia were related to Evenora, Grov's first mate. Then, she finds out that she is probably related to them too. And finally, she just might be able to meet her real mother's mate, for he is alive and well. Ayla's eyes filled with tears, and she grabbed Jendoza around the neck; both women crying with joy. Then Ayla pulled back and smiled. "This woman would know if Others have aversion to looking at woman after baby is born?"

Jendoza frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Man of clan not look at woman until the spirits finished battling." Jendoza did not know what the woman was talking about, but then comprehension dawned on her, and she shook her head. "Would you ask the men if they will come meet us?"

**************************************************  
><strong>A New Hearth<br>**

Grov interrupted before the men could be signaled over. "I think it would be best if we ask for Brun's permission first. Women do not usually make such decisions, and men are not supposed to look directly at women during the time a woman's spirit is battling.

Jendoza almost laughed, but could see that the man was serious. He obviously didn't worry about looking at his mate during this time period, but she did not want to have her men commit any further error, and cause more trouble. _And_, Ayla was nodding that it would be best. Grov went to join the men of the clan, while the women watched, though they tried to make it appear that they weren't.

Grov approached Brun and sat down next to him. He could tell that the leader was extremely troubled by the appearance of these Others. "This man wants to let you know that the medicine woman is doing fine. I think she can move back into the cave." Brun grunted. That would make him feel better; he would not have to try to avoid looking at her.

"The medicine woman has asked that she be allowed to speak to the men of the Others. It seems that they may be related to her. Their mother's mates appear to be brothers." At these words, Brun gave Grov his full attention. "Apparently, one of their children has been missing for as long as Ayla has lived with your clan."

Brun looked over Grov's shoulder and looked at the men of the Others. "Yes, they do look similar. Do all Others look alike?"

Grov shrugged. "I do not know. I just knew Nora and her family. Our clan had many mixed people, but they were the only Others."

Brun looked over at Ayla again. "I want the Mog-ur to give you a charm so that your spirit cannot be damaged by being so near to Ayla right now. It could be dangerous to all of us." Grov could tell that Brun was seriously worried, so he nodded his head. He was not worried, because he had been convinced after hearing Nora's stories about a woman's. . .what did she call it? Moontime? Yes, that was it, a woman's moontime, but he figured it would not hurt to comply with his leader, and it would serve no purpose to argue. That was not the clan way.

Grov looked back at the men of the Others, Ayla's supposed kin, and he wondered if he would lose her to them, then he looked at Brun. "And what about the Others?"

Brun's brow furrowed. If he allowed them into the cave, they would most definitely be staying for a while, and he didn't want that, but he couldn't _not_allow Ayla's people to come in. They were after all, her people. "They may stay in the hearth next to the medicine hearth. Let's let that hearth be known as the visitor's hearth."

Grov grunted. "I am going now," he said and went to talk to the men of the Others.

Ayla had watched Grov speak to Brun and was relieved that Brun would let them stay. When Grov left the leader, he approached the Others, and Ayla could see stiffness in the man that she had never seen there before. She wondered about it, but it was not the time to ask.

Grov walked up to the men, and they thought the man almost glared at them. "_My mate_, Ayla, would like you to _visit_, if you wish." Across the small distance, Ayla could see her mate's upset posture, and it worried her. The men were talking to each other, and Grov said he would come get them when they could come in. When he finished talking to the Others, he returned to Ayla.

Ayla looked at him, still wondering. "Grov, will you help me get up?"

Grov smiled at her, and began to pick her and the baby up, while Uba picked up everything around the area. "Grov, I am not crippled. I have only had a baby. I can walk just fine," she said with a grin.

He returned her grin. "But you don't need to walk, this man wants to help you if he can." Ayla shrugged and then kissed him, then allowed her mate to take care of her.

Jendoza had seen the two of them together for the last eleven days, and she had already gotten used to the idea that her cousin was mated to a flathead man, and that she loved him. The men, however, were not used to it, Jendoza noticed, as she saw Ivanolia and Brulenzia redden, and turn away. Well, she thought, they always were the hotheads.

Inside the cave, Grov carried his woman and her daughter back to the hearth, as Durc trailed behind holding Ora's hand. Grov tried to set the woman down on the furs so she could rest, but she objected. "This woman cannot rest yet, Grov. I must go prepare the new visitor's hearth," she said putting the baby down on the bedding that had been so carefully set out for her. Ayla smiled at her new daughter, whom she had wrapped up tightly, then stood up to look at Grov. The man had an unfathomable expression on his face.

"Grov," Ayla said, looking deep into his eyes. "This woman would know what is wrong with you?"

He frowned. He had never been asked such questions by a woman; not even Nora had asked him such things, but then, maybe she wasn't able to see when he was upset. "Ayla, I am nervous about having the Others here," he said honestly, unable to avoid the direct question.

"But why Grov? Jendoza says they are my family."

Grov's frown deepened. "But Ayla, what if they want to take you back to your family?"

Ayla hugged her mate. "Grov, my family is here," she said hugging him again, and gesturing around the hearth. "These are the people that I have lived with for as long as I can remember. I would like to meet my mother's mate, and hear about my mother, but I would not go live with them. . . unless you went with me."

Grov still wasn't reassured. "Ayla, they do not like me. They do not like the Clan. This man can tell, and they do not like that you are with me."

Ayla was confused by her mate's sudden insecurity. This was something she had never experienced before. Men of the Clan were did not show their emotions, but Grov was, and Ayla felt bad. "Grov, I said I would not go." He hugged her tight, and helped her by making a fire in the visitor's hearth, and piling wood in the hearth as well. Ayla was not physically able to dig the trenches for the bedding, so he did it, while she readied the bedding. When they were done, Grov went back out to bring in the visitors. On the way back in, Braydalana led the way, talking excitedly about all that she had been learning.

**************************************************  
><strong>Defiant Again<br>**

Grov was bringing the Others to the newly set up visitor's hearth so that they could put down their belongings, but he had to take them through much of the cave just to get there. Their walk through the passageways had shown the Others the massive meat storage that was in the first open area to the left of the northern entrance. Next, they passed the oblong room, which housed their vegetable stores. Then they walked through the huge inner chamber of the cave where the fresh river water flowed against the back wall, and where the bathing pond sat in the center of the room. That room was on the chilly side, since not many people spent too much time in there, and there was only one fire burning. From there, they turned right, and went down a passage that led directly to the new visitor's hearth.

The trip through the cave was not long, and they were all commenting on the amazing size of the cave in which the flatheads lived, and were curious as to how much more cave there was. Grov led them silently, bristling at the "flathead" comment, but saying nothing. He knew what they had said, _and_what it meant, and he didn't like it.

After Grov had led the Others into the cave, Brun signaled that everyone should go back to their activities. People that had been inside, returned to where they were, and the one that were doing something outside, continued on with that, with the exception of Ayla, who now could not leave her hearth, except to go to the medicine hearth, or to go outside to relieve herself.

However, although everyone went back to his or her duties, no one was really able to concentrate. It seemed like things were changing faster than they could keep up with them. Brun reassured the men that this "visit" was only temporary, but many wondered about the things to come. That was strange, in and of itself, because the clan wasn't used to thinking _that_far into the future. Nevertheless, they were doing it, and it was causing a few headaches.

Broud felt extremely weird about the events. Unlike the other men, he had actually understood a lot of what the Others had said since he had, without meaning to, picked up a lot of the language from just being at Grov's hearth. Broud could see the apprehension in Grov, and guessed that the man thought Ayla might leave to go live with her kin. He could also tell that Grov did not like how the Others talked about the Clan.

Broud wasn't sure how he felt about Ayla leaving, after all, he had never liked the strange woman, but he had definitely softened up on his dislike for her, and had really accepted her place among their clan. As far as what the Others thought about the Clan, well, that part infuriated Broud, causing him to feel that he and Grov had to stand united against them. Broud still had is problems with Grov signaling Oga, but he would set that aside for the time being, and support the man of the hearth.

Broud had gone around the long way, so that he would not have to pass the Others in the visitor's hearth. He knew they would be at Grov's hearth soon, but he wasn't quite ready to have to see them just yet. He entered the hearth, and did his best to ignore the woman that had just given birth. Oga was there too. "Oga, I am taking Brac, Grev and Durc back outside to the practice field."

Oga nodded, and sat down with Ayla. "She is so small, Ayla. Much smaller than Durc was."

Ayla looked at her daughter, and smiled. "The Others tell me that she is big for one of their babies. I would love to see one of theirs, so that I would know for sure."

Oga looked amused. "I cannot imagine a baby smaller than this one."

Ayla agreed with the woman. "Hummm, Others are just different, I guess," she said. "You will have a baby soon, in just over three moons. Are you excited?"

Oga looked happy, but also a little nervous. "Yes, but Broud is worried that my totem could have been defeated by Grov's spirit, or another man's. I do not want to have a deformed baby." Then the woman blushed, knowing that everyone had considered Durc deformed, and only recently most were agreeing that the child was not. "I didn't mean that. . ." her gestures trailed off.

Ayla smiled. "Oga, I know what everyone thinks, and I don't care. Durc is not deformed; he is just part Clan and part Others."

Oga looked at the boy, as he walked out with Broud. "This woman thinks that your totem was defeated by Broud's totem spirit. Durc looks like him so much."

Ayla turned to watch the man and the three boys leave, and smiled. "Yes Oga, I think so too. Look at the way they walk. Durc walks just like Broud." The two women continued to talk until the Others arrived with Grov, then the got up quickly to make everyone tea. Grov tried to get Ayla to sit down, but she did not want these people, her long lost family, to think ill of her, so she protested, saying with gestures that she was fine.

While Oga made the tea, Ayla set out mats for everyone to sit on, and Grov hovered close. Donzolnia helped Jendoza to sit down; her ankle was much improved, but still very sore, then sat down next to her. Ivanolia sat on his sister's other side, with the child of his heart on his lap, while Brulenzia sat by his brother, and Tinozia next to him. The five of them had their backs to the hearth entrance, and Grov, Ayla and Oga took seats across the fire from them. No one knew what to say.

Jendoza looked around the silent circle of people, and sighed. "So Ayla, can I see your baby?" she said knowing that three of the men had not seen the child. Ayla got up, and picked up the child, which lay sleeping behind her on the sleeping furs. Then she brought her to the woman. Jendoza smiled down at the sleeping face, and leaned over to her mate. "Look Don, isn't she pretty?"

The man looked at the child that had been placed in his mate's arms, and had to admit the child was beautiful, not a sign of being an abomination, though the child was technically mixed. He looked at Ora, who had suddenly plopped down on his lap; she too had no trace of her flathead background. Donzolnia glanced at Grov; he obviously didn't have much clan in him either. He could almost pass; almost, but not quite.

Brulenzia had already seen the child, but looked again anyway. When he saw her before she was all wet and slimy, now she was cleaned up, and suckling as though she had something in her mouth. His hearth melted for the tiny child, but ached as well, for he should have had a child such as this with his beloved Evenora. Brulenzia cast a fleeting look at Grov, and could not help the look of jealousy that passed through his eyes. Brulenzia turned away from the man, and set his attention on the child again. He too thought she was pretty, but wondered what their camp would think of her.

Tinozia didn't really think much; he was considerably more tolerant than most, but Ivanolia didn't even want to look at the child. He didn't care that Brulenzia had said the child looked normal, and that Donzolnia thought she was beautiful. He couldn't believe either of his cousins had allowed these animals to touch them. A brief thought about how each woman had came to be with them crossed his mind, but he pushed the thought away, thinking that the people of their camp would not understand.

Jendoza was holding the baby, and cooing to her, then turned and looked up at Ayla. "What will you name her Ayla?"

Ayla's eyes opened wide. "Name her? A woman never names her child."

All the visitors immediately looked at the woman with astonishment, and in unison said, "What?"

Ayla got a little nervous, with all eyes on her, and stammered. "The Mog-ur chooses the name of a child. A woman can suggest a name to her mate if he allows, and he can suggest it to the Mog-ur, but it is not a woman's place to name a baby." Ayla looked at her mate, and smiled. "This woman would like to suggest the name Iza if you do not mind Grov. That was my mother's name."

Everyone was silent, then there were a flurry of voices, and finally Ivanolia blurted out, "No, your mother's name was Annalisa. You cannot give this child a flathead name. If you are going to _suggest_ your mother's name, then it should be your _real_mother." The man looked angry, and Donzolnia was trying to calm him down, but now Grov was getting angry too.

"What do you mean, 'a flathead name'? You are no better than us. Your names are not better than ours!" The two men were on their feet glaring at each other. Oga had gotten up and snuck out of the hearth. Jendoza was prevented from getting up due to her ankle, and the baby in her lap. Ayla, on the other hand, was quick to stand between the two men again, despite being hit earlier that day.

First, she gestured to Grov, so the Others would not understand. "I know you do not like them, but please calm down," she said with tears in her eyes. Grov noticed that his mate swooned slightly, and knew that she had lost a lot of blood not long before. He steadied her, and she looked at the other man. "I do not know why your people do not like clan, but this is our cave, and these are my people. People, Ivanolia, not flatheads, as you say. Not animals. Yes, I heard you say that too," she threw in at the end, and looked at the man defiantly.

Oga had rushed out to go get Broud. She found him just outside the western entrance, and kneeled at his feet. When he tapped her shoulder, she explained, and he dropped his spear to go aid Grov.

Inside, Grov was holding Ayla up. Broud noticed she looked extremely pale, but she was adamantly defending the Clan against her true people. He had always wondered why Brun had accepted her defiant ways, but now it was coming in handy. The Clan was not a bunch of animals, as they thought, and right now Broud was proud that Ayla was there to defend them. He stepped into the hearth, and went to stand next to Ayla and Grov, not even considering the fact that he was not supposed to have contact with the woman until her bleeding had stopped.

The Others looked at the trio, a flathead, an abomination, and one of the most beautiful women they had ever seen, standing there together, a united front against their prejudice. Ayla looked directly into Ivanolia's eyes, something she tried not to do among the Clan, and she set her jaw. "If you do not want to be here, then you can leave. These are the people that I love, my mate and our children, my friends, and my family," she said indicating the two men standing next to her. "I will not allow you to come in and say otherwise."

That was not the last discussion about the differences between the Clan and the Others, but Ivanolia did eventually learn to curb is nasty remarks. Ayla was extremely quick to jump to the defense of the Clan for the least infraction, and no one wanted to upset the woman.

Ivanolia secretly wondered if Ayla could ever fit in with their people, for many of their people would have the same strong feelings about the _Clan_that he did.

Jendoza felt tremendous embarrassment for her camp; thinking that they were very wrong in their option of these people. She had hoped that she could help bring Ayla home, but it did not look as though it would happen. Maybe that could happen later, she thought.

Brulenzia had watched Ayla and Grov, and decided that she did love her mate and he her. His jealousy over Evenora had not gone away, but he could finally put the girl that he had loved to rest. He wondered how they would tell Vincenzia that Andreyta lived, and where she was, and who she was with. It was going to be a difficult subject to broach.

Donzolnia felt bad for his mate's brother, his best friend, and wished they could take Ayla back to their camp to meet everyone, but he knew that right now it would not work. The camp needed to be forewarned, and Ayla was in no condition to travel anyway.

The days passed quickly, and on the seventh day the Clan, with the Others among them, waited outside at dawn for the naming of Ayla's daughter. The Others were very interested in the ceremony that would number the child among the Clan.

Ayla waited _waited anxiously for_ Goov's _signal that announced he was ready and the clan all gathered. When he beckoned, she hurried to join them and stood in front of Mog-ur, looking down at the ground while she uncovered_ the child. _She held the babe up while the magician looked over her head making the gestures that called the spirits to attend the ceremony. Then, with a flourish, he began._

Dipping into the bowl…he drew a stripe from the point

where a Clan baby's brow ridges would have been, to the tip of the child's tiny little _nose with the red-ochre paste._

"Ana-leeza, the girl's name is Annaliza," Mog-ur said slowly, trying desperately to pronounce the name that belonged to Ayla's real mother. _The naked infant, assailed by the cold wind that whipped past the sunny front porch of the cave, voiced a healthy howl which drowned out the approving murmur of the clan._

"Annaliza," Ayla _repeated, cuddling her shivering baby in her arms…. The members of the clan filed past, each repeating the name to familiarize themselves and their totems with the newest addition._Some of them said the name as it was given, others called the child Iza. It didn't matter to Ayla; she was happy that both of her mothers were represented in the child she held in her arms. Tears of joy coursed down her cheeks.

As the people past by, Ayla _was careful to keep her head down so she would not inadvertently look upon any of the men who came forward to acknowledge her_ daughter. When she saw Brun's feet, and heard him say the child's name, she smiled at the pleased sound of his voice. When everyone had gone by, _she wrapped the infant in warm rabbit skins_, and put her to her breast. Her daughter, Annaliza, was named and numbered among the Clan.

**************************************************  
><strong>Goodbyes<br>**

Another seven days passed quickly, and some of the clan started to wonder if the Others were ever leaving. It wasn't that they didn't like them. They had in fact learned a lot from one another; tolerance being one area of learning, but they were having difficulty with the volume of noise that the Others brought to their cave. The Others didn't mean to be loud, but their way of communicating was naturally that way, and the clan was having a hard time blocking out the sounds.

It was no different for the Others, they wanted to go back to their own people, and they had been talking about it on a daily basis, but Jendoza's ankle was still sore, and they were still hoping to convince Ayla to come meet her true family. Though Jendoza's ankle was healing quite well, there seemed to be no hope in getting Ayla to return with them. She may have spent five years living with the Sungaea, but it meant nothing to her; she didn't remember them at all, and she now had loved ones here.

Knowing that it may be a long time before she saw her again, Jendoza spent every waking hour with Ayla, trying to learn about her life with the clan, and telling the medicine woman about the Sungaea, and about the very little she remembered about Ayla's mother, Annalisa. Ayla was fascinated by the stories she heard, but extremely reluctant to agree to meet the Sungaea, after all, her mate and children may not be accepted.

Jendoza had been helpful in teaching Grov's hearth the Sungaean language, and she was not looking forward to leaving her cousin, but she knew the time was approaching. Jendoza spent so much time at the hearth, holding Annaliza, and talking to Ora, and teaching Ayla many other things that she knew she would feel a deep loss when they finally did leave.

One thing that interested Ayla greatly was the Sungaean way of making clothes. Jendoza was more than happy to show her how it was done, but had to acquire enough skins to make one. Extremely interested, Grov went to the storage area, and obtained what the woman said she needed, then returned to the hearth. Jendoza spent several days showing Ayla, and together they produced an outfit that fit Ayla perfectly.

Jendoza stood next to the woman that was wearing the new outfit, and admired her. She helped Ayla straighten the tunic over her breasts, and helped her to cinch the outfit at the waist. "I know we haven't decorated it yet, but you can do that yourself. It's actually somewhat tedious, but this is serviceable as it is. They are rather nice in the winter, when the wind is blowing and snow is high."

Ayla looked down at herself, thinking that the leggings fit rather snugly, but also that is was nice and warm. She walked around the hearth, and smiled. "This is much more comfortable that I thought it would be." From behind her, Shriek entered the hearth with a dead quail in his beak, and landed on the ledge. "There you are Shriek. I have been wondering where you have been."

Jendoza watched the woman with her bird. She hadn't thought about him much. It seemed like every morning he left the cave, and did not return until just before night. Ayla was no longer feeding him; he took care of that himself. Ayla had been wondering for some time if Brun would continue to allow him to stay, but it appeared that he had forgotten about her meat-eating friend. He hadn't forgotten about him, but the bird had caused no problems, and was useful in warning them against predators. Brun figured the hawk could stay, since he had become helpful.

On the day before the Others planned to leave, Brun decided to have a feast. He wanted the Others to leave thinking well of them. They had definitely learned a considerable amount from each other. The women worked hard that day, making different dishes to bring to the feast; Ayla of course made her favorite ptarmigan dish, which she had asked Grov to go hunt for her since she wasn't allowed to hunt, and Jendoza wanted to make a Sungaean meal. "How many people are there in this cave again?"

Ayla looked at her, and mentally counted up the people. "Forty-nine Clan, but five are too young to eat food, and six of you. So. . ." Ayla said, thinking hard. "That's fifty people, I think."

Jendoza was impressed with how fast the woman could count in her head, especially since she hadn't known how to count before they had arrived. Jendoza frowned. "That's a lot of people to cook for. How do you do it?"

Ayla smiled. "We not cook enough for all, we just cook some and everyone takes small portions, just to have a taste."

Jendoza was nodding, happy that she would not have to cook for so many. "That is how we do it too. I guess our people aren't so different, are they?"

While Ayla worked on her dish, Jendoza hovered over her watching, but Ayla had been making this for so long that she was finished with it quickly. Then it was Jendoza's turn, and Ayla was extremely interested in the new meal, as was Oga, who was also there cooking some food. The woman first told Ayla and Oga what they would need. "We will need some grains, and some liver, bison is fine, and some fat, and some eggs. I think the ptarmigan eggs would work okay. And oh, some salt, if you have it." Ayla nodded, and they went the storage. Ayla pulled out what the woman wanted, and then they went back to the hearth to get to work.

Back at the hearth, Ayla got the water boiling, as Jendoza had asked her to do, and then added the grains. "Boil them until they are crumbling, then fry them in the fat. About this much," she said, holding up a woven cup so that Ayla would know the amount. Jendoza gave Oga the job of boiling the eggs, and then she started a third pot of water boiling, and added salt to it. Then, when it was boiling, she added the liver. After the liver was boiled, Jendoza carefully cut it up, and dumped it into the fat, with the grains, then chopped up the eggs and did the same thing. While this was all going on, Jendoza also started a broth that could be served with her dish.

Ayla was starting to get hungry due to the aroma of foods that were wafting through the cave. Several people stopped by the hearth to see what the women were making, and many of them had stayed to watch.

When Broud returned to see all the women, he became somewhat upset, but didn't say anything. Then, Ora saw him, and toddled over, and reached up, crying, "Broud up!" Broud picked up the child, and looked around the hearth. Ayla and Oga were busy with all the women, and he did not feel like holding this child. "This hearth is too crowded," he finally said when he got the women's attention. "That's enough gossip, to back to your own hearths."

The women quickly did as they were instructed, and Ayla took Ora from the man. "Ora, leave Broud alone," she chastised. Ayla lay the child down on her bedding, and told her to take a nap. Broud watched her from the other side of the hearth, then decided he would go nap before dinner as well.

That night, the feast went well. Just as the sun went down, everyone congregated at the main fire to enjoy a good meal. Brun made a point of sitting with the visitors, and he had Grov sit with him as well so that he had a translator. It was an interesting evening, more formal than any other evening had been since the visitors had arrived.

Ivanolia and Brulenzia were offended that the women were expected to serve the men, while the men sat and did nothing. He felt that they had slaved all day on the meal, the least that could be offered to them should be that they eat first, but as usual, Donzolnia and Tinozia calmed the two men. "It is their custom. If they were at our camp, they'd have to do things our way. And besides, the women do not seem offended by it. Why do you care?"

The two men pouted for a while, but accepted their plates when they were brought. Ayla made a point of serving Ivanolia, and smiled at him, hoping to help him relax; it didn't really work. Then she went to Brun, and kneeled at his feet, and waited for him to take his plate. After he had, she got up and left, but realized Ebra was not around. Ayla glanced over at the leader's hearth, and saw the woman in bed sleeping. She wondered why Ebra was not at the feast, and figured she would go talk to the woman the next day.

After the men were served, the women got their own plates out. Jendoza sat with the women, on the other side of the fire, and they all had a good conversation. Ayla did a lot of translating, but Jendoza was making a considerable effort to communicate with signs. There were many times that she had Braydalana and Ayla laughing when she said something wrong, and he Clan women were very amused by this as well.

When the meal was done, they all gathered again for stories, which again needed to be gestured and spoken. Grov and Ayla took turns speaking as the storyteller told the story. The Others were surprised to hear stories that were similar to their own.

While the storytelling was going on, the children went off to play. Ivanolia watched the daughter of his heart playing with the flathead children, and he wanted to prevent her from playing with them, but one sharp look from Jendoza changed his mind.

Slowly, the night came to a close as men signaled their women to their hearths. The Others had shocked looks when the women got up, followed their mates to the hearths, then kneeled and presented in the clan way. Ayla tried to explain that that was the way of the Clan, but they did not understand.

Grov was having a conversation with Donzolnia and Tinozia off to the side, and hadn't missed their look when they saw Vorn signal Uba, but they continued with what they were saying without comment. Ayla quietly signaled that she was going back to the hearth to nurse Annaliza, and that she would wait up for him. He nodded.

"Jendoza, you have much traveling to do tomorrow. Are you going to bed?"

Jendoza had been staring into Vorn's hearth, but looked up at Ayla quickly, knowing she was being rude. "Ahhh, yes Ayla. I'm coming with you." There was a moment of silence as the women gathered up their things, and waited for Brulenzia and Ivanolia to join them, then the four of them went back to Grov's hearth. None of them said anything on their way back.

At the hearth, Ayla wasted no time in the feeding of Annaliza, and it was a good thing; the child was starving. Annaliza was fussing, and frantic, but when the nipple was offered, she quieted down immediately, and suckled herself to sleep.

Only Jendoza sat there with Ayla as she fed her child. The men had gone off to their furs. "I hope that you will come visit us some day. I know Vincenzia would want to see you. It will be most painful I am sure, but good for him I think. He has never forgiven himself for the death of your mother, or for your disappearance."

Ayla smiled. "I would like to, but I cannot stay with people that won't accept my family. I am happy with my _Clan_mate, and my three children. It has been hard here sometimes, but these people have been good to me."

Jendoza was nodding. "Well then, maybe I could come back to see you."

Ayla smiled again. "I would like that. And Jendoza, I did not say that I will not visit the Sungaea, I just cannot do it yet." Her smile got even larger. "Especially with this child latched onto my breast everyday all day."

Jendoza laughed.

When next morning came, and the Others were ready to leave, many people gathered outside to see them off. Not all came out; many were glad that the loud people were leaving. Grod did not come, but then he had always been bothered by Ayla's strangeness, and was content to ignore the Others.

Before they left, Donzolnia presented Brun with a gift, thanking him for helping his mate. Brun looked at the spear that the man presented him, and wondered how the strange looking spear could possibly be used, but thought it was interesting, and accepted it anyway. Maybe they would return someday and the man could show him how to use it.

Brun gave the man something in return; it was one long, unbroken cave bear claw that had come from the cave bear that had inhabited their cave before they had entered. Donzolnia accepted the gift with a smile. Brun did not know that at the Oak Camp, his hearth was the Cave Bear Hearth. When the men were done, Brun walked back to the cave. At the mouth, he turned around. "Walk with Ursus."

Ayla watched her leader enter the cave, then she turned and fell into Jendoza's arms with tears in her eyes. "I will miss you."

Jendoza's eyes were wet too. "I will miss you too, but we will visit. I promise." Jendoza hugged her cousin, then turned to Grov and hugged him too. "Take care of her Grov, and take care of yourself," she said with more tears in her eyes. Then she hugged and kissed the children, and went stand with the men.

Braydalana had to say her goodbyes too, and hugged each person in turn, finally ending by kissing Annaliza's forehead.

The four men waved goodbye as well, and as they turned to leave, they noticed that Ayla leaned against her mate for support. Grov looked down at her, and the child that she held, and smiled. Even Ivanolia had to admit that his cousin and her mate loved one another; that was impossible to miss.

**************************************************  
><strong>Finally Home<br>**

Ayla watched until the six people vanished from view, and then she and her mate went back into the cave. She had plenty to do with the visitors gone. There were now three hearths to clean, the visitor's hearth, the medicine hearth and Grov's hearth. She had definitely been neglecting her duties while the Others had been there. She was just glad that Grov had been so forgiving.

Once inside the cave, and working on the hearths, Ayla began to think of the things she needed to do afterward. Ebra came to mind; she hadn't been able to talk to the leader's mate for quite some time, and that needed to be a priority. Ayla finished the medicine hearth quickly; there had not been too much to straighten up in there.

As Ayla moved onto the visitor's hearth, she thought about the Other's clothing and decided she was going to make outfits for her children, and Grov too, if he wanted one. Ayla picked up the bedding of the visitor's hearth, and shook it out. Hummm, she thought, these beds need new straw padding, but "there's no need to put out new when no one's going to be here. I will just throw the old out, and leave the bedding here without padding," she said aloud, not even realizing she had spoken. When she finished the job, she looked around the hearth, and suddenly missed the people that had brought sound into her life. It seemed so quiet without them there to listen to.

Back at Grov's hearth, Ayla decided to put off the cleaning, and made some tea. Annaliza woke up, so Ayla nursed the child. The baby latched on and stared up at her mother with big eyes. Ayla couldn't be sure yet, but her eyes looked as if they would be blue. Ora watched her mamma, knowing that Ayla had never nursed _her_before, and sat quietly waiting for the woman to finish with the new baby. When she did, Ora crawled onto her lap, and asked to nurse too. Ayla smiled, happy that she could give the two year old what she had never been able to give her before, and offered her a breast.

When Grov returned and saw Ayla nursing Ora he too smiled, thinking about how much he loved his family. He was so glad that Ayla had not left with the Others, but at the same time, he felt bad that she could not go meet all of her people. Maybe they would have to make a journey. He had learned from the Others that they did that often, even though it was something unthinkable to the Clan. The only time a journey was considered was when disaster took their cave away. He'd have to think more about the matter, but if Ayla wanted to make a journey to see her people, he would definitely go with her. He looked at her again, sitting there nursing _his_daughter, and cooing to their new baby. Durc wasn't around at the moment, he thought, wondering where the child was, but the boy would complete his image of his family. Grov fixed his own tea, since Ayla was busy with the children, and then he sat down next to her, and caressed her back. He was rewarded with one of her beautiful smiles.

When Ayla finished nursing her daughters, she gathered them up and signaled to Grov that she was going to go see Ebra. "Ebra has been acting strangely, and I want to make sure she is okay." Grov nodded, and left to go find Dorg and Daub.

On her way, Ayla cradled her baby, and smiled at her luck of having a healthy baby girl; just as she had hoped for. Grov didn't seem at all displeased that she had given birth to a daughter instead of a son. She told herself that if she ever got pregnant again, she would wish for a son the next time, so that Grov would have a boy to train.

Those thoughts turned her mind inward as she walked. Ayla wondered about what her life would have been like had she been raised by her true family, but then she shook her head. I would not have Durc if I did not have the clan, and then Ura would not have a future mate. And, she thought smiling at her two daughters, I would not have Grov to love me, or these two beautiful girls to love and care for. Ayla was most happy with her life, even though she had lost her family and her people. At least she was lucky enough to have met them, and maybe they would come back someday.

While all this was going through the woman's head, she was passing through the passageway, almost silently. She had begun to hum a tune that she had learned from Jendoza. What was it, she thought? She figured she would never know.

When she got to the leader's hearth, she sat at his feet and waited for his acknowledgement. Brun was relieved to see the medicine woman there, Ebra was driving him mad with her constant fussing. He tapped her shoulder, and she looked up at him.

"This woman has come to see Ebra." Brun glanced over at his woman, who was busily cleaning the same area she had cleaned just the day before, then looked at Ayla and frowned. Ayla had followed his look. "That is why this woman is here, Brun," she gestured silently, even using the silent signal for the man's name so that Ebra would not be aware of their conversation.

Brun grunted, "Ebra, the medicine woman is here to see you." He cast one last glance at his woman, and left the hearth so that the medicine woman could work.

Ebra immediately jumped up, and hurried over to make tea. Ayla watched her with a critical eye, trying to remember when it was that she had first noticed Ebra's strange behavior. Ayla was thinking that the woman may just be getting old, but she had not seen other old women acting this way. "Ebra?" Ayla hesitated until the woman looked at her. "Are you okay? This woman is worried about you, and Brun is worried about you too, I think. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Ebra thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I feel fine Ayla. I just seem to have so much energy all of a sudden. A while back, all I could do was sleep; I was so tired, but now I just want to clean things. It's good actually, I hardly lifted a finger while your people were here, I have so much to do." The woman turned back to the fire and fixed them their tea.

When it was finished, Ayla had to coax the woman to sit with her. "Ebra, come talk to me. Don't you want to hold Annaliza?" Ayla smiled at the leader's mate, and held the baby out to her. Ebra's eyes brightened, and she took the child. Ayla was glad that she had taken the child, it would give her a chance to drink her tea before it was feeding time again.

Ebra looked at Ayla's tiny baby, and caressed the baby's tiny hand; which opened up at the woman's touch and grabbed her finger. "Though I have never seen a baby of the Others before, I imagine that she is beautiful." Ebra extracted her finger from Annaliza's hand and touched her short, wispy, white hair. "I think her hair is lighter than I remember yours to have been when Iza found you."

Annaliza gurgled slightly, and wriggled in her tight wrap, and let out a small cry that told Ayla she was content. Ayla smiled at the older woman holding her child, and looked at Ora, who sat nearby playing with her doll. Ayla watched for a time, and didn't say anything to the woman. Ebra appeared to be lost in thought. Then Ayla noticed something strange; the front of Ebra's wrap was wet. Ayla thought for a moment…had it been wet before? No, she decided, it had not been. Instinctively, Ayla reached forward, and touched the wetness, then before Ebra could object, she moved the woman's wrap aside, and gasped.

"Ebra, you're pregnant!"

Ebra looked shocked, and shook her head. "Ayla, you know I'm too old to be pregnant. I'm just getting fat. I have eaten too much."

Ayla smiled at her and laughed out loud, causing a few people to look over at them. When everyone had turned back to what they had been doing, Ayla stared at the woman hard. "Ebra, you are not getting 'fat.' You are definitely pregnant. Look at you," Ayla said at she touched the woman's abdomen. "You must be at least halfway done with your pregnancy. When was your last woman's curse?"

Ebra thought about it for a moment. "It was sometime during winter. After the big feast…after Oga said she was pregnant." Her eyes were unfocused as she struggled to recall. That in itself troubled Ayla for the clan never forgot anything. Maybe Ebra was too old to have this baby, she thought. "But Ayla, I thought I was just becoming an old woman, but this is wonderful. I always wanted to have more children, never understood why the spirits had not given me more."

Ayla looked at her, and decided instantly that this would be good for the woman. Ayla smiled at her. "Well okay then, let's examine you so we can make sure everything is going the way it should, and determine when you're due." Ayla fluffed the bedding, took Annaliza from the woman, and indicated that she should lie down.

Ayla did her regular gynecological exam, and decided that Ebra was well into her fifth moon. Ebra was beside herself, but suddenly became a little nervous. "Oh Ayla, I have not done this in so long. What if I _am_too old for this?"

Ayla smiled again. "Don't worry Ebra. You may be _older_, but you are healthy, and you have the whole cave to help you, if you need it. And, I'm sure you will know how to do this again. Would you like me to go talk to Brun."

Ayla's last words caused the woman to pale, she had not even thought about what her mate would think. What if he did not want another child at his hearth. She had done such a poor job of raising Broud, she wondered if Brun would even allow her to keep the child. Ayla could almost see the woman's thoughts, and she tried to reassure her with a touch. "I will go talk to him right now. Can I leave the girls with you?" Ebra nodded and took Annaliza back.

Ayla approached Brun, who sat in Grod's hearth, but waited outside the second in command's hearth for the leader to acknowledge her. The two men saw the medicine woman standing there, and Grod waved her in. Though men did not usually discuss the woman with each other, the leader was concerned enough to mention it to his second.

Ayla came in and sat at Brun's feet. Grod watched. The woman had always somewhat unnerved him, and now was no different. Brun tapped Ayla's shoulder, and Ayla looked up into his liquid brown eyes, and saw his fierce concern and love for his mate. She instantly knew it was going to be okay.

"This woman has two things to report. The first is that Ebra is fine. There is no need to worry." Ayla waited while Brun sighed and then glanced at Grod.

"And, what else do you have to report?"

Ayla tried to hide her smile, since she knew Grod did not like it, and she looked at Brun once again. "Ebra is pregnant Brun. She has been pregnant since winter, but she did not know it. She thought she was becoming an old woman."

Brun's eyebrows shot up, and he looked over at Ebra, who sat in their hearth holding Ayla's new baby. His mate somehow looked more lovely than ever before. Brun got up, signaled his departure to Grod, and went to his woman.

Ayla and Grod watched the man go. Grod wondered what it would be like if Uka were to have another child this late in life, and he hoped that she didn't. Ayla was happy for Brun and Ebra; somehow she knew _this_new baby would be nothing like its big brother. Ayla looked at Grod, then backed up to leave. "I am going now." He grunted.

Ayla didn't want to disturb the leader and his mate, but had no choice since her children were in the hearth. Ayla silently entered the hearth to pick up the girls, but Brun stopped her.

"Ayla, are you sure Ebra is going to be okay?"

Ayla looked at the two of them. "Ebra is a healthy woman, and Iza said she had an easy delivery before. I see no reason why she won't do fine again. This medicine woman believes Ebra is capable of bringing another healthy baby to your hearth." Brun grunted, and turned his attention back to his woman. Ayla gathered her children and left the hearth.

Not too far away, the small band of Sungaean travelers were nearing their home. They had traveled the short distance between Brun's clan's cave, and Oak Camp quite quickly, but figured that it would be empty. It was well into the summer, and the people may have already left for the summer meeting.

The beginning of the journey had been heated with debate over the Clan, and Ivanolia was now pouting in silent protest; he just could not understand Andreyta's position. He wouldn't even call her by her _clan_ name. Donzolnia had given up; it didn't look likely that Ayla would come live with them, or even come visit, but Jendoza was adamant that he give it up, and accept the truth; Ayla loved her _people_, and they were just that, people.

Jendoza wanted to tell everyone about her long lost cousins, one was dead, but the other was alive and well, and living not too far away. Vincenzia at least had to understand, didn't he, she thought?

She watched the men as they traveled, and decided it was only Ivanolia that had the problem. Donzolnia clearly did not care, and Tinozia, he was open as well. She was a little concerned about Brulenzia, but she could see that he had turned inward, and he was working it out for himself; he had put Evanora to rest, and was ready to move on. Braydalana was the only one chatting insistently; talking about her new family members, and their time with the Clan. Jendoza could see her brother cringe every time the child opened her mouth.

It was very early in the morning when they finally came around the corner to see their Mamutoi style Earthlodge, with smoke coming out of the smoke holes. The six travelers entered through the main entrance, and shed their outer clothing, and called to the people of the lodge; obviously at least some had stayed behind.

**************************************************  
><strong>Arrival and Departure<br>**

"Hallooooo, anyone awake?" Ivanolia shouted as they went from the entry area to the cooking hearth. Immediately the sounds of people getting up reached them. Fraylora appeared in her sleeping clothes and her pale hair disheveled, and embraced her granddaughter. Braydalana smiled at the woman. "Hallo grandmother."

Serana rushed Jendoza and Ivanolia, and hugged them both with gusto, and planted a big kiss on her son. She was a woman of average height, but great strength. "I was beginning to think you were not coming back. What in Sumata's name took you so long?" Serana was the type of woman to say exactly what she thought. Jendoza laughed, thinking that Ivanolia was just like their mother.

Ivanolia was about to speak, but Jendoza cut him off. "I had a bad sprain, and we were being cared for by a cave of people to the south when these brutes found us," she said jabbing her brother in the ribs. Ivanolia gave his sister a dirty look and snorted, but he didn't say anything else. Jendoza returned his look and smiled at her mother.

Serana looked at her daughter. "Sprained? Well, get off that ankle! We don't want it damaged further. Ivan, sit your sister down."

While that was going on, Zarina came up quietly, and hugged both of her sons, and smiled. She barely came up to their chests. "I see you young men did what you went out to do; found our missing girls. You were gone almost a whole moon cycle, we were definitely beginning to worry."

Donzolnia embraced his mother, and smiled down at her. She was one of the quietest people he knew, and the fear he heard in her voice upset him; he had not meant to frighten her. "Sorry mother, but we traveled far out of the way following their tracks, then ended up going pretty significant distance to the south, and finally found them with a large cave of people near the peninsula. Jendoza was injured so we had to wait."

Brulenzia kissed his mother's forehead, and held her tightly. It was obvious that the two men cared deeply for their mother, and she for them.

Tinozia looked around. "I suppose mother and Wäglodia have left for the summer meeting."

Another man came into the room suddenly, and smiled. "Yup. They left just yesterday morning. Had to get your sister to the first rites camp. Took Fürlasa and Laurana with them as well. How about a hug for your uncle Tag," the man said and grabbed his sister's son tightly.

Tinozia laughed heartily, and hugged the Tagnolia back. "Three new women? We were gone only one moon cycle and now there are three new women? I think we need to expand the lodge…we're likely to have more people with a season or so."

At hearing the news, Ivanolia looked interested. "Hummm, we better get going…looks like I have another sister to look after; and to keep away from all the men."

Jendoza elbowed him again. "Ivan, you never once kept me away from the young men. Give it a rest!"

Ivanolia gave her a shocked look. "I did try to keep men away from you, little sister. It's just that you only had eyes for Donzolnia, and never noticed that others were looking at you.

Donzolnia was smiling at the banter between his mate and her brother. "I think Ivanolia was keeping the men away from you so I could have you all to myself."

At that Ivanolia smiled at his friend. "What are best friends for?"

Tagnolia burst out laughing. "Well, it's good that were all back together, and we do need to get to the summer meeting, but first I want to hear about your unexpected journey south. You say you were injured?"

Jendoza smiled, and laughed. "You don't know that half of it, but I need to talk to Vilognia and Vincenzia."

Tagnolia was encouraging the people to sit in the cooking hearth. "Vincenzia and Darvie have left for the Mamutoi summer meeting." He said as he sat down. "Darvie was missing her mother, so he decided to bring her there instead of our meeting. I think they may be bringing her mother back with them after the meeting, if they can get her to agree. And Vilognia? Vilognia's here, somewhere. Someone get Vilognia," the headman boomed!

As if on cue, Vilognia walked into the room. "Did someone call my name," he said with a smile, as he lifted Jendoza off the ground and smothered her with a tight hug. "I was so worried! How could you let the man of your hearth worry so much?"

"I'm sorry Vilo, but I am fine, please put me down. I do have news for you. News that will be difficult to hear." Suddenly the room was silent. The independent conversations that had been taking place had all stopped at the same time and everyone was looking at Jendoza. "I had hoped to talk to uncle Vincenzia at the same time, but I suppose it will have to wait." Everyone sat poised and ready to listen, and suddenly Jendoza was nervous; she was afraid to tell them.

Braydalana watched her people, and with the brazenness of a child said, "We found the people that Vinoza used to live with."

Vilognia jumped up and stared at the child, and his jaw dropped open. "Used to? Where is my sister now?"

Jendoza's eyes filled with tears. Nothing more needed to be said about where she was now. They all knew that she was dead.

"And what about Teglodia and Evanora? What happened to them?"

Brulenzia spoke quietly. "They lived with a clan of people to the south of here, for many years, but an earthquake last season killed them; all three of them." He paused for a moment, then went on. "Evenora was going by the name Nora, and she was mated and had a child. That child still lives with the people. She is only two years old."

Jendoza finally found her voice. "But there is more. We are certain that we found Andreyta, but she too is going by another name; Ayla is what they call her, and she had a baby while we were there."

Vilognia turned to stare at Jendoza, then dropped back down to his seat. "What? Why didn't you bring her back? We must journey to the Mamutoi to find Vincenzia. He will want to go get Annalisa's daughter."

Jendoza frowned. "It is not that simple Vilo. Ayla has lived with them for ten seasons now; she did not want to come back to the Sungaea. She has a mate, and three children; she is happy there."

Ivanolia had kept silent, but he was stewing in the background. Jendoza kept glancing at the man, and fervently hoped he would remain silent, but Serana noticed her son's red face, and questioned him. "Ivanolia, why are you standing there as red as a blazing fire?"

He looked at his mother, and then looked back at the people, avoiding his sister's look. He could not continue his silence any longer. "Andreyta is living with flatheads! She is mated to one of their males. And one of her children is a mixed abomination!"

The man's words were greeted with silence, then the room erupted with talking and shouting. Jendoza was glaring at her brother, and then looked around for Donzolnia. When her eyes found him, he was standing with Tagnolia, and they were discussing the situation between the two of them.

"Okay, that's enough," Tagnolia said in a loud voice, and he looked back at Jendoza. He could see that the outburst had upset the young woman. "Tell us what happened."

Jendoza looked at the people, and explained the situation as far as she could see it, giving them as many of the details that she could remember, and finally pausing with her eyes on Ivanolia, daring him to start his tirade again. "_Ayla_ is happy. I could tell she was happy, and she doesn't want to come visit people that do not like the Clan. And they are people," she said staring hard at Ivanolia. "_They_are her family now, not us. She doesn't even know us. They found her, raised her, and love her, but she has had a difficult life. They lead quite a different life style than we do, but she is accustomed to it. She is even their first ranked healer." Even though she had been speaking to the entire camp, Jendoza never took her eyes off her brother; she knew he would need more convincing than anyone else.

Ivanolia finally turned his eyes away for his sister, and Jendoza looked back at the people. "_Ayla_ is mated to a _mixed_man named Grov. He was the man that was mated to Evenora before she was killed. And Ayla is raising Evenora's daughter. Ayla's mixed son is four seasons, and now she has a new baby girl; they named her Annaliza. She has family there, and people that don't accept the clan here. Where would you want to be? Certainly not with people that wouldn't accept your mate and children.

Everyone was nodding, and Serana went to comfort her son; she could see that he was struggling greatly. Vilognia was taking it all in, and sat in silence thinking about how much their camp had lost. First, Vincenzia was gone on journey with Annalisa and Andreyta, and returned alone. He knew Annalisa had died for he had found her buried alive, but he had mourned his mate's lost child since the time of her disappearance, and had never been able to put her to rest.

Then, while Vincenzia was gone, Vinoza's son Tegasia had been killed while out hunting Megaceros. The death had prompted Teglodia and Vinoza to take Evenora and leave on a journey. Vilognia had always known that his sister and her family would never return, but the fact that they were dead broke his heart.

Vilognia looked at his mate's son, and thought about his loss. Ivanolia had always loved Nemlora, and she him. They had been inseparable since they were children. No one had been surprised when they announced that they would mate in the same summer meeting that she had her first rites. No one had even objected to the fact that she was only twelve seasons, not even her mother. It was just known that she would mate Ivanolia, and that there was not stopping it. Then, when she was pregnant right away, no one thought anything about it; not until it was determined that she was too small to have the baby, but by then it was too late. She had only lived long enough to hold her baby for a short time, then she died from loss of blood. Two deaths had suddenly turned into five.

But, he thought, Andreyta is living, or rather, Ayla is living. Vincenzia would be glad to have this piece of information. Maybe he would even make a journey to see Annalisa's daughter. Maybe they could convince her to come back with them.

There was another man that was extremely quiet, and Zarina noticed right away that her second son was also pensive. Brulenzia had had the same type of relationship with Evenora that Ivanolia had had with Nemlora, though it had not been allowed to develop into a mating, since she left with her family at nine seasons, but she knew her son had always hoped the woman would return. He looked sad, but somehow at peace. She went to him, and slipped her arm through his. Brulenzia looked down at his mother, and stared into her light green eyes. "I can move on now mother. I will find someone to love." She squeezed him tight, glad that he would finally start looking.

After Vilognia thought for a while, he had some questions. "How did you communicate with the flatheads? They can't talk."

Braydalana smiled. "But oh, they can talk, just not like we do. I learned to speak with them. And, Vilognia, they are people, not flatheads. Men and women and children, not animals. They say the Clan."

Vilognia was surprised that the child understood the meaning of flathead. He didn't realize it was so ingrained in their society to just believe that flatheads were animals. He was very interested to hear more.

Jendoza was nodding. "I learned some of their language too, but they do not speak with words. They speak with hand signs," she said then turned to Donzolnia and made a gesture.

Vilognia looked at Donzolnia. "What did she say?"

Donzolnia smiled at his woman, and gestured back. "She said that she loves me."

Vilognia was surprised that the flatheads could love one another. Animals didn't love each other, did they? He would have to think about this more, and talk to the Shogur, but until then, he would try to think more openly; meeting Vincenzia's first mate's daughter may depend on it.

The rest of that day was spent resting, and the next day would be one of packing up, for they had to get to their summer meeting. Vilognia had decided to travel to the Mamutoi instead, so he could talk to his brother, and asked Ivanolia to go with him.

On the day of their departure, they all left together. It was fortunate that Birch Camp was hosting the Sungaea summer meeting this season, because it would make it possible for Vilognia and Ivanolia to walk with them for most of the way, branch off to go to the Mamutoi summer meeting, then turn around and get to their meeting before it was too late.

Vincenzia had said the Mamutoi summer meeting was at Lion Camp this season, which meant that the two men would be almost due west of Birch Camp. The knowledge that her mate would meet them at the summer meeting helped to calm Serana down. She had not been happy that her mate and son would not be going with them, but she did understand. After all, Vincenzia needed to know what was going on. She considered going with them, but decided against it; she needed to get to the first rites camp for her daughter Laurana.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Mamutoi Summer Meeting<br>**

After traveling for seven days Oak Camp reached the place where they would separate from Vilognia and Ivanolia. The people camped for the night, then said their goodbyes in the morning. When the two men set out early in the morning, they turned west, and walked away at a quick pace.

For a while, the men walked in silence, both thinking about the turn of events. Vilognia had worked though his disgust over Ayla's choice of a mate. He figured that there had been no one else for her, and she didn't know any better. Then he started to wonder why the Sungaea considered flatheads…the Clan…why they considered the Clan animals. Jendoza believed them to be people, and she was a good judge of character. The man had to admit that he wanted to meet the people that Jendoza said had raised his niece.

Ivanolia walked slightly behind his mother's mate, and was brooding over his outburst days before. He hadn't wanted to blow up like that, but he was upset about the situation. He still didn't understand how Andreyta could be mated to the mixed man. He had learned to keep his mouth shut while staying with the flatheads, and didn't talk about them much as they had traveled back to the Earthlodge, because Jendoza would have jumped down his throat, but it still bothered him. As he walked, he wondered what Vincenzia would think, and figured the man would be accepting. He was sure that Vilognia's brother would just be glad Annalisa's daughter had survived after all, and _that_ made him wonder why _he_ cared one way or the other. What did it matter that Andreyta was mated to the flathead? She was obviously happy, and he had to admit that two of their children _were_beautiful.

The two men traveled west, then turned north, and finally turned west again. The terrain was easy and they made excellent time. Soon they were in Mamutoi territory, and most importantly they entered Lion Camp territory just before nightfall on the sixth night after they had left their own people. Vilognia pointed to the gathering that had been situated in a place where three rivers converged into one. They were just south of Lion Camp's lodge, the place that had been reserved for this season's summer meeting.

Ivanolia had never gone to a Mamutoi summer meeting before. In fact, he had never even met a Mamutoi, other than Darvie that is, and now he wished he had paid more attention to Darvie's Mamutoi lessons.

Vilognia said hello to several people as they walked by. He obviously knew a lot of Mamutoi, and they recognized the man as Vincenzia's brother right from the off, and pointed to the area that the man could be found.

The two Sungaea men walked through the Mamutoi summer meeting, and received stares from many people who wanted to check out the foreign men. Ivanolia smiled at the curious women, wishing even more that he could speak Mamutoi.

"Vilognia!" A huge red haired man boomed, and took the startled man into his arms. "You must be Vilognia, Vincenzia's brother. We are related through Darvie. She is a distant cousin of mine."

Vilognia was slightly put off, but recovered quickly. He had learned through living with Darvie that the Mamutoi rarely kept quiet, and always said what was on their minds. The blond man smiled and extended his hand. "You must be Talut. I have heard so much about you," Vilognia said in his best Mamutoi.

Talut just laughed at the man's hand and put an arm around Vilognia and Ivanolia's shoulders to lead them into the encampment. "Someone get Vincenzia. Tell him his brother is here to see him!"

Talut steered the men toward the food. "You arrived just in time for the evening meal. Nezzie! We need two more plates here."

A large, motherly looking woman turned around, and shoved two plates at the gargantuan man, and smiled at the strangers. "Please excuse this bear of a man here. He has no manners at all. I am Nezzie, this one's mate," she said giving Talut a casual backhanded slap to the stomach. "That is my son, Danug," she said pointing across the fire. "And his sister, Latie next to him. And this is Rugie and Rydag," she continued ruffling the hair of the boy child. "And you both _must_be related to Vincenzia."

Ivanolia was staring at the child of mixed spirits wondering how the flathead managed to be with these people, and thinking that the boy looked nearly identical to Andreyta's son Durc.

Vilognia elbowed the younger man, and nodded. "This rude man is Ivanolia; my mate's son. Unfortunately he did not take his Mamutoi lessons seriously, I'm sure he doesn't understand a word."

Talut laughed heartily again. "Well, I'm sure he doesn't need to speak Mamutoi to find the comfort of a woman. Foreigners are always more exciting than the same old men we have around here." Nezzie laughed, and went back to fussing over her children.

Just then, Vincenzia and Darvie, and a few others, came out of a large tent and spotted them. Vincenzia looked a little nervous; he didn't figure Vilognia would travel to the Mamutoi for just a social call; there must be a good reason for coming all this way.

"Brother, is everything okay," Vincenzia said as he reached his brother, then suddenly seeing Ivanolia, he frowned. "Are Jendoza and Braydalana all right?"

Vilognia and Ivanolia were both nodding, and Vincenzia relaxed. "Nothing is _wrong_, but I need to talk to you. It's important enough that it cannot wait until the end of the summer.

Darvie had come up with Vincenzia, but she had stopped to talk to a few people that stood nearby. When the group giggled loudly, the men looked over at them, and the woman broke off her conversation and joined them. "Forgive me, but Ivanolia must meet my younger sister, Danie," she said as she pulled the younger woman with her.

Danie smiled shyly at the men, and blushed. She had not understood anything Darvie had said, but somehow she knew she was being introduced to the tall, blond man with the strikingly blue eyes. She blushed again.

Ivanolia looked at Darvie's sister, and smiled at her. She had the same dark brown hair as her sister and the palest gray eyes he had ever seen. She was definitely a beautiful woman. Darvie turned to her sister and in Mamutoi said, "Danie, take Ivanolia and get him something to eat, and teach him some Mamutoi so he can communicate while he's here." She took her sister's hand and put it in Ivanolia's hand and gave them a little push toward the food. Ivanolia never even looked back; he just held the young woman's hand, and followed along.

Vilognia laughed at the retreating back of his mate's son, and smiled at Darvie. "That was a good idea. He really needs to get out and meet someone soon. It's been seven cycles of seasons since Nemlora's death, and as far as I can see, he's never been interested in anyone."

Darvie laughed. "Well, I hope he can help me by attracting Danie to the Oak Camp. My mother says she will move if we can convince Danie to come along." Darvie's laugh became a smile, then she looked at Vilognia more seriously. "Is everything okay, Vi? You haven't traveled here just to find Ivanolia a woman, have you?"

Vilognia smile faded. "No, that was not our purpose, though I admit I wish I had thought of it sooner. Actually, we came to talk to Vincenzia." He turned to his brother. "I think you will need to sit down brother, for I have something wild to tell you."

Vilognia, Vincenzia and Darvie took seats, and Vilognia told them about the search party's return, and about the news they brought back with them of Vinoza, Teglodia and Evenora's deaths. He told them about their life with the people they had chosen to stay with, and about the child that Evenora had brought to her mate's hearth. He did not mention who the people had been, only the fact that Vinoza had been happy, as far as he could tell.

Vincenzia cried at the news, and the brothers hugged and reminisced for a few minutes about the sister they had lost. Darvie watched them and tried to melt into the background; as she felt somewhat like an intruder in their intimate conversation about their sister.

Vincenzia smiled at Vilognia and they both wiped the tears from their faces. "But that is not all, is it Vilo?"

Vilognia smiled. "No brother, I could never fool you, could I?" The man took a deep breath, and continued. "The people that healed Jendoza had a woman with them; a women named Ayla, that was fifteen seasons; a woman that they _found_when she was only five seasons." At that point Vilognia paused to watch his brother's face.

Vincenzia's blue-gray eyes narrowed suspiciously as he dared to hope that it was his little Andreyta. "Are you saying…are you telling me…that Andreyta is living…that Andreyta is alive?"

Vilognia smiled again, and nodded. "It appears so little brother, but now she is called Ayla."

Vincenzia popped up. "Well then, we must go. Did you bring her to the Sungaea summer meeting? Or better yet, did you bring her here?" He began to look around the encampment with hope in his eyes.

Vilognia looked sad again, and grabbed his brother's shoulders. "No Vin, she's not here with us, and she's not at Birch Camp either. She refused to return to Oak Camp with our search party. She wanted to stay with the people that raised her."

Vincenzia sat back down, and looked at his brother again. "But why?"

Vilognia took a deep breath and broke the rest of the news to him gently.

"She's mated to what?" This was not the reaction Vilognia had hoped for. He had hoped that Vincenzia would be more calm, and less judgmental.

Darvie put her hand on Vincenzia's arm to comfort him, and her touch did just that. "You say that she was happy," she said to Vilognia?

Vilognia was nodding, and silently asking Sumata to help Vincenzia.

"Well then Vin, that's all that matters. If the daughter of your hearth is happy, then you can do no less than to be happy for her. Please calm down sweets," she said caressing his arm lovingly. "Maybe we can make a journey to meet this Ayla." Then she turned to Vilognia. "You said her name is Ayla now?"

Vilognia nodded, and looked at his brother to gage his upset. He felt that it would be okay. Vincenzia was visibly calmer than he had been moments before. Vilognia smiled, thinking that he had always liked Darvie, and now he liked her even more.

For the remainder of that night, and for the days to come, Vilognia didn't see Ivanolia even one time. Ivanolia stayed with Danie, and was mesmerized by the young woman. He spent every waking hour with her, and shared the woman's bed every night that they were there. She taught him enough Mamutoi to communicate with her, and he did the same with Sungaea, but it was not necessary; they both understood each other quite well.

When finally Vilognia caught a glimpse of his mate's son, he understood why he had not seen the young man around, and he hesitated to interrupt. But, remembering that they had told Serana that they would return as quickly as possible, made him approach the man.

"Ivanolia," he said to get the man's attention. "We must leave tomorrow. You're mother must be getting worried."

Ivanolia looked at the man, and then at Danie. "But, I am not ready to leave."

"I can see that, but we promised your mother that we would return, so we should get going. And, don't you think we need to get back to Braydalana?"

Ivanolia frowned, knowing that they should have brought Braydalana along, and he nodded. Vilognia left the couple to be alone.

When Vilognia was gone, Ivanolia turned to Danie. "Join with me Danie. I know that we just met, but I want to join with you. I do not want to lose you."

Danie squinted her eyes at him, and smirked. Then she graced him with her full and wonderful smile, and threw her arms around him. "Yes Ivanolia, I will join with you. These past few days have been just what I've always imagined love at first sight to be. We need to discuss this with my mother, but I'm sure she will have no problem with this. She has been trying to get me to move to Oak Camp ever since Darvie left."

Ivanolia hugged her back, and pulled her to her feet. "We will go speak to your mother, but first, I need to have you all to myself; just one more time." Danie smiled and kissed the man passionately, then took his hand and let him take her to her furs.

Later that day, Ivanolia and Danie emerged from the tent, and went straight to Travie, Darvie and Danie's mother. Darvie watched their determined walk, and nudged Vincenzia, who in turn nudged Vilognia. No one could mistake their intent, and Darvie was positively beside herself; this meant that her mother would move to Oak Camp at the end of the summer.

Far to the south, life was just moving along for the clan. They had all but forgotten their visitors, and were back in the swing of their normal lives. The five new babies were doing great. Uba's sons were almost four moon cycles, and could hardly keep up with them; they were already everywhere. Vorn was delighted with the boys, and spent many hours playing with the now chubby babies.

Ovra's sons were only slightly younger, and just as mobile, so she was extremely busy all the time as well. Goov had decided that Ursus had used another man's totem spirit to create the twins, but was happy that there were finally children at his hearth. He had a special closeness to the children, and Ayla suspected that it came from being there when they were born. Goov had always been a good mate to Ovra, but nothing compared to how he felt for her now.

Ayla's daughter was also doing well. She was growing at an unbelievable rate, but at just under two moon cycles still could not hold up her head for very long. Ayla was worried that her daughter would never be able to do it, and sat with the baby in her lap staring at the child.

"Ayla, what are you doing," Grov asked in Sungaean, as he entered the hearth?

Ayla looked up at him, and he could see tears in her eyes. "I'm afraid that Annaliza's neck is too weak, or that her head is too big. She still can't hold up her head very well."

Grov smiled at her. "Ayla, she is no different than Ora was. Nora assured me that the Other's babies are slower to develop the muscles in their necks. She is perfectly normal."

Ayla sniffled and nodded, remembering that Jendoza had told her the same thing.

Grov looked at his woman skeptically, "Ayla, is something else wrong?"

Ayla kept her eyes on Annaliza, and didn't answer him right away. "I miss them, Grov," she said with tears in her eyes. "I wonder about who I am, and I want them to come back, but I don't understand why they do not like the Clan."

Grov sat down next to her, and took Annaliza from her arms and placed the baby on the furs. Then, he turned to face Ayla, and took her face in his hands, and kissed her tears away. "Ayla, they do not like us, because they do not understand us. I am sure they felt differently when they left here, and after the baby is a little bigger, we can go visit them."

Ayla's eyes widened. "Go visit them? But, the Clan does not travel unless they have to."

"No Ayla, _we_can go visit them, not the clan. But, right now Annaliza needs to stay here, and besides, you have patients to care for. Oga will give birth soon, and Ebra won't be long after that if I am correct."

Ayla was nodding and smiling, her bad mood gone. It may be a while, but Grov had said they would go visit her people; that _he_would take her to visit her people. She was thrilled beyond belief.

**The Oak Camp Earthlodge**

**Entry Area**– Storage of fuel, implements, outer clothes

**First Hearth**– Visitor's Hearth

**Second Hearth**– Cooking hearth and space for gathering

**Third Hearth** – _Antelope Hearth_

**Tagnolia** (40) – **Headman**, brother of Tiflona**  
>Zarina<strong> (38)– mother of Donzolnia (as well as children below)**  
>Brulenzia<strong> (19) – second son of headman's mate, Donzolnia's brother, Evanora's closest childhood playmate, unmated**  
>Frala<strong> (13)**  
>Morina<strong> (11)

**Fourth Hearth** – _Jack Rabbit Hearth_

**Wäglodia** (39) – mated to headwoman**  
>Tiflona<strong> (38) – **Headwoman**, sister of headman**  
>Tinozia<strong> (18) – first son of headwoman, unmated**  
>Tabita<strong> (15)**  
>Torana<strong> (12)**  
>TBA<strong> (9)**  
>TBA<strong> (6)**  
>TBA<strong> (3)

**Fifth Hearth** – _Bison Hearth_

**Gredenzia** (35) – mated to Fraylora, **Shogur  
>Fraylora<strong> (35) – Nemlora's mother**  
>Fürlasa<strong> (15)**  
>TBA<strong> (13)**  
>TBA<strong> (9)

**Sixth Hearth**– Healer's Hearth - Empty

**Seventh Hearth**– Extension to Shogur's hearth, private ceremonies and gatherings

**Eighth Hearth** – _Winter Stoat (Ermine) Hearth_

**Vilognia** (40) – Vinoza and Vincenzia's brother**  
>Serana<strong> (40) – mother of Ivanolia and Jendoza**  
>Laurana<strong> (14)**  
>TBA<strong> (11)**  
>TBA<strong> (8)

**Ninth Hearth** – _Snow Leopard Hearth_

**Vincenzia** (36) – Vilognia and Vinoza's brother, travels often, returned recently from one of his journeys to the Mamutoi, lost first mate (Annalisa) and daughter (Andreyta or Ayla) in such a travel**  
>Darvie<strong> (25) – second mate, Mamutoi woman**  
>Crisana<strong> (Crisanie) (7) – Darvie's daughter**  
>Brenevia<strong> (Brenev) (4) – Darvie's son**  
>Travie<strong> (43) – Darvie and Danie's mother

**Tenth Hearth** – _Reindeer Hearth_

**Teglodia** (would be 35 if not **dead**) – left to go on a journey 10 years ago when youngest child (Tegasia)was killed in a hunting accident, headman's best friend**  
>Vinoza<strong> (would be 33 if not **dead**) – gladly journeyed with her mate, too sad to stay**  
>Evanora<strong> (would be 19 if not **dead**) – was mated to Grov (Nora), mother of Ora

**Eleventh Hearth** – _Cave Bear Hearth_

**Donzolnia** (21) – first son of headman's mate, Jendoza's mate**  
>Jendoza<strong> (17) – injured woman with the clan, Ivanolia's sister, Evanora and Ayla's cousin, pregnant

**Twelfth Hearth** – _Arctic Fox Hearth_

**Ivanolia** (21) – Jendoza's brother, Evanora and Ayla's cousin**  
>Danie<strong> (20) – Travie's daughter, Darvie's sister, Ivanolia's second mate**  
>Braydalana<strong> (7) – Nemlora's daughter (Nemlora died giving birth at 13)

**Thirteenth Hearth**– Food storage area

**Fourteenth Hearth**– Empty hearth space

**Back Entry Area**– More storage

**Sweat Bath Area**

**************************************************  
><strong>Danie Prepares<br>**

Oak Camp arrived in Birch Camp territory about two days before the other travelers had reached the Lion Camp, and nothing eventful happened with their arrival. The people did not mention to anyone that Vincenzia's daughter had been found, or where she was, or who she was with, or what she had been doing for ten seasons. There was no need to stir up trouble when the woman wasn't even with them.

Tagnolia and Tinozia sought out Tiflona immediately, so she could be briefed on the situation, and she shrugged her shoulders. She had always wondered about the flatheads, and secretly thought there was no way that they were animals; animals did not wear clothing, and hunt with weapons. She remembered the one trip she and Tagnolia had gone on with their mother's mate; they had seen some flatheads from across a river, and they had looked like people to her.

"I think some of us should make a journey, though I suppose that will be Vincenzia's journey."

Tagnolia nodded, and was glad his younger sister was so accepting. He thought that was what made her such a good headwoman, and he was glad that he shared the lodge with her. They did have other siblings, two other brothers and two other sisters. Their mother had given birth to her children in a timely manner, and they were fortunate to have been born in a boy, girl, boy, girl, boy, girl fashion; it sure made it easier to create new camps.

Tinozia told his mother about the Clan's way of communicating, and showed her some of what he had learned. He explained that they were not capable of fully articulate speech, but that they _were_capable of full communication. "It was amazing mother; that so much could be said with signs and gestures. And there were so many of them; I counted forty-nine of them living in one cave, and it was the largest cave I have ever seen."

Tiflona watched her eldest son's excitement. "You will have to tell me more later. This sounds very…very illuminating, and there's much to discuss, but I have to get back to the womanhood camp. Your sister and Fürlasa have had their first rites, but I still have to prepare Laurana. I will join Oak Camp for the evening meal."

Tagnolia and Tinozia hugged her and they left to get their tents set up, and to start mingling with their people.

Off to the west, Talut stood with Vincenzia and Darvie as they bid farewell to Vilognia, Ivanolia and Danie. "We will stay for half of the summer meeting, then we will come to our summer meeting. We just have some things to tie up here before we can go. I'm sure Travie has many things to pack."

Vilognia smiled at his brother, and hugged Darvie. "Thank you Darvie," he said indicating Ivanolia and Danie, who had no eyes for anyone but each other. "I think, this is a good thing."

Darvie laughed, and Talut and Vincenzia joined her. "But don't think this gets you two out of coming to visit us," Talut said to the couple standing next to him. "After all Darvie, you are my cousin, distant, but still a cousin."

Vilognia smiled again. "Don't forget to think about visiting Ayla, Vin. If we don't do it by fall, then we'll have to wait until late spring. Your choice, but you need to accept the truth before we will take you there."

Vincenzia nodded, and Darvie hugged her mate. "Oh, we'll work on him," she said to her mate's brother. "Won't we Talut?"

"We certainly will," the huge man boomed.

As they stood there talking, Travie approached to say goodbye to her younger daughter. "Now Danie, you be careful, and I will see you shortly," she said, and hugged her daughter with tears in her eyes.

"Mother, I will be fine, and we will see you soon. Darvie says you will be leaving the Mamutoi summer meeting in half a moon. And I promise to wait until the final mating ceremony, so you can be there for it. Please stop crying."

Darvie finally came forward and hugged her sister, and kissed her on the forehead. "I am so happy for you, but you better wait until we get there."

"Oh, we will. I promise you that," Danie hugged her sister back.

The three travelers turned to go, and looked back only once at the bend to wave goodbye.

Vincenzia watched them leave, and wanted to pack up quickly and leave too, but he knew that wouldn't get him back to Oak Camp, and on the journey to find Ayla, so he stayed with the Mamutoi instead. Darvie saw the look of longing on her mate's face, and squeezed his arm. Vincenzia looked down at his woman, and smiled. He was so lucky to have her. She was really much too young for him, but he had loved her from the moment he saw her. She had penetrated his grief, and had consumed him since then, and he was grateful. She had brought two wonderful children to his hearth, and she was more supportive about everything than he could imagine someone so young capable of.

Vincenzia looked at Darvie's children, who sat nearby; Crisana had her mother's dark, dark hair, but his blue-gray eyes; it was an appealing contrast, _and_the same color of eyes that he remembered Ayla to have, and Brenevia's hair was a light brownish blond, and he shared his mother's palest gray eyes.

Vincenzia looked off into the distance one last time, and saw that his brother was gone.

The Sungaea summer meeting was in full swing by the time Vilognia, Ivanolia and Danie arrived. They had spent ten days traveling to the meeting and they were exhausted when they got there.

Jendoza and Laurana were shocked to see a woman on Ivanolia's arm when they walked into camp, and immediately stole her away from him; so they could get acquainted. "What did you do to our brother? He has _never_so much as looked at a woman since his mate died," Laurana said.

Danie laughed, not understanding every word they said, but understanding their meaning very well. "I do not know. He was just perfect right from start."

Jendoza snorted. "Ivan is _not_perfect, I guarantee you that, but I can see that my brother loves you. And it is perfect that you are Darvie's sister. Now she won't have to leave so often to visit the Mamutoi."

Danie smiled. "That was plan, I am sure. Mate off sister to Sungaea man, and not have to travel more." The three young women laughed, and spent the afternoon together, much to Ivanolia's despair.

Ivanolia, on the other hand, had been whisked away by Donzolnia, Brulenzia and Tinozia, and didn't really have the time to worry about Danie, though he cast her a fleeting look as he was dragged away by his friends. The young men pulled out a bladder full of Darvie's Mamutoi bouza, and harassed the man that said he would never mate again.

"Unbelievable! You leave us for twenty days, and you come back a man that is about to be mated," Brulenzia said heartily. "You must be the fastest man in the territory.

"Well now Bru…now it's your turn. Don't you at least have a few women in your sights?"

Donzolnia had just put the bladder to his lips, and choked on the gulp. "One! Is that a joke? Brulenzia spends his time in every woman's furs if he can." The four men cracked up at this.

"Well, anything worth doing…is worth do a lot," Brulenzia said between laughs. "But, I have been spending a lot of time with your _sister_, after her first rites, of course."

It was now Ivanolia's turn to spit up his drink. "What! But she too young for you; she's just barely a woman."

"Well, I promise not to take advantage of her, but she does seem interested, and I am too."

Ivanolia smiled at his friends. "What is it with the Antelope Hearth men, that makes them want to mate with the Ermine Hearth women?"

They all laughed again, and started harassing Tinozia. "So, you're next. What woman do you have in mind."

Tinozia shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not ready yet. I've been thinking about joining the Sumati, but I haven't discussed it with Gredenzia yet, so I don't know if he will think me acceptable."

Donzolnia had expected this. He had seen the seriousness of his aunt's eldest son, and thought he would be perfect for the Bison Hearth. As the conversation turned to Tinozia's thoughts on becoming Shogur, Ivanolia's thoughts went back to Danie, and what his sisters might be telling her.

Ayla watched Grov from the cave opening, and waved goodbye. He and several of the men had decided to go on a hunt, and planned to be gone for at least half a moon cycle. She was going to miss him, but thought the time would be good for making him a Sungaea style outfit, minus the beadwork, since Ayla had such trouble with that. It would be good for winter; warm and cozy, but also good for traveling; if they actually did make the journey.

Broud had stayed behind, since Oga had been having trouble with her pregnancy. She was getting big and was rather uncomfortable, and had been spotting just a bit. Ayla wasn't worried about her or the baby; they seemed to be doing fine, but Broud _was_worried. Ayla told him that Oga appeared to be okay, and that the baby was still moving around nicely, but he was not convinced.

"Isn't there something you can do to make her feel better," he burst out the day after Grov had left.

"Broud, this woman believes Oga will be fine. We just have to wait and see. It won't be much longer before she gives birth, and then everything will be normal again."

Broud scowled, still worried about which man's totem had created the baby inside Oga. "What good are you if you cannot think of something to give her so she won't be hurting?"

Ayla hid her smile. "Broud, this woman told you that Oga is fine. There is nothing I can do right now. She is already on full bed rest, and I am administering a pain relieving tea."

Oga watched the two, and was slightly frightened that Broud was going to get mad at Ayla, but Ayla was handling him quite well, and he was keeping his temper in check.

"I'm going to go get Uba. She has Iza's memories; maybe she can think of something better."

Ayla shrugged; that was fine with her. She was thankful that they had two medicine women in the cave. There was no way she could treat the illnesses and injuries of forty-nine people all the time. She would have no time for herself if she had the full responsibility.

About a half a moon after the arrival of Vilognia, Ivanolia and Danie, the others showed up. Travie immediately went to her daughter. "You haven't been mated yet, have you?"

Danie laughed. "Mother, we said we would wait for you. Relax. Where are my niece and nephew," she said breaking off from her mother's embrace, and turning to look for the children.

Travie pointed to the children, who had already found their friends, and had run off. "I think you will have to wait to see them, they are busy." Darvie and Vincenzia walked up smiling, and hugged Danie too.

"It is so good to see you Danie. I can see that you are settled in and looking radiant. When is the ceremony?"

Danie smiled. "We were waiting for you to get here, but now that you are, we can proceed. Ivanolia will be thrilled. He keeps saying that we should just have a private ceremony so that we can just be mated and not worry about a huge feast. I told him that that was _not_going to happen."

Darvie laughed. "Leave it to a man to want to rush through the ceremony. What fun is that?"

Vincenzia smiled, remembering that he had felt the same way as Ivanolia did. He thought about why and decided that it was because he hadn't wanted any reminder of his first matrimonial, since Annalisa was dead, and figured Ivanolia must feel the same way.

When Broud returned to the hearth, with Uba in tow, a baby under each arm. Ayla sighed, taking Berc from her sister, and had Oga tell Uba what she was feeling. "Broud, this medicine woman cannot think of anything more than what Ayla is doing. This woman may have access to the memories, but Ayla is ranked first medicine woman, and has memorized all of Iza's memories, so you are safe with her judgment." Broud grunted, and left the hearth, thinking that they were ganging up on him. What is wrong with these women, he thought as he left?

The women watched the man leave, and then sat down to drink tea, and play with the new babies. Uba wanted to hold Annaliza. "Iza is getting so big, Ayla. And look how she holds up her head. It is amazing how helpless the Other's babies start off, but look at her now." Annaliza gurgled and cooed, and smiled at the second medicine woman.

Oga looked over Uba's shoulder. "And look at her smile Ayla, just like you, and Grov and Ora and Durc. I will never again think of your smile as a grimace. It may look strange, but it's definitely normal for the Others."

As if on cue, Ayla smiled again, and turned to Uba's son Berc. He was just over four moons, and he had pulled himself up into a standing position, and was reaching for Shriek's perch. The hawk cocked his head and stared down at the child, but was up far enough that the child could not reach him.

On the morning of Ivanolia and Danie's joining many camps were preparing to leave the summer meeting. It was going to be a small joining ceremony, which suited Ivanolia just fine. The men of the joining stayed in one tent, while the women stayed in another. Travie and Darvie, along with a mass of other Oak Camp women, prepared Danie for the ceremony.

Danie had decided to follow the Mamutoi tradition of wearing her matrimonial tunic open, breasts exposed, in honor of her people, and the Oak Camp thought that was a good idea. The people were extremely excited to learn that they would see a Mamutoi tradition, not to mention see the woman's bareness. Darvie braided her sister's hair, in proper Sungaean fashion, and Travie adjusted the front of her daughter's tunic, so that her breasts showed prominently.

Serana, Ivanolia's mother, had watched as the two foreign women got her son's intended ready, then she stepped up to offer the bride a shell and bead decorated leather headband that matched her tunic perfectly. Danie smiled and accepted the headband, hugging Serana tightly. "Turn around, will help put this on you," Serana said huskily, brushing away tears of joy for her son.

Fraylora tried to stay away, mostly because watching this was too painful to her, since her own daughter was dead, but she could not help but see how beautiful the young woman looked, and how happy she was. When Danie was completely dressed, Fraylora's breath was taken away.

Danie stood tall, and proud. Her tunic, which was more of a dress really since it reached the ground, was of the whitest leather Fraylora had ever seen. She had it cinched at the waist, and it was decorated with tiny deep pink and gray beads. The deep pink looked stunning against the white dress, and next to the woman's near black hair, and the gray beads brought out the gray of the woman's eyes as they sparkled with joy. Then, the headband that had been given to her, was tied on, and the look was almost complete. Fraylora did not wonder why Ivanolia had fallen for her, she was absolutely exquisite.

Then a thought occurred to the older woman; Danie's neck was bare. She rushed off to go find what she thought would complete the woman's ensemble. When she returned, Danie was just about to go to the tent opening, but stopped, and looked at Fraylora. She knew who Fraylora was, and was sad that her own happiness was causing the woman such pain, but when the woman handed her a necklace of deep pink beads, she was speechless. "This is too much Fraylora. I cannot accept these."

Fraylora smiled, with tears in her eyes, and physically closed Danie's hand over the necklace with her own hands. "These belong to you now Danie. Nemlora would have wanted it this way, and besides," the woman said with a sniffle. "They suit you and your matrimonial outfit. Please accept them."

Danie looked deeply into the woman's eyes, and hugged her. Fraylora held on tightly, and let out a sob, then straightened up, wiped her eyes, and clapped her hands together. "Well, get that thing on, Ivanolia awaits!"

**************************************************  
><strong>Home Again<br>**

From the day Ayla thought the hunting party could return, she made a ritual of taking the children outside for the day. Many found her idea delightful, and spent the days out in the sun as well. Some were beginning to worry since it had been well over the time that the men thought they'd be back, but Ayla tried to keep the women calm. "Sometimes hunting doesn't go the way it's planned," she said to them. "Maybe there didn't find anything, and had to go further. Or maybe they killed too much and don't know what to do with it all." Her explanation sure seemed reasonable, so people tried to enjoy the good weather. Soon it would be cold again, and they wouldn't be able to sit outside for hours on end.

Ayla had prepared a comfortable place for Oga to sit, and helped the woman outside. Oga was experiencing more and more discomfort, and the baby seemed to be squirming around constantly, and the woman was getting no rest at all.

Broud was becoming quite annoying, since he hardly ever left the woman's side. Ayla couldn't even talk to Oga about how she felt without Broud interrupting. Ayla was glad that he seemed so interested, but a man was not supposed to know every intimate detail about what a woman was feeling. When his questions had finally reached Ayla limit, she went to Brun for help.

Ayla sat at the leader's feet and waited, though not very patiently. He could see her frustration, and made her wait a little longer. She may be their first medicine woman, but she needed to know that things would be done in his time. When Ayla realized what he was doing, she forced herself to calm down, and Brun finally tapped her shoulder.

"This woman would greet the leader."

"Yes Ayla, what do you want?"

"This medicine woman is having a difficult time with Broud. He is making it difficult for me to take care of Oga. Oga is having a rough last moon, and Broud is asking me too many questions about…women…and pregnancy. It is making it hard for this woman to do her job."

Brun grunted. He had noticed the behavior of son of his mate, and though it was significantly better than the open hostility that he used to portray, Brun could see that it was effecting the medicine woman's duties. "I will talk to him Ayla," he said with a wave of his hand.

After thinking about it for a while Brun decided to call Broud over. "Broud," the leader called from the cave's northern entrance.

Broud looked up, and was torn between going to Brun, and sitting there with Oga. Brun's look told him what he had to do. "Broud, the time has come…I have decided that you can have your status back. You are no longer the lowest ranked person of the clan, and I want to give Oga back to you, but there is one problem." Broud was elated, but he looked confused. "I do not want you to concern yourself with the medicine woman's care of your woman. I have seen you pestering her with questions, and making it hard for her to do her duty." Broud frowned, not thinking that he had been doing anything wrong.

"Furthermore, you are now allowed to rely on the women to take care of your needs again, not just the women of your hearth, but there is one more thing. I want you to treat Ayla as if she were your sibling."

Broud frowned again. "Sibling? Why?"

"Yes Broud, she is among the women that you may not signal. Since Ebra considers Ayla her daughter, then she must be your sibling, right?"

Broud nodded. He had not intended on signaling Ayla again, but for some reason he was glad that Brun had ordered that he didn't.

"What do you want to do about a hearth? Do you want your old hearth back?"

Broud thought about it for a second, then shook his head. "If Grov will allow, I would like us to stay where we are." Brun nodded, that was okay with him, then he dismissed the son of his mate with a wave of his hand.

Later that evening, the hunting party did return, and just as heavily burdened as they had been earlier in the season. Brun was pleased that the hunters had killed so much, and decided to plan another extended hunt immediately. He needed to start stocking up for winter.

For the days that followed Ivanolia and Danie's joining everyone spent time visiting with family and friends. The summer had gone by quickly, and there had been many changes, but now it was time to return to their own camps.

When Oak Camp was all prepared to go, there were only three remaining camps, one of which being Birch Camp, and they would be staying since it was their regular area. The people said their goodbyes, and wished everyone well, then set off on the journey that could take them up to twelve days.

Tagnolia started off first, and signaled all to follow. Everyone did as they were bid, and waved final goodbyes to Birch Camp, and the other two camps.

Darvie walked beside her mate, who put an arm around her and smiled down at her. Darvie was glad that her mother was going with them, and that Danie would be there too. She truly didn't think she was going to be able to convince her sister to come, and would therefore spend another winter without her mother, but thanks to Ivanolia, she would have her immediate family with her for the rest of her life. Vincenzia's mind lay elsewhere, but he was grateful that Darvie seemed to understand.

Somewhere in the mix of people, the four young friends, Donzolnia, Ivanolia, Brulenzia and Tinozia walked, and laughed as they traveled. Jendoza walked beside Donzolnia, and they were sharing a look that told many they had a secret, and Danie walked beside Ivanolia, with love in her eyes. The other two men walked among them.

After they had been traveling for a while, Brulenzia glanced back to see where Laurana was; she was not far behind, but looked somewhat sad. At fourteen seasons, and only newly a woman, she didn't feel the confidence to invite herself to walk with them, so she stayed behind with her age mates, Tabita and Fürlasa. Brulenzia felt a moment of…something…he didn't know. Laurana was Ivanolia's sister, his much younger sister, but there was something about her that he had not felt since Evenora. He finally decided to break off from the group, and go to her.

When he came up beside her, she was having a conversation with the other two young women, and didn't even notice his presence, so he slipped his arm around her waist, and pulled her close. _That_, got her attention, and caused the other two to laugh.

"Hallo Laurana," he said, and gave her his most alluring smile. "Have you forgotten me already? With all those other men around and all."

Laurana gasped at his touch, then smiled back coyly. "Why no Bru, I thought it was you that forgot me so soon. You are the one that takes someone new to your furs every night."

Brulenzia looked at her, and tried to judge what she was really saying. She appeared to be hurt, and that had not been his intent. He stopped walking for a moment, so they would not have the other two women listening to them. "Laurana, you are the only one that I want, but you are so young."

Laurana immediate began to pout. "I am a woman now, and I am old enough that you have taken me to your furs more than once. I am not too young for that."

Brulenzia smiled, then bent down and kissed her full on her pouty lips. "Yes, you are right, you are and I have. I will not forget that again." She smiled and threw her arms around his neck, and he picked her up. "Come walk with us," he said pulling her at a fast pace.

She hesitated slightly. "But what about Ivan and Donzolnia. Don't you worry about what they will say?"

Brulenzia laughed. "I don't care what they say…and besides, they already know. I told them at the summer meeting. Ivan said you were too young, but he was not upset."

Laurana smiled and followed him up to where the older young adults were walking, and silently slipped into the group.

Ivanolia noticed her appearance immediately, and cast a look of warning to his friend that said, 'you better not hurt her.' Brulenzia sent a mock punch at Ivanolia, never losing their step in their antics.

Jendoza smiled at her younger sister, and put her free arm around the woman, and started to tell her her secret. "Guess what?"

Laurana looked at her big sister, and smiled back. "What?"

"You are going to be an auntie again."

Laurana's grin could have split the sun, for it was the hugest grin Jendoza had ever seen. "That is just wonderful. Have you told mother yet?"

"No, I have not. You are the third to know…me first, then Don, then you. Are you happy for me?"

"Well yeah, of course."

Jendoza continued to walk with her arm around her sister, but glanced at the men, who were goofing off ahead of them. "So, you and Brulenzia, huh?" Laurana blushed deeply. "I wondered where you were spending your nights during the summer meeting. I had _no_idea you were with a man from Oak Camp."

Laurana's face became an even deeper shade of red. "It just sort of happened. I hadn't even considered him before this summer, but somehow…." Her voice trailed off.

"Well, if he's anything like Don, and I know he is, then you'll be just fine. They're a little over protective, but that won't be new…we have Ivan." Jendoza smiled, and urged her sister to get into the fray of men goofing off. Laurana ran with Jendoza, and they joined the men.

Serana had seen Laurana sneaking off during the summer meeting, and had suspected there was someone, but thought the affair would be over when the meeting ended. But now, she could see that it would not, because the affair was with Brulenzia. She had wanted to put an end to it immediately when she figured it out, but Vilognia stopped her. He had reminded her what she had done when her own mother tried to stop their relationship, and had to admit that that had made her want Vilognia even more. Perhaps she was just sensitive because Ivanolia had just gotten mated again, but she did worry about her daughter's age…she was just so young.

When the people finally arrived at Oak Camp, they dropped all of their belongings outside, and cautiously entered the lodge. They wanted to make sure nothing was inhabiting their home before they rushed inside. As Tagnolia, Wäglodia, Vilognia and Vincenzia went inside the lodge to chase out critters, if there were any, the rest of the men climbed on top of the lodge to remove the smoke hole coverings, to let some air into the stuffy lodge.

Tagnolia came out. "Well, it seems as if we did well; nothing seems too out of place. I think we need to start thinking about adding onto the lodge though, since we have two new members."

"Make that three new members," Jendoza announced. "I'm pregnant," she said with a smile.

Serana and Zarina grinned and hugged the woman. This would be Zarina's first grandchild, and Serana's second, and they were both thrilled.

Ivanolia slapped Donzolnia on the back. "Well, you sure kept that a secret. So, when is my sister due?"

Jendoza looked over at her brother, and smiled. "Middle of winter."

"Whoa-hoa, it's going to be an exciting winter, isn't it?" He put his arm around Danie, and looked for Tinozia and Brulenzia. Tinozia was speaking with Gredenzia, but Brulenzia was nowhere to be seen. Ivanolia looked around for Laurana, and not seeing her either, he laughed exuberantly. "Exciting indeed."

**************************************************  
><strong>Ivanolia Tries to be Funny<br>**

Oak Camp spent the next few days getting things back in order again, and then they sat down in the Cooking Hearth to discuss what needed to be done before winter was upon them.

"Well, first and foremost, we need to plan a hunt. We did receive a good share from Birch Camp's summer mammoth hunt, but it will not be enough. Who wants to go on the hunt?" Several people spoke up.

"Okay, we need make some changes in the lodge; add on to this lodge. I was thinking that the Antelope Hearth could be made smaller, since it appears that Brulenzia will be leaving the hearth soon," he said casting a glance at the second son of his mate, who had his lips locked with Laurana. Everyone laughed, which the couple didn't even hear. Even Serana laughed.

The headman turned back to the group shaking his head and smiling. "So, if we do that, then the Bison Hearth, and its joining gathering area can be pushed the same way. Then, if the Snow Leopard Hearth were to be pushed the other way, into the Cave Bear Hearth, then I was thinking that we could make an opening in the front wall, and add three hearths on the other side; they might be good for our younger couples. What do you think Donzolnia and Ivanolia?" The two men were nodding, thinking it would be nice to have some privacy.

"_Then_," the headman went on. "On the other side, I think the Jack Rabbit Hearth needs some more space. I'm beginning to wonder if my sister plans on having a baby every three years."

Tiflona glared at her brother, but it was more of a smirk. "I am not pregnant right now, nor have I been for six years."

He smiled at her good naturedly, thinking that her hearth was named appropriately. It was a common joke at Oak Camp, but he did not repeat it again.

"So," he went on. "The Healer's hearth can be made smaller, since we don't have a healer." He paused. "I thought we were looking for one this summer. No luck, huh?"

Tiflona shook her head. "There wasn't anyone that wanted to leave their camp, and since we have no healer, we could take an acolyte; there would be no one to train him or her."

Tagnolia sighed. "That's a shame. Maybe we should think about sending one of us to another camp to train. We have been without a healer since mother died, and that's not good."

Travie raised her hand shyly, and Tagnolia pointed to her. "I am not a trained healer, but I have some skill. I could be of some assistance, if the need should arise."

Tagnolia smiled, grateful that the newest member of Oak Camp had a skill to contribute, even if she wasn't fully trained. "Okay, that's great. Then, the Ermine Hearth can moved back, and the Reindeer Hearth can be made smaller, since there is need in one hearth, but not the other." Tagnolia didn't mention that the Reindeer Hearth was completely unnecessary, since its former occupants were dead, but everyone understood why he was making the change. "So then we will be left with two empty hearths in the back. Travie, do you want one of them?"

The woman wasn't sure what to say, she had not expected to be given her own hearth. She wasn't sure she wanted one, since she had always had her daughters to live with her, but now that they were mated, she was faced with a decision, and she didn't know what to do.

"Travie, you are welcome to stay in our hearth, if you want to," Vincenzia said to his mate's mother. Darvie was not going to suggest it, but she was thrilled that her mate had, and nodded to her mother. Travie smiled, and accepted their offer.

"Alright, I suppose those of you that are not hunting, could be working on the lodge. What do you all say?" Tagnolia was greeted by nods of approval and even applause for his ideas. This was why he was their headman.

"And, I'm guessing that there will be a little traveling going on before the winter as well."

Vincenzia nodded, it was hard for him to think of anything else. "I will stay and help build, then head south, if someone will accompany me so I know where to go."

Donzolnia and Jendoza both chimed in. "That would be me," they said in unison.

With their plans laid out, the camp went to work moving their personal belonging to the Cooking Hearth, and Tagnolia went around and individually explained exactly what he wanted done in each hearth.

The next morning would be the day that they would send out a scout to look for a herd, while the construction began. Gredenzia decided to take Tinozia out with him, so he could see how well the young man could scout, and to see if he had any skill as a Searcher.

Gredenzia and Tinozia were gone for two days when they returned with news of a herd of reindeer to the east. Tagnolia nodded, thinking that would be fine, and had everyone prepare to leave the next day.

In the morning, the hunters rose early, pulled on warm clothing, and stepped out into the cold morning air. Tagnolia wondered why it had been warm just the day before. Why did the Mother choose the day that they would travel to change the weather? I seemed like that always happened.

Those that would be building got up as well, if just to see the people off. Serana was positioning her pack, then looked around for Laurana to give her some last minute instructions for her younger siblings. The young woman was not around again, so the woman pulled off her pack and entered the lodge.

She went to her hearth first, and noticed the woman's furs had not been slept in, and wondered how she could have missed that. Serana immediately knew where her daughter was and went to Tagnolia's hearth. Serana stepped in the hearth, and looked at Brulenzia's furs. The man was sound asleep, and her daughter lay naked, entwined in his arms, sleeping as well.

Serana had her hands on her hips, and she wanted to clear her throat, but suddenly thought better of it, and shook her head. There was no use; she might as well accept it. Her daughter was going to be with the man. She could have chosen someone far worse, and at least this man was from their camp, and her daughter wouldn't be leaving her.

Serana quietly left the hearth, with just one last look at her daughter, then joined the hunters. "Ivanolia, keep an eye on your brothers. I don't think Laurana is aware that they exist."

Ivanolia looked around, and noticed Laurana wasn't there again, then he nodded to his mother.

When the hunters left, Ivanolia enlisted Donzolnia to help him get Brulenzia out of the furs so they could get to work. The two men crept into the Antelope Hearth, and knelt down beside the sleeping lovebirds. They could barely keep from laughing. Ivanolia pulled out a feather, and held it up, which made Donzolnia have to cover his mouth. Ivanolia tickled the sleeping man's ear, which caused him to wave his hand at his ear and roll over. The man was now laying on his side, with one leg over Laurana, and she had a breast exposed.

Donzolnia looked at Ivanolia. "Are you sure we should be doing this?" he whispered to Ivanolia. Ivanolia smiled and nodded, and leaned over to do it again. This time, Brulenzia turned over quickly, and grabbed the man's hand, and Laurana opened her eyes, and grabbed the blanket to pull up over herself. "IVAN!" she screamed. "GET OUT! Or I'll have to tell mother."

Ivanolia was struggling with Brulenzia, who had wrestled him to the ground, and they were all cracking up. Donzolnia looked at Laurana, and was embarrassed that he had helped Ivanolia, but she was laughing at her brother who was now pinned on the ground by a naked Brulenzia. Laurana got up, and wrapped her blanket around herself. "Ivan, you are not funny. Can't you let anyone sleep?"

Ivanolia was laughing so hard he couldn't stand it, and finally Brulenzia got up, and stood over him completely naked. "Don't do that again Ivan, or you'll be sorry," he said, and then started laughing again.

Donzolnia threw his brother his leggings, and turned to see Jendoza standing there watching. "What is going on here?"

Laurana turned to her sister, and then pointed at Ivanolia. "Ask him, he's the troublemaker in here, though this one," she said poking Donzolnia in the ribs, "came along for the laughs."

Jendoza laughed at the situation, and scolded her mate. "I do not want any funny business in our hearth, so you better not join in the next time my brother wants to cause trouble."

Donzolnia laughed and hugged her. "I knew we shouldn't have done this, but Ivan's so convincing."

Ivan was still on the ground laughing hysterically. "If you could have only seen your own faces. It was so funny. Laurana, you are so funny; saying you're going to tell mother on me," he said bursting into another fit of laughs. "Do you know how funny that sounds coming from a _woman_that is lying naked beside a man?" He was positively gurgling with mirth, beyond any means of controlling himself.

"And Bru, my buddy, naked, and draped over my little sister," Ivan was sputtering with amusement. "It was absolutely classic," the man was laughing so hard that he began to cough. "Then you standing there naked," he said holding his sides, and coughing some more."

The four people watching Ivan on the ground began to laugh as well, and when Danie showed up, they had to explain that happened to her, and that sent Ivanolia into another fit of laughter. "Ivanolia, I'm not sure it's as funny as you seem to think it is," Danie said, but even as she said it, she started to laugh as well.

For the rest of the day, Ivanolia continued to make jokes about his friend and his sister, but it was all in fun and made the work go by quicker. They decided to start building the add on before opening up a hold in the wall to connect it to the lodge, that way there would be no way for cold air to get in until they were ready.

At Brun's cave, the people were working hard preparing for the coming winter. Brun sent out another hunting party, but this time chose some of the men that had stayed at the cave before, and kept the men at the cave that had hunted before. Broud decided to stay again, since Ayla said it would be any day, and it was a good thing, because the morning after the hunters left, Oga's water broke while gathering grains in the field.

Ayla was gathering next to her, and didn't notice until Oga groaned in pain. Ayla looked up to see the woman's wet legs, and a grimace of pain on her face. Ayla dropped her collecting basket, and called for Ebra and Uba to assist her in helping the woman back to the medicine hearth.

Grov went go find Broud, and though Broud protested, the man took him to where the men would be waiting. "But I don't see why I have to stay away," the man gestured. "You didn't when Aniza was born, and Goov was there when one of his sons was born."

Grov almost laughed. "Do you hear what you are saying Broud? Those times were emergencies; they could not be helped. It is not the clan way to have a man there."

Broud was still arguing with the man, but he was allowing him to steer him toward the men.

"Could we at least sit in the smaller central hearth? That way we will be closer." Grov didn't see why not, and gestured to the leader as the walked by that they would be by the other main fire. Daub, Dorg, Goov, Vorn and Borg joined them.

Ayla had run ahead to get the medicine hearth ready, as Ebra and Uba helped Oga through the cave to the hearth. They had to stop a couple of times so that the woman could bend over with each contraction. When they got her to the hearth, Ayla got her comfortable, and got Oga's birthing blanket ready. After the next contraction, Ayla slipped her finger into the woman to check to see where she was, and she smiled. "Oga, this one is coming very fast," she said, and she felt the woman's body go rigid with another contraction. "Push Oga, push…that's it, I can see the head." The baby's head appeared, and the contraction ended. "Okay Oga, I think the baby's head will come out on the next push, so push hard." Oga nodded, and sighed when the next one came, and pushed with all her might, and the baby's head popped out, just as Ayla had said it would.

Ayla and Ebra looked at the baby's head, and then looked at one another. They masked their surprise before the laboring woman saw their faces. On the next contraction, it was over, Oga pushed, and the tiny baby slid out with hardly any effort. Ayla picked up the baby, cleaned out its mouth, and was rewarded with a loud squawl that told her the child was strong.

Oga obviously was worried about the baby. "Well, what is it?"

"It's a girl," Ebra said, glad that Broud's mate had a daughter instead of a son.

Ayla cleaned the child, wrapped it tight, and handed it to the new mother. Oga was thrilled, she had wished for a girl, but when she looked at the baby, she stared at it horrified. "This baby is deformed. Why didn't you tell me the baby is deformed? Broud will never let me keep this child," she said pushing the baby back at Ayla.

Ayla looked at the baby, then handed it to Ebra. "She is not deformed Oga, she was just started by Grov's totem spirit, not Broud's. She is part Others, just as Durc, Ura and Vorg are."

Oga turned her head to the side, and whined about the baby once again. "But she won't be able to hold up her head; she will be a burden."

Ayla almost laughed. "Oga, do you hear yourself? Don't you remember Durc's neck? Or more recently, don't you remember Annaliza's neck. This baby will be fine. You must look at her again." Ayla held out the baby to her mother, but Oga would not look at her. "Oga, you have to feed her; she needs to eat," the medicine woman said, but Oga ignored her.

Ayla didn't know what to do. She had never seen a woman that didn't want her own baby before. Ayla looked from Ebra to Uba, and finally decided. She took the baby out of Ebra's arms, and put the baby to her own breast. The baby fussed a bit, not sure what to do, then latched on hard. The child wanted to live. When she was finished, Ayla handed her back to Ebra. "Uba, you go talk to Brun. I will go talk to Broud."

When the men saw the two women coming into the central space, Broud jumped up. "Well?"

Ayla smiled. "This woman is grieved to report that the child is a girl."

Broud took a deep breath, then looked at Ayla more closely; she wasn't telling him everything. "And?"

Ayla sighed. "But the child is mixed."

Broud's breath exploded. "It's deformed. The child is deformed. How could my mate bring a deformed baby into the world?"

Ayla touched the man's arm to get his attention, and he jumped as if she had burned him. "Broud, this woman said the baby is mixed, not deformed."

Broud spun around to look at Grov. "This is your fault. If you weren't touching Oga all the time, then this wouldn't have happened." Broud was looking crazed. "I want to see it."

Just then, Brun walked around the corner, and Goov joined him. Ayla, is it true that the child is deformed?"

Ayla was just as upset as the rest, but she was upset that they kept saying the baby was deformed. "She is _not_ deformed, she is mixed; just like Durc, Ura and Vorg…_and Grov_, she said finishing up, and looking at her mate for help.

The three men went to the medicine hearth to see the baby, and Grov hugged Ayla, and let her cry.

Usually the leader and the Mog-ur looked at the baby alone, but this time Broud went too, and Grov and Ayla followed behind. Ebra held up the baby, since Oga wouldn't touch it, and Broud looked at it closely. He thought it didn't look right, but agreed that she looked mixed and not deformed. Ebra opened the baby's wrap, and revealed a perfectly normal looking baby, though much smaller than clan babies. Its only oddity was its head, which looked like Durc's head had. The baby lay there quietly for a moment, then let out a howl. Brun and the Mog-ur leaned in close, and the three men saw that the child's eyes were watering just like Ayla's did. Broud looked at it, and then at Ayla, then at Brun. "I will accept the baby if the leader will allow it to live."

Brun was surprised at Broud's gestures, and sighed. "The child may remain with her mother. If she lives until the naming day, she will be accepted into the clan." And with that, the leader and Mog-ur left the medicine hearth.

Broud glared at Grov. "I told you this was going to happen."

Grov felt bad, but at the same time he was not overly upset that Broud's totem spirit had started Durc. Ebra tried to hand the baby to Oga again, but Oga rolled over. Ayla took the baby, and offered it to Broud. He stared at it, then took it from Ayla. Broud studied the baby's face, and thought it looked like a tiny Oga, with a little Annaliza mixed in, then he realized that he did not care whose totem spirit had created the child; now he just needed to convince Oga that it would be okay. Ebra and Uba left, and Grov and Ayla decided to leave Broud alone with Oga. Ayla picked up the new baby, and looked at Broud. "This woman will take her back to the hearth. Let me know if Oga would like to nurse her, okay?"

Broud nodded and lay down beside his woman, trying to get her attention, and being unsuccessful...

**************************************************  
><strong>Another Journey<br>**

Ayla and Grov walked back to their hearth, Ayla holding Oga's baby, and they sat down to drink tea. Grov asked to see the baby, so Ayla put her down, and opened up the tiny bundle, so that the man could see the baby that he had created. He smiled. "She's almost the same size as Annaliza is now, how can that be?"

Ayla looked at Oga's baby, and then picked up Annaliza, and put her down next to the new baby. "I guess that's just the difference between Clan and Others. Clan babies do everything faster, I guess growing is one of those things."

The two people leaned over and inspected the two children. They were obviously related, though the new baby looked mostly like Oga, but she definitely had Grov's eyes. Ayla looked closely, and thought that maybe the baby's eyes might be blue, though it was too hard to tell with new babies.

Broud had been trying to comfort Oga, but she was ignoring him. He considered getting angry with her and demanding that she stop her unclan-like behavior, but something about him had changed, and demanding her to do something she didn't want to do just seemed wrong to him now.

She was lying on her side, facing away from him, and he was behind her with his arm wrapped over her, and he could hear her whimpering. He wondered why she was making unnecessary sounds, then figured she was just used to the noise that was frequent at their hearth. He didn't feel like he could help his woman, and that made him feel bad. Broud kissed the back of her shoulder, then he got up to leave.

When he got to the regular hearth, he saw Grov and Ayla inspecting the babies, and he sat down beside them to look too. Ayla jumped up, and made the man some tea, then made some for Grov and herself, and sat back down.

Annaliza had rolled over, and was reaching for the new baby, and Oga's baby was trying to do the same. Ayla smiled, thinking that Annaliza had just learned to do that, and Oga's baby would probably be doing it within a day or so.

Broud drank his tea in silence, and watched Ayla handle the babies. Annaliza reached for her mother, wanting to nurse, so Ayla picked her up and put her to her breast. As soon as Ayla did this, Oga's baby started to cry.

"What's wrong with her Ayla?" Broud asked.

Ayla looked at Oga's baby, and smiled. "I think she just wants to be with Annaliza, or maybe she needs to nurse again. Put her in my arm, I will nurse them together." Broud picked up Oga's baby, and put her in the crook of Ayla's right arm, and the baby nestled in quickly.

Broud watched the woman that he had only recently learned to tolerate, and sighed at her acceptance of this baby. He had not been so accepting of her son, in fact, he had been down right mean, and now Ayla was helping his mate and he was grateful.

For the next few days, Oga hardly moved. Ayla basically had to force feed the woman, and she continued to nurse the baby. Everyday Ayla could see the baby getting stronger and its mother getting weaker.

When the naming day came, Oga simply wasn't strong enough to get out of bed, so Brun allowed Ayla to hold the child. Broud wondered if that made Ayla the girl's mother, or if Oga was still her mother.

The clan gathered outside again, and Ayla waited patiently for Goov to be ready. _When he beckoned, she hurried to join them_ and kneeled in front of the Mog-ur, uncovered the child, and looking up directly at the magician…there was no need to look down this time, she was not bleeding. _She held the babe up while the magician looked over her head making the gestures that called the spirits to attend the ceremony. Then, with a flourish, he began._

Dipping into the bowl…he drew a stripe from the point

of the baby's tiny brow ridges, to the tip of her tiny unclan-like little _nose with the red-ochre paste._

"Agra, the girl's name is Agra," Mog-ur said slowly. [I]The naked infant, assailed by the cold wind that whipped past the sunny front porch of the cave, voiced a healthy howl which drowned out the approving murmur of the clan.

Everyone filed past the new clan member saying her name; the last two to say it were Grov and Broud.

When the ceremony was over, they went back to the hearth to find that Oga had not moved an inch. Ayla tried to talk to her, but the woman just moaned. Ayla examined her and found that her breasts were as hard as rocks. Since Oga had refused to nurse the baby, Ayla had been massaging the woman's breasts daily to extract the milk, so that the milk would not dry up, but Oga was producing too much milk for Ayla to continue to do this. Ayla needed to come up with another plan. Then it hit her. The next time Agra was hungry, she wouldn't feed her…not right away anyway. She would bring her to Oga and leave the baby with her. Maybe the crying will rouse her.

So, just as she had planned, when Agra cried to fed next, Ayla brought her to Oga, set her down, then went back to her own hearth. When Broud saw what she was doing he became very concerned.

"What are doing Ayla? The baby will starve if you do not feed her."

Ayla looked at Broud. "This woman knows that, and I will not let her starve, but Oga needs to come out of this, and maybe her baby's cries will help. I promise not to let her starve Broud."

He frowned, and cringed as the baby screamed louder and louder. After a while, Ayla went and got the baby, and fed her. This was the routine for quite a while, but one day while the child was in the medicine hearth, and Broud was sitting with his hands over his ears in Grov's hearth, the crying suddenly stopped. Ayla, Grov and Broud's eyes opened wide, and Ayla stood up. "I will go check," she gestured.

Ayla walked as quietly as she could, and peered around the cave wall, and saw that Oga had finally been roused by the baby's cries. She was sitting there with the child to her breast, and the expression on her face was one of pain, and relief. Ayla watched for a moment, then stepped into the hearth. "I see that you have met your daughter."

Oga looked at Ayla, and her face contorted into a look that Ayla figured was a clan smile, and she sat down next to the woman.

"Oga, Broud has accepted the baby, and the clan has accepted the baby, and no one thinks that she is deformed. Do you want to know what her name is?" Oga nodded, and Ayla smiled. "Broud chose you mother's name, Agra."

Oga looked down at the baby in her arms, and then back at the medicine woman. "This woman is grateful that you have cared for Agra when I could not."

Ayla smiled. "Well, you did the same for me when my milk dried up. Now we are even. I will go get Broud," Ayla said as she stood up. She case one last look at Oga, then went to get her mate.

Ayla had hardly stepped into the hearth, when she was accosted by the two men. "Well?" they said in unison.

Ayla smiled, and looked at Broud. "You have your mate back. Go see for yourself." Broud hardly needed telling, he hadn't even seen her last gesture.

At Oak Camp, the hunters had returned with more meat than necessary. It was going to be a good winter they thought, and they worked hard on the expansion of their lodge. When it was finished, the people spent time putting their belongings away, and the two youngest couples moved into the new space.

After the incident in the beginning of the building process where he hadn't had the privacy that he and Laurana wanted, Brulenzia decided to take the remaining new hearth as his own, so that he could bring her back there, and not have to be in either his mother's hearth, or her mother's hearth. Laurana would continue to be part of the Ermine Hearth, until they did finally mate, but she spent most of her time in his hearth. The only drawback was that the hearth was right next to Ivanolia's, and he teased them unmercifully.

When finally the finishing touches had been put on the lodge, they talked of travel. Tagnolia approached Vincenzia in the Cooking Hearth. "So, when are you leaving?"

Vincenzia shrugged. He had a serious look on his face. "I am actually getting nervous. What if Ayla doesn't even want to see me? What if she's so happy there that I have no place in her life?"

Darvie was sitting with them, and hugged her mate, hoping to give him comfort. "You have to try, Vin. You won't know until you try."

Tagnolia was nodding. "And their cave isn't far away, so Donzolnia says, and Donzolnia and Jendoza plan to travel with you. I think you should leave today, before the weather turns bad."

Donzolnia was close by, and overheard the conversation. "Yes, it's bound to get bad soon, we should leave right away if we can."

Jendoza was nodding. "I can be ready very shortly, my rucksack is still packed from the summer meeting. I would only have to change my clothing and pack some food."

Vincenzia smiled at them, and stood up. "Well then, let's get moving!"

Tagnolia smiled at his friend, and Zarina began to pack the traveling food. Donzolnia and Jendoza left to get their things, and Brulenzia and Laurana went to help them. Vilognia and Serana waited patiently in the Cooking Hearth, and had a hot traveling tea ready for the people when they were ready for it.

"Okay, I think we have everything," Vincenzia said, as he looked at his niece and her mate. "Ready?" They nodded and everyone gave them hugs and well wishes for a safe journey.

It had only been a few days since Oga had been reunited with her baby, but she was looking much better. Grov and Broud watched the two women of their hearth as the worked together, and played with their babies together. In just the few days, Oga's baby had passed Annaliza in development, and it amazed the two couples.

The baby girls had become rather inseparable; each cried if the other was removed from the area, which forced Ayla and Oga to do nearly everything together. The men watched the closeness of their women and babies grow, and Grov wondered how they would make a journey in the spring.

On the day of the first snow it was Durc and Grev that came running in, covered with snow to let everyone know. "Durc," Ayla said. "How many times do I have to tell you that you shouldn't be out in the snow without your wolverine hood?"

Durc laughed at his mother. "Once every winter Mama, and besides, we didn't know it was going to snow."

Ayla smiled at the boys. "Well, okay then, put them on and you can go back out. Where's Brac? You two shouldn't be alone out there."

Grev pulled his hood over his head. "We're not alone. All the children are outside." Oga grunted, and the boys ran back out.

The boys were outside for very long, when they saw people approaching. Most of the children ran inside, but Durc recognized Donzolnia and Jendoza as two of the three people approaching. Grev stayed with Durc, but Brac ran in to tell the clan.

Vincenzia saw the children playing, and couldn't help but wonder what flathead children would be playing, then he saw them run into the cave. He noticed that three children remained, were discussing something, then the tallest one went into the cave. Jendoza told him that he was probably going in to get someone.

As they got closer, four men appeared at the cave entrance. Jendoza decided to tell Vincenzia who they were. "That is Brun, their headman; they have no headwoman. Then Goov, their Shogur; they say Mog-ur. Then Broud, the leader's mate's son, and then Grov, Ayla mate."

Vincenzia looked at them critically, and noticed right from the off that Grov was much taller than the rest of the flatheads, and that he appeared to be more human than flathead. That would be most beneficial if Ayla ever visited the Sungaea, he thought.

Jendoza had been watching the man, and sighed. "Vincenzia, they are not flatheads, they call themselves Clan, and they call us the Others. Please don't insult them by calling them the wrong thing. They know flathead means animal to us." Vincenzia nodded. He did not want to insult his Annalisa's daughter.

When they were close enough to talk, Brun put up his hand, and Grov approached them. "Why do you come back?" he said.

"We have brought Ayla's mother's mate. He would like to meet the daughter of his hearth." Grov turned around and made hand gestures to the three men behind him, who gestured back and then promptly left.

Grov smiled at them. "Our leader said you can could in, but I remind you that you should not look at our women, except in the hearth." The Others nodded. Donzolnia had explained that to Vincenzia on the journey, along with as many of the customs he could remember. Jendoza fell in behind the three men, knowing that was what was expected of a woman.

**The Oak Camp Earthlodge**

**Entry Area**– Storage of fuel, implements, outer clothes

**First Hearth**– Visitor's Hearth

**Second Hearth**– Cooking hearth and space for gathering

**Third Hearth** – _Antelope Hearth_

**Tagnolia** (40) – **Headman**, brother of Tiflona**  
>Zarina<strong> (38) – mother of Donzolnia and Brulenzia (as well as children below)**  
>Frala<strong> (13)**  
>Morina<strong> (11)

**Fourth Hearth** – _Jack Rabbit Hearth_

**Wäglodia** (39) – mated to headwoman**  
>Tiflona<strong> (38) – **Headwoman**, sister of headman**  
>Tinozia<strong> (18) – first son of headwoman, unmated**  
>Tabita<strong> (15)**  
>Torina<strong> (12)**  
>Talneezia<strong> (9)**  
>Tena<strong> (6)

**Fifth Hearth** – _Bison Hearth_

**Gredenzia** (35) – mated to Fraylora, **Shogur  
>Fraylora<strong> (35) – Nemlora's mother**  
>Fürlasa<strong> (15)**  
>Fräubita<strong> (13)**  
>Gildenozia<strong> (9)

**Sixth Hearth**– Healer's Hearth - Empty

**Seventh Hearth**– Extension to Shogur's hearth, private ceremonies and gatherings

**Eighth Hearth** – _Winter Stoat (Ermine) Hearth_

**Vilognia** (40) – Vinoza and Vincenzia's brother**  
>Serana<strong> (40) – mother of Ivanolia and Jendoza**  
>Laurana<strong> (14)**  
>Vegodia<strong> (11)**  
>Serlona<strong> (8)

**Ninth Hearth** – _Cave Bear Hearth_

**Donzolnia** (21) – first son of headman's mate, Jendoza's mate**  
>Jendoza<strong> (17) – injured woman with the clan, Ivanolia's sister, Evanora and Ayla's cousin, pregnant

**Tenth Hearth** – _Arctic Fox Hearth_

**Ivanolia** (21) – Jendoza's brother, Evanora and Ayla's cousin**  
>Danie<strong> (20) – Travie's daughter, Darvie's sister, Ivanolia's second mate**  
>Braydalana<strong> (7) – Nemlora's daughter (Nemlora died giving birth at 13)

**Eleventh Hearth** – _Gray Wolf Hearth_

**Brulenzia** (19) – second son of headman's mate, Donzolnia's brother, Evenora's closest childhood playmate, unmated, but in love with Laurana

**Twelfth Hearth** – _Reindeer Hearth_

**Teglodia** (would be 35 if not **dead**) – left to go on a journey 10 years ago when youngest child (Tegasia)was killed in a hunting accident, headman's best friend**  
>Vinoza<strong> (would be 33 if not **dead**) – gladly journeyed with her mate, too sad to stay**  
>Evenora<strong> (would be 19 if not **dead**) – was mated to Grov (Nora), mother of Ora

**Thirteenth Hearth** – _Snow Leopard Hearth_

**Vincenzia** (36) – Vilognia and Vinoza's brother, travels often, returned recently from one of his journeys to the Mamutoi, lost first mate (Annalisa) and daughter (Andreyta or Ayla) in such a travel**  
>Darvie<strong> (25) – second mate, Mamutoi woman**  
>Crisana<strong> (Crisanie) (7) – Darvie's daughter**  
>Brenevia<strong> (Brenev) (4) – Darvie's son**  
>Travie<strong> (43) – Darvie and Danie's mother

**Fourteenth Hearth**– Empty Hearth

**Fifteenth Hearth**– Food storage area

**Sixteenth Hearth**– Empty Hearth

**Seventeenth Hearth**– Empty hearth space

**Back Entry Area**– More storage

**Sweat Bath Area**

**************************************************  
><strong>Reunited<br>**

Broud had returned to the hearth to inform Ayla that Donzolnia and Jendoza had brought with them the man of her hearth. Ayla was excited that Jendoza had returned, but nervous about meeting her true mother's mate. She wished Grov had come back to wait with her, so she had someone to lean on. Sensing her nervousness, Oga moved closer to her, and they waited.

Durc and Grev walked behind the men with Jendoza. "You look so much like my Mama," Durc said to her.

"That is because we are related. The man of your Mama's hearth, and the man of my hearth are brothers."

Durc seemed satisfied with Jendoza's answer. Then he looked at the tall blond man walking in front of him. "And is he the man of Mama's hearth?" Jendoza smiled and nodded. Durc looked at the man again, and walked up and slipped his small Clan hand into the man's large Others hand.

Vincenzia looked down at the boy, and studied him while they walked, then he bent down and picked the child up so he could look at him more closely. He could definitely see his little Andreyta in the boy even though he had the Clan's deep-set dark brown eyes, and protruding brow ridges.

When Ayla heard Grov and the visitors coming, she began to quake. Oga reached over and held her hand. Broud stood up, and waited.

Grov entered the hearth first, followed by Donzolnia, and a tall blond, older looking man, who was carrying Durc. Jendoza brought up the rear, with Grev at her side.

Ayla got up and went to the men immediately, and dropped to the floor at their feet. Vincenzia was surprised at first, but he remembered that Jendoza said this was their custom. Grov smiled, took Durc from the man's arms, and indicated that the visitor should tap the woman's shoulder. Vincenzia hesitated, he was not used to treating a woman this way, least of all the daughter of his hearth, but he finally did it.

When Ayla looked up, she had tears streaming down her face, but Vincenzia gasped. She was an exact replica of her mother, except that she had his blue-gray eyes. Tears began to well up in his eyes, as he stared at the woman before him. He could not help himself, he touched her face, and ran his fingers along her jaw, then he grabbed her and hugged her tightly. When he finally pulled back, he wiped off his face with his hands, and then he did the same to hers. Ayla was stunned by the man's emotion, and by his touch. She had never seen a man with so much emotion before. He hugged her again, and lifted her off the ground. He never wanted to let go.

Ora was standing behind Broud's leg, as the man stood off to the side, but was becoming very interested, and approached them. "Mamma?" she said questioningly, pulling on her mother's wrap. "You okay Mamma? Why you cry?"

Vincenzia pulled back and looked down at the child. Ora's eyes opened wide as she looked at him. Ayla bent down and picked her up. "Yes Ora, Mamma fine. This is man of my hearth," Ayla said with joy in her voice. Ora smiled and looked at the man, then she stuck her thumb in her mouth and put her head down on Ayla's shoulder.

Ayla turned to Vincenzia. "And this," she said indicating the child she was holding. "Is Grov's daughter…I mean Evenora's daughter. She was born to Grov's hearth two seasons ago, but now she is my daughter too."

Vincenzia smiled at the girl, then hugged Ayla again, this time including the child. "I have met your mate Grov and your son Durc," he said looking over at the boy that was still in the man's arms, and ruffling his hair. "But I have been told that you just had another baby."

Ayla nodded, and handed Ora to Broud, who was standing protectively nearby his woman, then went to pick up her new baby. "This is Annaliza," she said handing the chubby baby to the man. "She is almost four moons."

Vincenzia looked at the child, and began to tear up again. The child looked just like Ayla had, _and_he was touched beyond reason that they had given her Ayla's mother's name. It was too much for the man; he put his arm around Ayla again, and began to cry openly.

Grov waited for their hug to end, then he put Durc down. Durc went to stand off to the side with Grev. Then, Grov gave them a minute to compose themselves before he decided to introduce the rest of the hearth.

"Vincenzia, this is Broud, and his mate Oga, and her children, Brac, Grev and Agra."

Vincenzia looked at the flathead people, he could immediately tell that the spirit of the man Broud was the one that had created Durc inside Ayla. A momentary thought of disgust went through him, but he pushed it away. These are the people that had saved my Andreyta, he told himself.

The woman flathead was hard to see, she kept looking at the ground. He could tell that Broud did not like him looking at his woman so he looked at the baby instead. Agra was a mixed baby, he thought, maybe of Grov's spirit. Then he looked at the boys. Brac appeared to be about nine or ten, but short for that age, and the boy Grev seemed to be about Durc's age, but maybe older. All of his musings of the people occurred in a minute amount of time, and then he looked back at Ayla.

"We cannot stay long; just a few days, if that is alright with your leader, but I had to come meet you before the winter snows came."

Ayla smiled at the man through her tears. "It looks like you are too late for that."

Vincenzia laughed. "Seems so, but it shouldn't be too bad, since it's just the beginning of the season, but we still shouldn't stay long. I just had to meet you before the spring to hear about your life, and to tell you about Oak Camp. I'm not sure I could have waited until the end of the winter."

Ayla smiled again, and asked the visitors to sit. Then she looked at Grov and Broud, to make sure it was okay. Broud shrugged, and sat by Oga and Agra. Brac left to go find his friends, and Durc and Grev went into the joining hearth to play. Ayla made tea, and offered the people some food.

Vincenzia could not take his eyes off the daughter of his hearth. She busied herself making the meal, and he wondered why she did it alone. Jendoza got up to help, as if she had read his mind. Oga did not move to help; Ayla had given her strict orders to do nothing but care for her baby for a while, and Broud had agreed that Oga needed the time.

After some time had passed, Brun showed up wanting to know how long the visitors would be there. "They say they cannot stay long," Grov gestured, knowing that that's what Brun wanted to hear. "They just wanted Ayla's mother's mate to meet her. I suspect they will want her to visit them…later, if that is okay with you."

Brun grunted, and looked at the tall blond man. He could see the resemblance between him and Ayla, though they looked somewhat different. She must be of his totem spirit, he thought. He made a gesture of greeting.

Grov began to translate in words and gestures. "This is our leader, headman, Brun. He has just welcomed you."

Vincenzia said hello back, and tried to make the sign for greetings; he had been briefed, but it was awkward. Grov did a good job of making the introduction, and it was decided that they Others could stay for a short visit. Brun left to go back to the other side of the cave. It is difficult to have these loud Others among us, he thought as he walked back.

When the leader was gone, Ayla served her kin a meal, and they began a conversation that lasted into the night.

**************************************************  
><strong>A Strong Gust<br>**

The few days that the Oak Camp members had planned to stay with Brun's Clan quickly turned into many more, and it was getting colder and colder with each passing day. It hadn't snowed since the day of their arrival, but the sky seemed to have become a perpetual blackness, with no hope of the sun ever peeking through again.

For Vincenzia, it didn't matter, he was enjoying his time with the daughter of his heart, and had forgotten that they needed to return before the storms began; for a three day journey in a storm could take ten times as long, or be the end of a life.

Donzolnia and Jendoza were enjoying the visit as well, but they wanted to get home to family and friends, and the security of their own lodge. Jendoza secretly worried about what would happen to her if they got stuck with the Clan, and she had to give birth with them. She truly believed they were human, but she was also concerned about her body allowing one of the Clan spirits inside her; she did not want a mixed child.

And besides the thought of the mixing of spirits, she was worried about not having a competent healer with her. She knew that Ayla was the Clan's first ranked _medicine woman_, and that her sister Uba was second, but what if something went wrong? What if she needed a real healer? Ayla and Uba couldn't possibly really know what to do; they had no _real_training. Jendoza was letting the flathead stereotypes invade her head, and didn't even realize that if anyone didn't have a competent healer, it was Oak Camp that was lacking.

Ayla could see that Jendoza was getting anxious to leave, and she could understand that the woman wanted to be in her own home. Ayla suggested that they leave, so that the journey could be made easier. Vincenzia agreed that they should be going, for he had no desire to travel during a storm. They planned to leave the next morning after the morning meal.

When the morning came, everyone sat solemnly, drinking his or her tea. It had been a cold night, and the western entrance of the cave was covered with frost, and the wind was blowing harder than anyone could remember it ever blowing before. Ayla gave Jendoza a warm bear skin hide that had been given to her earlier in the season, and helped the woman wrap up tight.

Jendoza hugged her cousin, and cried, but again promised to visit in the spring. "Maybe you will make it to Oak Camp for a visit too. You just have to see the new Ivanolia. He doesn't appear to be the same man," she said with a smile.

Ayla remembered his anger all too well, and involuntarily rubbed the arm that he had accidentally punched, but smiled at the woman, and let her own tears fall freely.

Donzolnia hugged her too, and then kissed the two little girls. Ora was quite the handful he thought; a precocious child by nature. Then he thought of her true mother, Evenora, and smiled at the thought of Ora being just like her. He picked up Annaliza, and blew on her chubby little cheek, which created a stream of giggles, and caused Ora to ask him to do it to her too.

When it was Vincenzia's turn to say his goodbyes, he almost couldn't do it. As soon as he looked at Ayla, they both broke into sobs, and fell into each other's arms. "Have I found my Andreyta, only to lose her again?" he asked.

Ayla was shaking her head. "No, no Vincenzia, you will not lose me. Grov has promised to bring me to Oak Camp as soon as it is safe to travel. We will be together again."

Vincenzia smiled. "You could come with us now. You could winter with us."

Ayla smiled, but shook her head. "I cannot leave here now. There will be a baby to deliver by the end of this moon. I cannot leave Ebra right now."

He was nodding, he knew she would not come. "I had to ask. But, I will hold you to that promised visit." Ayla hugged the man again, and he put his arm around her as they walked to the northern entrance.

When they got to the cave opening, a light dusting of snow was falling, and the wind was blowing ever persistently. Everyone gave last quick hugs, and before he left, Vincenzia grabbed Grov in a hug, and whispered, "Take care of my little girl."

Grov smiled. "I will Vincenzia, and we will visit in the spring."

The three journeyers turned and walked away, disappearing from sight in only twenty or so paces. The snow began to fall harder, and the wind whipped the windbreak with a loud snap.

When they were out of sight, Grov and Ayla went back inside, fastened the windbreak tightly, and went back to their hearth. Ayla tried to clean up, but just didn't want to. She decided that she wanted to go back to bed; they had after all been up almost all night, and then had risen before dawn, so that they would have plenty of time to talk before their visitors left.

Grov encouraged her to lie down. "You're no good around here if you're tired. I can take care of the children if they need something."

Ayla smiled at her mate, and hugged him, then asked him to lie down with her. "Let's all lie down," she said.

They put the girls back down; Durc decided to go find Grev, as they crawled into their own furs, and snuggled closely. Ayla loved the feel of his arms around her, and pushed herself up against him. He breathed in deeply, enjoying her womanly scent, and kissed the back of her neck. Ayla could feel his member rubbing against her buttocks, and she pushed against him with purpose, causing him to groan with pleasure. He pulled her around so that she was facing him instead. "I thought you were tired," he said as he hugged her lovingly.

"Hummmm, I am tired . . . but never tired of you."

Grov smiled at her, and kissed her firmly, and slipped her wrap to the side, so that he could find her moist opening, and node of pleasure. Ayla closed her eyes, reveling in his touch, and allowed her body to take over. It did not take long for her to reach her peak, and for him to feel her wetness in his hand. When she had finished, he touched her opening, and slid his fingers inside her. Oh, how he loved how she felt inside, he thought. Ayla was still quivering, but she opened her eyes. "Oh Grov, I must have you inside me now."

Grov smiled and removed his hand, then rolled her onto her back, so that he could enter her easily. She groaned with the pleasure of him slowly sliding in and out of her, and held onto him until he climaxed, and collapsed on top of her. Then she held him longer. Both were breathing hard, and the sweat from his brow dripped onto her forehead. He tried to move off of her, but she held him tightly, not wanting him to get off of her. "Ummmm, I like it when you're on top of me," she said in a husky voice.

He lifted himself just enough to smile down at her, but stayed there for a few more moments just gazing at her before he finally kissed her gently, and extracted himself. As he lay down beside her, they both fell asleep instantaneously; on top of their furs, and naked.

The three travelers were walking in an easterly direction, and had to strain into the strong wind. For every attempted step forward, they fell back a half a step. When they reached the end of the valley, the snow was piling up fast, and the wind was causing it to whip their faces raw.

"THIS IS RIDICULOUS," Donzolnia screamed.

"WHAAATTTT?" Jendoza yelled back.

The man came up beside her, and hollered in her ear. "WE WON'T MAKE IT, WE HAVE TO TURN BACK."

Vincenzia had caught up with them. "WE'RE NEVER GOING TO GET TO OAK CAMP IN THIS. I THINK WE NEED TO GO BACK TO BRUN'S CAVE." Jendoza looked at the two men, and nodded. If _they_couldn't make it, then she surely couldn't. They turned around.

It was still very early, but some were awake. Women were preparing meals, and men were stoking fires, and children were playing. The children enjoyed playing in the area of the cave that didn't contain lived in hearths, so that they could be away from the watchful eyes of the adults.

Brac and Nouz liked to meet in the back of the cave to play hearths with Igra and Orga, but also liked to practice hunting there when the young woman and girl weren't available. This was one of those times; Igra was confined to her hearth due to her woman's curse, and Orga seldom wanted to play hearths if Igra wasn't there. On this morning Vorg, Groob, Breg, Grev and Durc had joined them, and the boys were concentrating on Nouz' instruction; he was the only man among them, and they all looked up to him.

A few of the girls were playing back there too. Mostly sitting and watching the boys, and ooing and ahhing over their manly behavior, but playing with their Others' dolls as well. Orga, Nala, Ada, Aka and Ura sat together with their backs to the storage areas, and alternately played their game, and watched the boys. Orga watched Brac with adoring eyes, and Nala teased her. Ada, Aka and Ura weren't interested in the boys yet, but they teased too.

The way back to the cave went much faster; they had the wind in their favor this time. It helped to push them along until they could see the opening just in front of them. Donzolnia pushed the windbreak aside, and the three people rushed in. Vincenzia closed and secured it behind them, and they stomped their feet and shook the snow from their parkas.

The four Clan girls were still sitting there when a large gust of wind came through the northern entrance, whipped around the corner into the meat storage area, swirled around in there, then flew around the next bend, and descended upon the girls. The girls shivered violently, since they were so lightly clad, and looked behind them.

When the girls heard the rustlings of the noise at the cave opening, they jumped up, and went to stand behind the six boys and one young man for protection. They twelve Clan people just stood there, seven of them with their spears poised to attack whatever animal came around the corner. They didn't expect that it was the visitors that had only just left.

Durc recognized them first, and put down his spear. "Vincenzia, I thought you gone by now."

Vincenzia smiled, and picked the boy up again. "The snow is falling too hard. It pushed us backward."

"I not know the wind can push."

"It can push very hard," the tall man said to the boy.

The children all clamored around the snow-covered people; they were much less rigid than the Clan adults. Ada and Aka wanted to be picked up by the visitors too, and so reached up to Donzolnia. The dark haired man smiled at them and picked up a child in each arm, and held them high. Jendoza smiled at her mate, and rubbed her slightly bulging belly thinking about bringing a child to his hearth.

Brac went to let Brun know that the visitors were back. It wasn't long before the leader had returned with the boy, and saw that the children at least would enjoy the company of more people for the winter, for he was sure they wouldn't be leaving now.

Brun approached the people, but didn't know what to say. He could not speak with words, and they didn't know many signs. Jendoza was the most proficient at it, but she was a woman. The leader figured he didn't have much of a choice, so turned to her.

Jendoza didn't kneel, as a proper Clan woman would, but she looked down at the ground, and waited for Brun to address her. Brun was pleased that she at least attempted to do as a woman should. He tapped her shoulder.

"I see that you have returned," he gestured.

She nodded. "Too much snow. We not able walk. Want stay here, if okay with you."

Brun looked at them. They had obviously shaken off much snow, but they were still covered. They looked freezing. "Yes, you can stay in the visitor's hearth." Brun turned to Brac and gestured something too quick for Jendoza to understand, and then the boy ran off. "Ayla will be pleased to see you. And we have plenty of food to feed everyone. It has been a good hunting season."

Jendoza told the men what Brun had said, and then told Brun that they were grateful. When Brac came back with an armload of wood, he dropped it at the visitor's feet, then backed up to wait to see what else was going to happen. Brun wasn't really in a mood to talk to these people, so he signaled that he was going. The two men put the children down, and picked up the wood, then headed for the visitor's hearth, waving goodbye to the children. The children went back to their playing.

The three people made their way through the cave passageway, and into the visitor's hearth. Donzolnia and Vincenzia piled the wood in the corner, while Jendoza put all their things away. When the men were finished with the wood, Donzolnia built a fire, and Vincenzia went to go find Ayla.

Ayla and Grov were still completely naked, and sound asleep on their furs when the man came around the corner. For a moment he stood there staring, realizing that they had just shared pleasures, and having mixed feelings about it. It was so easy to ignore the fact that Ayla would be doing that with Grov, her mate, when he'd never actually witnessed it, but now, he didn't think he would be able to get the thought of the daughter of his hearth, and the man of the Clan.

It was not until the girl, Ora, opened her eyes, and smiled at him that he realized he was staring. She crawled out of her bedding, stood up, and ran to him. "Vincen," she squealed, with a wide smile on her face.

He picked her up, and put his finger to his lips. "Shhhhh, Mamma sleeping," he whispered.

Ora smiled and did the same thing. "Shhhhhh."

Grov's eyes opened to see the tall blond man holding his daughter, and he propped himself up, and smiled. "Is it spring already?" he asked quietly.

Vincenzia's smile widened, and Grov decided Ayla had the man's smile. "We got to the end of the Valley, and could not see where we were going. We had to come back."

Grov got up, and put his wrap back on. "Ayla will be thrilled, but she is so tired, let's go to visitor's hearth so she can sleep," he said. Vincenzia nodded and they left.

**************************************************  
><strong>Lookout<br>**

The three visitors relayed their attempted journey home to Grov, and each expressed their worry at wintering with the Clan. Vincenzia hoped his mate would not insist on trying to make the trip to the Clan's cave. She was rather stubborn that way, but he thought she would understand. Donzolnia's only concern was for Jendoza, who was upset about her coming baby in midwinter, and not being at home to deliver it. Grov tried to settle all of their fears, but Jendoza was the hardest to console.

"Jendoza, Ayla truly is the best medicine woman in all the Clan, _and_her sister, Uba, has all of the Clan's memories. I assure you that you are in good hands."

Jendoza nodded, not really wanting to talk about it anymore. She figured she'd see how well Ebra's delivery went, and then she know more. _That_birth was practically upon them. Then she thought about Annaliza's delivery, which had had no complications, except for being early, and she remembered that Ayla wasn't even nervous. If Ayla wasn't nervous, then why was she, she wondered?

Ayla woke up, but didn't open her eyes right away. She was thinking about the pleasure her mate brought to her life. Then she realized that the furs felt cold, so she moved her leg backward to cuddle up to Grov, but instead of feeling his warm body, she felt nothing. She opened her eyes and noticed that her mate was gone, and then saw that Ora was gone too. Ayla looked around, and saw that Annaliza was still sleeping, and then her eyes settled on Shriek, who was on his perch; he squawked at her, but it was just a greeting.

Ayla sighed, wondering how long she had been sleeping, maybe she ought to be fixing a meal. She glanced into Broud's hearth; they were sleeping too. Ayla decided to get up. She signed a greeting to Shriek, and scratched his neck. He seems to be full size now, she thought. He ruffled his feathers, and appeared to be enjoying her attention. Ayla smiled at her pet, and was glad that the winter weather would keep him around for a while.

Her thoughts shifted to other topics as she handled her bird. She was thinking about Vincenzia, and wondering what it was like at Oak Camp. How long would their journey back to their camp take, she was thinking. She was so into her musings that she didn't even hear Grov enter the hearth.

Grov stood in the hearth opening looking at the naked woman that stood fondling the hawk, and wished his had the time to entice her into the furs again. He walked up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist, and nuzzled her neck. "Oh Grov, I didn't know you were there. Are you hungry? I should make a meal."

Grov closed his eyes, and sighed. "Only hungry for you."

Ayla smiled, and turned around to face her mate. "Hummm, well then," she said in a suggestive manner. Grov leaned down and kissed her passionately, groaning with the pleasure of having her in his arms.

"Oh woman, you tempt me, but . . . but . . ," he said kissing her again.

Ayla pulled back, and looked at him. "But what, Grov?" He rarely ever turned her down, even if they had just finished.

Grov smiled. "Well," he began. "I have something to show you first, and I'm sure you'll be in no mood when you see what I have to show you."

Ayla eyed him. "What do you have to show me?" she said in an interested manner.

Grov laughed, thinking that she suddenly looked like a little girl that was anticipating some goody from her mother. Grov grabbed her hand. "Come on, I'll show you."

Ayla jumped up, and smiled at her mate. "First you have to kiss me, and promise you'll want me later."

Grov laughed again. "I want you now, and I promise I'll want you later too. Come on, you have to see this," he said taking her hand and pulling her towards the passageway.

Ayla shrugged, and followed. He led her down the corridor, and she had no idea where they were going, until he stopped at the visitor's hearth. He had asked them to stay quiet, so he could surprise her, and he was standing in front of her so she could not see. "Here it is," he said, but did not move.

Ayla frowned. "What? Are you teasing me Grov?"

Grov smiled, then stepped aside. Ayla's eyes followed him until she saw movement, then she stared in disbelief. "Vincenzia? Jendoza? Donzolnia? But how? Why are you here? I thought you left?"

"Hummmm, so did we," Vincenzia said with a laugh. "But the Mother must have wanted us to stay, because the storm became so bad that we could not even walk east. We turned around and the wind blew us back."

Ayla smiled at him, then stepped into the hearth and hugged him. "I am so glad that you are here. I was just wondering how long it would be before I saw you again."

"Well, wonder no more," the man said with a huge grin. Ayla hugged the other two people, and started making tea, and a meal.

At Oak Camp, many were getting nervous. Darvie began to take watch in the mornings, and then again every evening. They had been gone a few days longer than Vincenzia said they would be, and he didn't usually make mistakes like that; he was usually very accurate.

Then, on the day of the big snow, Darvie was sitting outside, on top of the lodge, looking out over the land, hoping to see some glimpse of her mate, and the others, when the snow began to lightly sift down from the sky.

Her sister Danie, was scolding Ivanolia for playing another joke on Brulenzia; she was exasperated with their antics, and jokes. She walked out of the hearth, hearing laughter coming from Brulenzia. "Looks like your furs will be cold tonight," the man was saying to Ivanolia with another burst of laughter.

Danie went to the cooking hearth, and not seeing her sister, figured that she was once again outside waiting for her mate's return.

Braydalana was playing with Serlona in the cooking hearth, and saw Danie come stomping in. "Danie, are you looking for Darvie?" Danie nodded her head. "She's outside again."

"I figured as much. Maybe I'll take her some tea." Danie steeped some tea, and walked out of the cooking hearth.

Outside it was a crisp, cold morning. Much too cold, Danie thought. "Darrrvieee, where are youuuu?" she shouted, trying to be heard above the wind.

Darvie heard her sister, but didn't move. Danie didn't know that she liked to sit on top of the lodge.

"Come Onnn Darvie," Danie tried again. "Thissss isssn't funny."

Darvie smiled, and leaned over the edge of the lodge. Her sister was just below her. She smiled again and scooped up a handful of snow, and packed it hard. Then she waited until Danie was ready to shout again, and she let fly. Danie whipped around and looked up, but had two cups of tea, so she could not retaliate. "Oh, not you too. I'm so tired of jokes. Here I am, bringing you a hot tea, and you turn to Ivan's tricks."

Darvie immediately felt bad. "I'm sorry Danie, I was just having fun. Come on up."

Danie handed her sister the cups of tea so that she could climb onto the lodge, and discovered that it wasn't so easy; though Oak Camp had based their Earthlodge on the Mamutoi style, it had far steeper sides than the Mamutoi put on their Earthlodges. When she finally got to the top, and settled beside her sister, the snow was falling pretty hard, and the wind was whistling through the nearby canyon.

"So, you must be getting worried, huh?"

Darvie was silent for a second, then nodded. "I hope they're okay. This is going to be a bad winter."

Danie hugged her sister. "We should go back in. It's too cold out here." Darvie nodded again, and the got up to go in.

Inside the lodge, Laurana was watching the men's banter, and wasn't sure why her brother was acting the way he was, and she didn't understand why Brulenzia was joining in. They had had a good few days, but every so often they were interrupted by one of Ivan's jokes, and it was starting to get old. She decided to go sit with Tabita and Fürlasa; they never acted so dumb.

"Looks like she's picking the girls over you, my friend," Ivanolia said with a laugh.

Brulenzia watched Laurana walk away, then frowned. "Ivan, sometimes you can be so dense," he said and he walked away." Brulenzia was torn between going back to his hearth, and going to Laurana, who was obviously frustrated with their behavior. Ivanolia was being a pain, and he wasn't helping matters by dishing back every thing that his friend threw at him. He decided on going to Laurana, but after getting some tea.

He went to the cooking hearth, where she was with her friends, and made himself some tea, then drank it quietly, trying not to watch the young woman. The girls appeared to be engrossed in a conversation about babies. Brulenzia couldn't tell that Laurana was looking sad because her back was to him. He decided that he'd go sit with them.

"How are the three most beautiful young women in the camp?" he said as he sat down and slipped his arm around Laurana. She stiffened as he did this, and he thought she was still angry with him. He didn't know what to do. Tabita and Fürlasa smiled at him; they weren't used to the handsome man hanging out with them, and he made them giggle.

Brulenzia eyed them suspiciously, wondering what was so funny. "What? What's so funny?" They just giggled again.

Laurana shot them a look that silenced them immediately, then she got up. "I have to go." Brulenzia watched her walk away. "Is she mad at me?" The girls shrugged their shoulders. Brulenzia looked after her again, and got up to follow her. He thought that she would go to her mother's hearth, but when he got there she wasn't there. Vilognia pointed down the hallway toward his own hearth. Brulenzia frowned, and wondered why Laurana had gone to his hearth when she was obviously upset with him. He made his way to his hearth, and stepped in to see Laurana crying. He rushed to her immediately.

"Laurana, what's wrong? Please don't cry." He wasn't used to women crying. He had never spent so much time with one woman to become so concerned about what they were feeling, but he did care about her. "Please Laurana, tell me what's wrong?"

She rolled over, and looked at him. She had tears running down her face, and she looked like a little girl. Brulenzia began to feel terrible about all the joking around he and Ivanolia had been doing. He sat down and gathered her up in his arms. "Don't cry Laurana. I'll stop with the joking."

Laurana sniffled a little, but sat up and looked at him. "It's not that Bru, though I don't like that Ivan's always teasing, that's not it."

Brulenzia looked puzzled, and he sat down. "Well, what then?"

Laurana suddenly got nervous, and bit her lip. "I think . . . I'm not sure . . . but, I think I might be blessed." She watched him, worried that he wouldn't be happy about it, and worried about becoming a mother at such a young age.

Brulenzia stared at her for a moment, then smiled. "Really?" He hadn't even considered that she could be pregnant, and he was pleased.

Laurana nodded, but she didn't look happy.

"Well, that's a good thing, isn't it? It will give you so much more status."

Laurana snorted. "Like I care about that. I'm worried being too young to have a baby. I barely remember when Nemlora died giving birth, and she was only a year younger than me."

Brulenzia smiled. "But you will be another year older by the time the baby comes." She eyed him, and wondered why had was so happy about it. Until recently, he had been bedding any woman that he could entice into his furs, and that was almost any woman. They just all loved the handsome dark haired, sky blue eyed man. Laurana worried that he would soon tire of her, and move on.

Brulenzia looked deep into her blue eyes, and kissed her soft pouting lips. Laurana couldn't resist his powerful kiss, and finally kissed him back. She groaned as she felt herself melt into the man that held her. Brulenzia suddenly felt the need to pleasure her. He got up, and crossed the hearth to close their curtain. Surely Ivanolia wouldn't bother them if the curtain was closed, he thought, then he quickly stepped out of his clothing, returned to the furs, and pushed her back onto them. Laurana smiled up at the man, and giggled slightly, then opened herself to the man fully.

When they were finished, they lay together cuddled in his furs. She was dozing, her mind off what it had been on, and he was quietly thinking that if she were just a little older, he would ask her to join with him. He thought about what Ivanolia would say if he knew what he was thinking, and figured the man would laugh at him again for being in love with so new a woman. In love with, he thought? Am I really in love with her? He looked at her sleeping face, and ran a finger along her cheekbone. Then along her arm, then her naked breast, and down to her belly that held something precious. She twitched slightly in her sleep, and he smiled. He felt sure that he was in love with her, even if she was really young. Brulenzia leaned over and kissed her neck, and put his head down to rest. "I will take care of you Laurana; you and your baby. Don't you worry."

In her sleep, Laurana snuggled up to him, and a soft moan escaped her lips.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Elm Stick<br>**

Laurana woke up with the distinct feeling that someone was watching them, but she could not turn to look because Brulenzia was practically on top of her. She took a deep breath and tried to wriggle free. She didn't want to wake the man, but she was dying to see if that _someone_was really there.

As she pulled herself out from under him, he took a deep breath, and rolled over. She was free. As she lost herself in the sight of his naked body, Laurana momentarily forgot why she was trying to get up, then hearing her brother's snicker, she turned toward the curtain, and pulled the blanket up to cover her nakedness. "Ivan!" she said in a whisper. "Don't you have any respect for your sister? You obviously don't respect your friend."

Ivanolia smiled, but felt a little guilty. "I'm just trying to have some fun. The winter is going to be so boring if I don't create distractions. And besides, this is funny. My friend and my sister of only fourteen."

Laurana frowned. "Ivan, I _am_a woman now. Can't you see that I'm a woman, or do you still see your annoying little sister?"

Ivanolia frowned back at her. "You've never been annoying Laur . . . I'm just trying to have some fun."

Laurana rolled her eyes, and looked at the sleeping man. "I love him, Ivan," she said.

Ivanolia watched his sister. He could tell that she did, but did Brulenzia love her? The man was notorious for taking many women to his furs. Ivanolia sometimes thought that Brulenzia tried to make up for his essentially celibate winters by bedding every woman he could during summer meetings. He hoped the man did not hurt his sister. "I can see that Laur, but you're only fourteen. There will be many, many men that you will want to meet . . ."

Laurana cut him off. "No Ivan! I want Bru. He's the only man I want." She had a stubborn look to her face as she looked her brother in the eyes. "Please leave," she said in an almost whiny voice. Ivanolia gave her a clipped nod, and let the curtain close as he left.

Laurana stared at the closed curtain, and was startled to feel Brulenzia's fingers run down her back. He had woken up, and heard her talking to Ivanolia, but didn't think she needed him to contribute to the conversation. Ivanolia would have just started in on them again. He was a little annoyed to hear Ivanolia telling her she would want to 'meet' other men, and he suddenly decided that he didn't care how young she was, he wanted to be mated to her.

Laurana turned to look at him, and smiled widely. By the look on his face, she knew he had heard her conversation with Ivanolia, and she could tell his mind was working, but had no clue what he was thinking. "What?" she said as she leaned over to kiss him.

Brulenzia kissed her back, then in between kisses he said, "I . . . I was just wondering . . . well . . . wondering if you . . . would join with me next summer?"

Laurana pulled back from him, and stared at him. "You want to join with me? But, what about how young I am?"

Brulenzia grabbed her, and pulled her on top of him, and kissed her again. "Well, I figure if you're not too young to have a baby, then you're not too young to join. So, what do you say?"

She smiled at him. "Well, I don't know. Maybe I might like to meet some other men; to see if there's anyone else I want," she said looking away from him.

Brulenzia frowned, not liking the thought of her wanting to do that, but then he smiled, knowing that she was only joking. "Well," he said, holding her tighter. "I may not let you out of my sight then. I may have to follow you everywhere you go, just to make sure you don't find someone else you like better."

Laurana laughed. "You know I'm just kidding. There's no one I want more than you. Yes Bru, I will join with you at the next summer meeting. And we will have a baby then too. But I hope you don't mind a fat woman, for I am going to get huge."

Brulenzia laughed at her, then kissed her again, and rolled her off of him. Brulenzia placed his hand on her flat belly. "That is fine with me Laur. I can hardly wait to see your baby. Maybe it will be of my spirit."

Laurana smiled. "I hope so. I want it to look just like you."

"Well, I hope it's a boy then. I'd hate to see a girl that looks like me."

Laurana giggled at the thought of a girl with his strong male features. "Well, that would be better than a boy that looked like me."

He smiled and agreed. "I don't care what it is, just so long as it's healthy, and you get through the delivery safely." He paused for a moment, and then smiled again. "Do you think we should go tell everyone?"

At his words, she blanched. "NO! I'm not ready to tell them that I'm pregnant. Can you imagine what Ivanolia will say? He's going to be upset. I'm sure it's going to bring up some bad memories. Besides, it would be better to wait until we're really sure."

Brulenzia was nodding, he agreed with her there. "But I mean," he said, "tell them about us joining this summer. Should we go tell them?"

Laurana frowned. "Can't we wait until Jendoza gets back? I want to tell her first."

Brulenzia shrugged, then nodded. "I'd like to tell Donzolnia first too," he added, thinking about his missing brother. "I would have liked to tell Ivanolia too, but he's acting like such a creep, so he'll just have to wait."

Laurana smiled at him, and lean over him again. "Do you think you can make yourself ready for me again?" she said with a smirk. "Or is it too soon?"

Brulenzia laughed and pushed her off of him. "Look woman, I am already ready, see?" he replied gesturing toward is hard manhood.

Laurana looked at him, and leaned down to kiss his maleness. Brulenzia groaned with pleasure, enjoying her soft lips around him.

Over the next few days, Darvie became more and more worried. She could no longer sit outside, because the storm had gotten too bad, but her mind was never far from her missing mate. Vilognia could see that she was nearly ready to make a journey of her own, and asked Travie to talk to her daughter.

Travie had been looking for Darvie, and found her in the lodge entrance, holding back the drape, and staring into the blowing snow. "There you are!" she exclaimed. "It's too cold to be standing here daughter. Get inside and have some hot tea!"

Darvie instinctively listened to her mother. She was glad Ivanolia had joined with Danie, so that her mother had to move to Oak Camp. She couldn't imagine how she'd be feeling if they weren't here. She would have felt so alone.

Travie handed her daughter a cup of tea, and then pour one for herself. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were planning a trip." Darvie started to say something, but her mother cut her off. "And it's out of the question! Your mate is smart enough to stay out of this blasted weather, and you are going to stay out of it too." Darvie looked at her mother, then looked away. "And besides, you have two children to take care of. You cannot go off and leave Crisanie and Brenev without their mother to care for them. I refuse to do it for you."

Darvie looked across the cooking hearth, Crisana was playing dolls with Braydalana and Serlona, and Braydalana teaching them some of the hand signs she had learned while with the Clan people. Brenevia was running around with Tena; playing chase. Darvie felt bad that he had no little boys his age to play with even though he didn't seem to care.

"Yes mother, I know. I'm sure Vincenzia is still with Ayla at the Clan's cave," she said with a sigh. "I just miss him."

Travie eyed her daughter. "Well, just promise me that you won't go out looking for that blasted cave."

Darvie looked at her mother. "I promise, I won't go on any journeys mother. At least not until spring."

Travie gave her daughter a penetrating look. "You better not!"

The days were passing quickly for the Clan as well, and the day for Ebra to deliver came and went, but no baby arrived. Ayla visited the woman ever morning, and finally when Ayla was sure they were a half a moon beyond the time the woman should have delivered, she told Ebra that they needed to get her labor started. Uba was in agreement; Ebra was, after all, not a young woman, and if the baby was too big, it may take more than the older woman could stand.

Ayla decided to go talk to Brun. When she found him, she knelt down at his feet. The leader suddenly wondered if Ebra was okay, he hadn't been at the hearth all morning, so he didn't know. He tapped her shoulder.

"This woman has decided that she needs to get Ebra's labor started. Uba is getting her things, and I am going to do the same thing." Brun grunted his acceptance, and Ayla left to go to her hearth to get the things she would need.

When the young medicine woman got there, she asked Jendoza if she would like to join her for the birth. Jendoza readily agreed; she had been hoping she could watch. Ayla pulled out her medicine bag, and started rummaging around in it.

"What are looking for Ayla?" she asked.

Ayla looked up at her. "I need to make Ebra a tea that will make her labor start. I'm going to try breaking her water first, but if that doesn't get it started then we might need the tea."

Jendoza nodded. "I didn't know that you could induce labor with medication."

Ayla nodded. "There is so much you can do with all these herbs and roots that I have. I am constantly learning more. Uba's memories are vast, and I am always picking her brain for more information."

Jendoza smiled. She had no idea how much Ayla knew, but she would find out soon enough.

Uba also went to her own hearth to get her medicine bag. She hung the bag over her shoulder then picked up her sons, and brought them to Ovra. "Ovra, can you watch the boys for me? Ayla is going to start Ebra's labor, and I may not have time to feed them for a while." Ovra nodded and had Uba set the boys down next to her own sons.

Uba then she went to get Uka. It would be nice for Ebra to have her sister there for the delivery, and the two women went to wait at Brun's hearth with Ebra.

When she saw Ayla coming with Jendoza, Uba wondered why Ayla was bringing the Others' woman, but figured it didn't matter. When Ayla got there, she knelt down between Ebra's legs, and examined the woman again. "Okay Ebra. It feels like you are open slightly. That will make it less painful to break your water sac. If your labor doesn't start after Uba breaks your water, then I will give you something that will make it start, okay?"

Ebra nodded. She would be glad to have this baby. Being pregnant at her late stage in life was very tiring. Ayla looked at Ebra, then turned to Uba. Uba took out a slippery-elm stick that had a bit of a sharp tip on it, and carefully inserted it into Ebra's opening. When she reached Ebra's cervix, she gently maneuvered it through the smaller opening, which caused Ebra to grimace with discomfort. That was the hardest part though, because as soon as Uba entered the woman's uterus, all she had to do was put a gentle pressure on the barrier, and Ebra's water sac broke with a flood of fluid. Ebra gasped, but relaxed as Uba pulled the stick out of her. Here we go, she thought.

**************************************************  
><strong>A Child Is Born<br>**

Ebra had her first contraction not long after her water was broken, but after a while Ayla checked her and found that the woman was not progressing. Uba watched Ayla's face for a reaction as to progress, and the first medicine woman's look told her everything. Ayla removed her fingers, and asked Uba to check too. Uba shook her head. Ayla frowned. "I'll start the tea."

When the tea was ready, Ayla gave Ebra a cup of it, and the five women just sat there making small talk while waiting for the woman's labor to begin. Not much time went by before Ebra had her first real contraction. She groaned, and closed her eyes. Ayla had warned her that the medicine would make her contractions stronger, and more frequent. All they could do at this point was hold her hand to give moral support.

After more time had passed, and about six more contractions, Ebra was starting to get weak; she was straining more and more with each one, and Ayla was getting worried. When the next contraction ended, Ayla decided to examine the woman again. Ebra lay still while Ayla did her job. Ayla stuck her fingers inside the woman, and frowned; something didn't feel right, she thought. The woman's smaller opening had opened significantly, but what was she feeling?

Ebra saw her frown. "Ayla, what is it?"

Ayla felt around again. "The baby's head doesn't feel right. It feels too soft." The look on Ebra's face was sheer fear. She knew it was too late in life to have a baby. She should have had Ayla give her something so that she would have lost it; so she wouldn't have to go through this. If the woman could have, she would have cried.

"Ebra, there's nothing we can do about it now. Please concentrate. If you don't, then you will die too." Ebra nodded, she didn't want to die.

After what seemed like forever, and many more contractions, the baby was finally visible. Ayla was watching the woman's opening, and asked Uba to come look. Uba and Ayla had been taking turns doing Ebra's exams, and neither had thought much about the softness of the baby's head, except that the child was probably deformed somehow. Uba looked at the baby, and cocked her head, then reached out and touched it. It was definitely soft; too soft to be the baby's head. Uba had an expression on her face that was the equivalent to Ayla's smile; only on her it looked more like a grimace.

"Uba, search your memories. We need to know if this has ever happened before." Uba closed her eyes and began the search.

Ebra contracted again, and pushed hard, letting out a loud scream. Uka held her sister's left hand, while Jendoza held the other. When it ended Ebra looked at the two medicine women, and disentangled her hands from the other women so that she could talk. "What is going on? You have to tell me."

Ayla held up her hand, and they waited for Uba. "Yes Ayla, it has happened before, and it should be okay. It's just more painful, and we have to be ready for a baby that may not be breathing, since the baby's air could be cut off as soon as the head gets into the birth canal; the cord could get pinched between the head, and Ebra. And, she will probably tear like you did."

Ebra was waiting and watching the two women, but did not understand them. "What!" she gestured again, just as another contraction hit.

When it ended, Ayla smiled. "Ebra, the baby should be fine. It's just coming out the wrong way."

Ebra frowned. "The wrong way?"

Ayla and Uba nodded. "It's likely to hurt more, but your baby probably isn't deformed." That made Ebra relax somewhat, and the next few contractions came somewhat easier.

Ebra's labor went on for a very long time, and the woman screamed out often. The men had all gathered together on the other side of the main fire, trying to act as though no one was screaming in pain just across the way. If someone was in mid-sentence when a scream began, their hands dropped into their lap, and the comment was forgotten. Brun sat stoically staring into the fire, but flinched every time Ebra started in. He had forgotten what it was like to have his own mate in such pain.

Broud sat next to his mother's mate, and sympathized with the leader. He himself had just gone through this; he had just sat on the sidelines while his mate had given birth, and it was hard to stand her cries. He always hated it when Oga labored to give birth, and marveled at how the women somehow forgot the pain when the child was placed in their arms.

Back at Brun's hearth, there was a flurry of activity, as the baby's behind came out first. Uba was holding the baby as it stuck out, and Ayla gently held the baby's tiny legs, and slipped her fingers into Ebra's opening, and carefully pulled out one foot, and then the other. Ebra was between contractions, and was taking a breath.

Ayla looked at the baby, and smiled. "Ebra, do you want to know what the baby is?"

Ebra looked at Uka, they had never been able to tell what gender a baby was until it was fully born, but this time was different. She nodded.

"Your baby is a girl," Ayla gestured, and smiled. Ebra sighed. That was what she had wanted. She was sure Brun was hoping for a girl too, since he was too old to train another boy, and she relaxed . . . but not for long.

Another contraction pulsed through the woman, and she pushed hard, and screamed louder than before. Ayla took out a stick, and put it in Ebra's mouth, so that she could bite down on it. With the next contraction Ebra pushed hard again, but the baby did not come. She did not tear either as the women thought she would. Ayla was getting nervous; this was taking too long and the baby's cord was smashed up against her mother's opening.

When the following contraction came, Ayla looked around for something alleviate the woman's suffering. Her eyes fell on Brun's hunting knife. The woman crawled across the floor, and picked it up, then went back to Ebra. The woman's eyes got big as she saw what the medicine woman was holding, but Ayla just looked at Uba.

Uba was nodding her head. "It's the only way Ayla. They'll both die if you don't."

Ayla frowned, but with Ebra's next contraction, Ayla took the knife in one hand, and slipped her fingers from the other hand inside the woman to protect the baby, and quickly sliced the woman's opening so that it would be bigger. Ebra let out a howl of pain, but the pain immediately passed, as the baby's head slid out, and the process was over. Ayla picked up the child, cleared out her mouth and then thumped her on the foot. Ebra's baby gurgled, and then hiccupped, then whimpered softly, but she never screamed.

Ayla smiled down at the largest baby she had ever seen, then cleaned her off so that she could hand her to her mother. Ebra took the baby happily, and cuddled the child. The baby practically grabbed her nipple, as if she had been starving inside her mother. Ebra closed her eyes to rest.

Uba decided to go inform the leader as to the gender of his mate's child, and Ayla worked on Ebra; her pain was not over yet. The afterbirth came out easily, but Ayla did not know what to do about the blood that was coming out of the wound she had inflicted. She finally decided on stitching the skin together like Jendoza had taught her to stitch together hides to make clothing. Ebra groaned with pain every time Ayla poked through her skin, but once the medicine woman had finished, she pulled the sinew tight, tied knots in it, then bent over to bite off the excess sinew.

Ayla looked at her handy work, then smiled. Jendoza looked to see what Ayla had done, and was extremely impressed by her performance; she would never have thought to make the opening bigger by cutting it, and then sew it closed as if the woman's skin were a hide.

Uba returned to the hearth, and looked to see what Ayla had done as well. "Very interesting Ayla. What made you think to do that?"

Ayla shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I was just thinking about that tunic that Jendoza helped me to make, and figured it would work on people skin as well as animal skin. Is Brun coming?" Uba nodded.

Brun and Goov waited just a bit before coming. Knowing that the delivery had been difficult, they wanted to give the woman a chance to rest. When they got there, Ebra looked away, just as she was supposed to do, then unwrapped the baby, and held it up toward the two men.

Goov looked her over and nodded, and Brun did the same thing. "Why isn't the baby screaming? New babies always scream when they are taken away from their mother's warm breast, and held up into the cold cave air."

Ayla shrugged. "This woman does not know Brun. The child did not scream when she was born either, but she seems perfectly fine to me."

Brun grunted. "The baby is normal. She may stay with her mother. If she lives until the naming day, she will be accepted." Goov turned to leave, but Brun stayed. It was, after all, his hearth. Ayla finished cleaning up, then picked up her medicine bag, and left the hearth, with Jendoza walking with her. Uba did the same, but Uka stayed with her sister.

When Ayla and Jendoza got back to the hearth, Ayla decided that she wanted to go to the indoor pool to wash up, but Annaliza began to cry; she was hungry. "I'll feed her Ayla. I just fed Agra, but I have plenty of milk left."

Ayla glanced at Broud, who had just come back to the hearth, and wondered how he would feel. He had always hated it when Oga had nursed Durc, but for some reason, he didn't seem to care anymore. Ayla shrugged and handed her baby to Oga. Jendoza watched the exchange, and went with Ayla to the pool.

Darvie's worry never went away, but she was becoming used to Vincenzia's absence by spending time with the other people of the lodge. The nights were the worst.

She kept hoping for a break in the storm, which would bring him home to her, but the breaks were never more than two days, and she knew that the journey to the Clan's cave was at least double that. Darvie spent much time with her sister, or with her mother when Danie was busy, and oddly enough with Vilognia, who was more than nervous about his missing brother, and the first daughter of his hearth. Serana, Vilognia's mate, welcomed Darvie into their hearth openly, and even accepted the younger woman into their furs on nights when Darvie looked desperate.

Laurana was also extremely worried about her sister, and cried often. Brulenzia tried to soothe her by granting her every wish. The young woman wanted for nothing. He figured she was so upset because she was also pregnant, which they were positive about by now, and he wanted to make her as comfortable as he could. They still hadn't told anyone, and she was doing a good job of hiding her morning sickness.

One morning in Brulenzia's hearth, Laurana was leaning over the night basket, and retching as quietly as she could. She had become quite proficient at letting it come up and out with almost no noise at all. Brulenzia sat behind her, rubbing her back, then handed her a cloth, and then a cup of water when she was finished. It had become their morning ritual.

"Laurana, we should really tell someone. Travie even, she could make you something to make the sickness less."

Laurana was shaking her head. "No, I'm not ready to tell them about the baby yet."

Brulenzia frowned. "Well then, we could at least tell them about us wanting to join. I'm sure your mother would like to know that I'm not just bedding her daughter with no intention of mating her."

Laurana was looking exhausted; throwing up always took a lot out of her, but she nodded. "Just let me get cleaned up, and rest a while, then we can tell everyone. You're right Bru, they should know by now."

Brulenzia let out his breath. He was so glad that she had finally relented. He had been begging to tell everyone for almost a moon, and it was getting difficult to keep his mouth shut. He was sure that many had suspicions, but no one asked outright.

The man hugged her, and took out a cool cloth to wipe down her forehead again. He helped her into the furs, and crawled in next to her.

After some time, Laurana woke up, and was feeling better. She always did after throwing up early in the morning, then napping before getting up for the day. Brulenzia had left the hearth; he had carried out the night basket again to dispose of the evidence of Laurana's sickness, and had returned it to where it was. Laurana smiled, then she quickly got up, and began to dress.

Brulenzia had gone to the cooking hearth to eat something, and had made the young pregnant woman a plate of food. When he got back to the hearth, she was nearly dressed. "Oh Sumata, I'm too late," he said as he entered the hearth.

Laurana turned around, and smiled. "Well, I can take my clothes back off," she said untying her leggings.

Brulenzia laughed. "No, I'm just trying to be funny," he said putting the food down, and going to hug her. "And besides, I don't know how you can be ready to make pleasures every morning after you've just retched your brains out."

Laurana smiled. "Hummmm, I don't know either. Maybe it's because I'm so young," she said giggling. "Or maybe it's because I really, really love you."

Brulenzia looked deep into her eyes, and kissed her. "I love you too Laurana . . . but, you need to eat first. _Then_I'll pleasure you if you still want me to." He kissed to tip of her nose, and swatted her behind. "Eat!"

After she was finished eating, they pleasured one another, then cleaned up and headed for the cooking hearth, hand in hand. When they got there, they scanned the area; noted that everyone was in the hearth, then Brulenzia cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. Everyone looked up, and immediately noticed that the couple was holding hands. Everyone was aware that they were sharing the same bed, but for the most part, they had kept their hand holding and caresses, their loving glances and intimate words, and their hugs and kisses behind their closed curtain. Serana eyed them suspiciously, thinking her daughter looked different somehow.

Brulenzia cleared his throat again, hoping to calm himself down. Laurana squeezed his hand for support. "Laurana and I have decided to join at the next summer meeting." They were greeted with silence for a moment, then the room erupted in shouts of congratulations.

Tagnolia smiled widely. "Time to break out the bouza Zarina. We have some celebrating to do."

Zarina smiled quietly at her exuberant mate, then went to hug Laurana and her son. "I am so happy for you Laurana," she said in the woman's ear. "I'm glad that you are the one to have tamed this beast." She smiled at the young blonde woman, and Laurana looked into Brulenzia's mother's deep green eyes, and saw something about her that she had not seen there before. She did not know what it was exactly, but there was something different.

Laurana narrowed her eyes at the woman, and Zarina was suddenly aware that the young woman had another secret. Zarina leaned in close. "Does he know?" she asked.

Laurana looked at Brulenzia and smiled, then turned back to Zarina, and nodded.

Serana smiled at her daughter. She wasn't sure how she felt, but this was not what she had expected. It had only been two and a half moons since they had gotten back from the summer meeting, and she figured her daughter would have a good winter, but that the woman would eventually drift away from the man, and find someone more her age.

Laurana went to her mother, and managed to look at her as if she were still a little girl trying to get her mother's approval. Serana's heart melted. "If you're sure that this is what you want, then I will be happy for you."

Laurana smiled, and nodded. "Yes mother, this is definitely what I want."

There was one person that didn't look too happy, and that was Laurana's brother. Ivanolia was shocked beyond reason, and sat frowning. When Brulenzia noticed him sitting, looking rather morose, he sat down next to him. "What's wrong Ivanolia?"

Ivanolia looked at his friend. "I just wasn't expecting this. I always figured you'd get tired of her since she's so young, and couldn't really please you, and that the two of you would go your separate ways."

"Ivan, your sister is a woman, and I love her. I truly do. _And_, she _pleases_me just fine."

Ivanolia held up his hand, and looked away. "Far too much information, my friend,"

Brulenzia laughed. "First you told me not to hurt her, and quite threateningly I might add, and now you're telling me you expected me to dump her all along?"

It was Ivanolia's turn to laugh. "I suppose that does sound dumb, doesn't it?" Brulenzia laughed too. Then the two men looked over at Laurana, who was being congratulated by Tabita and Fürlasa. "She somehow looks older to me today. I can't figure it out, but she does look like a woman now, and not just a girl."

Brulenzia smiled and put his arm around his friend. When Laurana looked over at them, she smiled, and excused herself from the other two young women so that she could join her mate-to-be, and her brother. When she came up to them, she pushed her way in between the two men, forcing them to separate so that she could sit down. She put an arm around each and smiled. "I see you two are having a _normal_conversation, and that no pranks are being pulled at this time. All I can say is, thank Sumata for that!"

Ivanolia laughed. "Well, for today there won't be any, but I'm not promising that tomorrow will be joke free."

Brulenzia laughed, and Laurana smacked her brother's arm. "You just keep your jokes away from me. I don't think you're very funny."

"Well then," he said. "I must not be doing a very good job on them if they're not funny. I might have to try harder."

Laurana rolled her eyes, leaned over and kissed her brother, then kissed Brulenzia, then got up and left.

**************************************************  
><strong>Ayla's Reinstatement<br>**

On a stormy winter day, early in the morning, Ayla was sitting by the fire with Oga, and the two women were nursing their babies, while the rest of the hearth slept. The two little girls suckled happily until they had gotten their fill. When they were full, then women laid them down together on a blanket near the hide that had been put up to make more privacy within the hearth. Annaliza was almost six moons old, and managed to pull her chest up off the ground and rock back and forth on her hands and knees, and squeal at Agra. Agra, on the other hand, was not even three moons, but she could do the same and some. Agra immediately went from lying on her tummy to at sitting position, and gurgled back at her friend. Both girls were extremely verbal.

The two young mothers watched them closely. "It's amazing how much faster Agra is at learning physical things than Annaliza is," Ayla observed.

Oga looked at the babies, then turned back to Ayla. "But so much slower than Brac and Grev ever were, and what about Eda? I think Ebra's daughter will past these two very quickly."

Ayla was nodding her agreement. Annaliza was obviously an Others child, and was therefore much slower at growing and developing than Agra, but Agra was mixed, so she was slower than Eda, who was full Clan.

After a while, knowing that the men would soon awaken, the women started some tea. Grov woke up first, and sat drinking his tea, while Ayla was making them all a meal. Ayla was so busy that she did not see Droog and Crug arrive, and was startled by their appearance, because these two men never came to this side of the cave. She knelt at their feet, and waited, but they did not tap her shoulder. They instead looked over her shoulder at Grov, who nodded to them, then got up to go get Broud and the other men. Obviously Brun had decided to have a meeting; a meeting that involved Ayla. It must be last minute, he thought. The two men reached down and grabbed Ayla, and carried her out of the hearth.

Grov went to Broud, and as they were going to get Dorg and Daub, Broud stopped. "What about Don and Vin? They are men. Shouldn't they be there too?"

Grov frowned. "I'm not sure they would understand since they don't understand our Clan signs."

Broud thought for a minute. "You could speak their words." Grov nodded and went to get them while Broud went to get the other two men.

When the six men arrived at the men's ceremonial room, Vincenzia was immediately worried about the daughter of his heart, but Grov explained that she would be all right. Ayla was kneeling patiently on the ground in front of the leader. She did not appear to be nervous; apparently she knows why she is here, Vincenzia thought.

When all the men were seated, Brun tapped to woman's shoulder. "Woman, it has been half a season since you have been allowed to hunt; since you ceased to be the Woman Who Hunts. Have you followed my order by not hunting with a sling, or touching a sling?"

Ayla looked at Brun. "This woman has not touched any weapon, including a sling," she said, then paused. "Except for using your knife to deliver Ebra's baby, but I am sure that knife has been burned. I have done as you ordered Brun."

Brun looked at her, pleased that she had added the last part, and knowing that she could not tell an untruth, and nodded at the Mog-ur. Goov came forward, and handed the woman her hunting talisman, the small, red-stained oval of ivory that had been sawed from the tip of the mammoth tusk, which he had taken from her half a season ago. She took it, and put it back into her amulet. Brun waited for her to tie the amulet back on before he continued.

"Zoug, please step forward." The old man did as he was told, and handed the kneeling woman a brand new sling, which he had made for her. Ayla took the sling, and felt the soft supple leather, and smiled inwardly at care in which the old man had put into making her this sling. Tears came to her eyes as she looked at the eldest man she had ever seen. "This woman is grateful Zoug." The man grunted, pleased that she acknowledged his gift properly, then went back to his seat.

When Zoug was seated again, Brun got up to stand behind the woman, and the Mog-ur told Ayla to get up onto her knees. She did as she was told, but she got very nervous as she saw him take out a knife, and hold it up above her; she closed her eyes, took a breath, and then opened her eyes again. Brun suddenly grabbed her by her hair and yanked her head back to expose her throat, just as they had done many seasons before when she was first allowed to hunt; she relaxed somewhat, remembering that it hadn't hurt _that_much. Vincenzia looked around, nervous as well, but no one seemed worried so he sat there silently watching.

The Mog-ur called the ancient spirits into the room, which made the men slightly nervous, and Ayla breathed deeply again, knowing what was coming next, then gasped as the Mog-ur brought the knife down on her skin, quickly nicking her at the base of her throat just under her first hunting scar. The Mog-ur soaked up the blood in the same manner as Creb had the previous time.

_"Accept this sacrifice of blood, Most Venerable Spirits, and know it is her totem, the Spirit of the Cave Lion, that chose her to follow you ancient ways. Know that we have shown you honor, know that we have paid you homage. Give us your favor and return to your deep rest, content that your ways are not forgotten."_

When the Mog-ur finished, Ayla breathed deeply again, and waited. Brun came around to stand in front of her, just like he had done the last time, but this time he produced a bison tooth from his wrap, and he handed it to her. She accepted it, and examined it, then took off her amulet again to put it inside.

Brun waited for her to finish, then called Droog forward. The Clan's best toolmaker came forward, and held out a spear to the Woman Who Hunts. Ayla did not want to take it, and glanced at Brun, who nodded. Ayla took the spear from the man with a shaking hand, and Droog went to sit back in his place.

"Ayla, you still are not a man, and you never will be, but we cannot deny that your totem wants you to hunt in the same way that the men of the Clan do, so you are being given this spear, and you are allowed to use it for whatever purpose you wish." He paused for full effect, then went on, "I have one more thing to give you," the leader said as he looked around the room at the men. "You once told me that you were grateful to me for your life, and I want to tell you now, in front of all the men, that I am grateful that you, our medicine woman, has helped the many woman of the Clan to give birth safely, and most recently for the life of my mate and her child." The man finished his gestures, then handed Ayla the knife she had used to open Ebra. "Keep this knife with you at all times. You never know when you may need it."

After speaking to Ayla, he turned toward the rest of the room. "Now, tonight we will have a feast. This winter is already feeling too long." With that, then men got up, and began filing out of the room.

The winter was flying by for some, while for others it was creeping by. Laurana's morning sickness had subsided for the most part, with only a bad day here and there, and she was happy. Brulenzia was thrilled that one of their secrets was out in the open, and was doting on her constantly. He still wanted to tell everyone about the baby, but he understood her reasoning; Ivanolia hadn't stopped his torment of them, and Laurana figured it would be worse if her brother knew.

Ivanolia continued to make jokes; hid their belongings, made it so their curtain would not close, put things in their path, poured water in the middle of their hearth, and much, much more, but Laurana just ignored him. Brulenzia however did not. The two of them went back and forth on several occasions, and often Brulenzia did a better job of tormenting Ivanolia than the other man did him.

On a morning that dawned clear of falling snow, Brulenzia returned to the hearth carrying a morning meal for Laurana. At this time, she was about four moons along, and was starting to show, though barely. When Brulenzia came into the hearth, she was dressing, and quickly covered herself, thinking that it could be someone else, and that they may notice her state.

"Oh, it's you. I was afraid it was Ivan," she said with a sigh.

"You know, you wouldn't have to sneak around if we just told them. And, we're not going to be able to hide it much longer," he said as he put down her food, and came to hug her and rub her slightly protruding tummy. "You're getting huge," he said laughing.

She broke out of his arms and smacked him playfully. "I am not huge!" she said uncovering her belly and rubbing it."

He tried to avoid her smack, but didn't step back enough, and laughed at her. "But we should tell them soon, they're going to notice sooner or later, especially if someone does come in while you're not dressed. You can't hide it when you're naked anymore."

"I know. Soon. We'll tell them soon. I'm still hoping that Jendoza will return, so I can share it with her before we tell everyone else." She sighed again, and finished dressing.

Brulenzia watched her. He knew how she was feeling; he too wanted to talk to his brother first, but he was beginning to think they wouldn't be home until spring, if ever. "Hey," he said, changing the subject, "Tinozia says that it's sunny out today. Do you want to go out and play in the snow?"

Laurana smiled. "I'd love to! _But_, you have to let me eat first. I'm starving!"

He laughed at her, she was always starving these days. "Okay, I'm going to put on some warmer clothes," he said kicking off his indoor foot coverings, and pulling his tunic over his head.

As she ate, she sat on the edge of the man's bed platform watching him change his clothes, and a smile crossed her face as she watched. He was so handsome. His facial features were finely chiseled looking, and he kept his face shaved so that she could always see his lips. She liked that, and he did it on purpose because he knew she did, even though it was very cold out and a beard would have been warmer. Laurana watched the man pull on his thick winter leggings, and then pull a heavy tunic over his head. He ran his finger through his thick dark brown hair that was nearly straight and fell to just below his shoulders. When he finished, he looked over at her, sitting there staring at him with a goofy smile on her face.

"What are you looking at?" he said waving his hand in front of her face.

Laurana focused on the man, and smiled. "I was just admiring your beauty," she replied, looking deep into his eyes. "You know, you have the lightest eyes I have ever seen. They look like someone reached up into the sky, took a handful of the color and put it into your eyes."

Brulenzia laughed. "My brother's eyes are exactly the same color as mine, but I guess you haven't noticed."

"Hummmm, no, guess not. I'm not at all interested in his eyes," she said with a smile, popping the last bite of her food into her mouth. "Okay, I will get ready so we can go out."

Now it was his turn to watch her. She was shorter than the average woman and thinner than most, which made her look even younger, but she did have to body of a woman; a young woman. Her breasts were small, but full and in proportion to her size, and her belly stuck out just slightly. Laurana's eyes were blue too, though a much darker blue than his, and her long pale blond hair reached the middle of her thighs.

Brulenzia looked at her, and felt that he was very lucky to have finally realized that the woman he was looking for had always been right beneath his nose. He sometimes wondered if he would ever find someone after Evenora left with her family.

As Laurana pulled _her_tunic over her head, she grinned at him. "What?"

He laughed. "Oh, just admiring _your_beauty."

Laurana threw her camp shoe across the hearth at him, but smiled nonetheless. She laughed, then jumped on top of him, knocking him back onto the furs. Brulenzia lay pinned to the bed on his back looking up at her, as her hair dangled in his face. "Get your hair out of my face woman," he said, not trying to remove it himself.

She laughed. "Make me," she said and giggled.

Brulenzia eyed her, and quickly rolled her over so that she was the one in the compromising position. He was careful to protect her stomach while he did this, and she struggled against him, but it was not use. "That is just not fair, you are too strong."

They were laughing and rolling around on the bed platform when Ivanolia walked in. "Oh Sumata! Don't you two ever quit? I can hear you every morning and every night, and now I can't even come back to my hearth during the day either. Maybe _this_hearth should be named the Jack Rabbit Hearth."

Brulenzia and Laurana laughed, but Brulenzia didn't release her, and she was still struggling to get up. The man's laughter was making him weaker, and the woman managed to move enough to lean over and bite his wrist, causing him to yelp in pain, and finally pull back. That was enough for her to get up, cross the hearth, and stand behind her brother.

Brulenzia laughed. "Oh sure, use your brother for protection now."

"So, are we going outside or what? Danie's been dressed and ready for half the morning while you two have been wasting time in here doing Sumata knows what."

"Okay, okay, we just have to put on our boots." Ivanolia smiled at their words, and left the hearth.

The couple pulled their snow boots out, and sat down on the bed platform to put them on. Laurana slipped hers on easily, then began lacing them up, but when Brulenzia pulled his on, he felt something squishy and wet, and immediately realized he had been the victim of one of Ivanolia's jokes again.

"IVANOLIA!" the man screamed, as pulled the boot back off, and saw that his inner foot covering was covered with a slimy coating of smashed ptarmigan egg. They could hear the other man cracking up in the passageway. Since she knew Brulenzia would have to clean himself up before he could do anything about her brother's newest joke, Laurana jumped up and ran out of the hearth, and after her brother.

Ivanolia was laughing hard, but saw her coming and turned and fled. He ran down the hall toward the cooking hearth, where everyone was sitting around. Laurana ran hard, and almost caught him, but he dodged her, and ran into the entry area, then outside. She followed at top speed. The man kept running, heading toward the backside of the earthlodge, and she was only steps behind him.

The rest of the camp was smiling as the brother and sister ran through, and several threw on their parkas and went outside to watch. They were all bored from their winter captivity.

Serana and Vilognia had been watching Ivanolia's practical jokes, and had both wondered when Laurana would finally break; she was after all showing incredible tolerance of his annoying behavior. They too followed the man and woman outside.

Inside, Brulenzia took off his wet and sticky inner foot covering, and tossed it onto the ground, then picked up his boot and dumped out the contents. The egg slowly oozed out of the boot, giving the man an idea. He quickly scooped it up, and put it in a shallow wooden bowl, then got up and carried it into Ivanolia's hearth, and looked around. Then, focusing on the bed platform, he smiled and shoved the bowl as far back under the platform as he could reach. There, he thought to himself. There's nothing like the smell of rotten eggs. The only problem was that he would be punishing Danie for Ivan's behavior, _and_he and Laurana were likely to smell it too, since it was in the hearth right next to theirs. He decided to warn Danie when he had the chance so she could stay away if she wanted to.

After he felt satisfied with _his_joke, then quickly clean out his boot, then put it on to go help Laurana catch Ivanolia.

Outside, Ivanolia had climbed on top of the earthlodge, and was throwing snowballs down on Laurana as she attempted to climb up after him. Everyone was laughing at their antics, and she was yelling at him angrily. When she finally go to the top, she went after her brother with a vengeance. He was laughing, and pushed her away from him, then he sidestepped her. When he got to the other end of the lodge, he turned around to look at her only to get a snowball in the face.

Brulenzia came out of the earthlodge, to find everyone in stitches over the two, and his face paled to see her on top of the lodge and charging after Ivanolia. "Laurana!" he called. "Get down from there." Everyone turned to look at him, wondering what he was upset about. Laurana hadn't even heard him, but Ivanolia had and looked down at him. Laurana slammed into her brother and the two of them fell down. She was sitting on top of him shoving snow down his tunic. He finally grabbed her by the wrists, and started laughing again. Then he tossed her over with ease, and sat on her so that she couldn't move a bit.

"Ivan, get off of her!" Brulenzia shouted, looking nervous, but Ivanolia didn't move.

Brulenzia went to the other side of the lodge, where it was easier to climb up. When he got to the top, he rushed over and pulled Ivanolia off of the pinned woman. "Ivan! I said to get off of her, SHE'S PREGNANT!"

The two men stared at each other, and silence spread among the people. Laurana's eyes opened wide, and she looked around at everyone. They were all staring at her. Brulenzia suddenly realized what he had said, and let go of Ivanolia to go to Laurana. She had gotten up off the snow-covered earthlodge and her face was beet red. She was watching Ivanolia's expression. Comprehension dawned on him, and a look of fear crossed his face. Laurana knew that he was picturing Nemlora as she lay in his arms bleeding to death, and she suddenly felt very guilty.

Ivanolia looked at her. "Why didn't you tell me Laurana?"

Her eyes had welled up with tears, and she stared at her hands. "I didn't want you to worry. I knew I couldn't hide it much longer, but . . . I . . . just wasn't ready to tell everyone.

Ivanolia hugged his sister, and apologized for sitting on her, then looked at his friend. "You just better take care of her. That's all I have to say."

Brulenzia laughed. "Well, haven't I been doing that? If you only knew how many meals I have brought to this woman during the last few moons, or how many snacks I have gotten out of our warm furs to fetch for her in the middle of the night, or how many times I have washed her clothes because she could not, or how many nights we have sat up talking about the future, then you would know I've been taking care of her."

Laurana smiled. "Or how many night baskets full of sickness he has had to empty in the last few moons, or how many times he has cleaned me up after I've been sick," she added. "Ivanolia, there couldn't be anyone better for your little sister."

Ivanolia rolled his eyes, and the two men got down off the earthlodge, then helped her down. She was immediately surrounded by a throng of people. Serana didn't look happy at all. "Daughter, why didn't you tell _me_?"

Laurana smiled at her mother. "I'm sorry mother. I just didn't want everyone worrying, and I wanted Jendoza to be here when we told everyone. Please don't be angry with me," the young woman pleaded.

"So, how far are you? When are you due? When will I become a grandmother again?" her mother asked, with the slightest hint of a smile.

The young pregnant woman smiled back. "I am due in the summer, but Jendoza will make you a grandmother again before I do."

"Yes, yes, I know, but she's not here, and may not be back for the birth. At least I have your birth to look forward to," she said as she hugged her daughter.

Zarina approached them. "I wondered when you would tell everyone," she said kissing Laurana's cheek.

Serana's eyes widened. "And just how did you know my daughter was pregnant?"

"Hummmm, I'm not sure," she said honestly, "she's just looked different to me for a while."

"Humpf," the woman said smiling, then herded the people back inside. "Great Mother it's cold out here. I think we've had enough playing in the snow this morning. Let's all go inside!"

For several days prior to the break in the storm, the men of the visitor's hearth had been making flint points, so that the could show some of the Clan men how to use their hunting spears. They had explained that they threw their spears instead of jabbing with them.

"But those spears so narrow. Don't they break?" Broud questioned. Ayla translated.

Donzolnia smiled. "Yes, they break sometimes, but the distance we can be from our kill is much farther. It's much safer than having to be practically on top of them."

"I did see Nora's mother's mate's spears, but he never used them in one of our hunts. He always said that he wanted to do things the way the clan did," Grov informed them.

Vincenzia looked at him. "Did my sister continue to hunt while she was with your Clan?"

Grov shook his head. "No, there were some among us that were too offended by a hunting woman, and our leader didn't want trouble, so he forbid it. Vinoza didn't seem to care though."

Vincenzia nodded. "My sister never really liked hunting. She was really good at it, but she was more interested in caring for Evenora, and everyone else's children. We could always count on her to watch the children when there was a hunt." The man sighed, as he spoke about his dead sister, and a single tear ran unchecked down his cheek.

On the same clear morning that Laurana chased her brother around the lodge, the Oak Camp men went out to demonstrate their different spears to the men of the Clan.

**************************************************  
><strong>Rotten Egg<br>**

Several of the Clan men had come outside to watch the Others' demonstrate their spears, and after seeing the greater range in which a spear afforded the hunter, many considered the possibilities.

Grov was extremely interested, as were Zoug, Droog, Dorg and Daub. They were the only men actually standing with Vincenzia and Donzolnia as they showed the people. Zoug was nodding his head, and wondering what it would have been like to hunt with these spears, but he would never know since he was too old to hunt with any spear. Droog looked on, and was impressed with these Others. The Clan had not thought the Others very intelligent, but their explanation for their spear, and the brief demonstration made the Clan's toolmaker realize that this was untrue. The other two men, along with Grov, had seen the Others' spears before, though they had never seen them used.

Goov, as the Mog-ur, didn't do much hunting anymore, as he had more concerning matters, but he watched from the sidelines with Brun and Grod, and many of the other men.

Nervously holding her newly acquired spear, Ayla had followed the men outside, but held back, deciding to stand in the shadows of the mouth of the cave entrance. She had been told that she was now a true hunter of the Clan, but she was not sure that she would be welcome during this demonstration. She still got looks from some of the men that told her that they didn't approve of her despite Brun's permission to hunt.

Ayla was watching them so intently that she did not hear someone approaching from behind. When she did notice, and realized that it was Broud, she stepped aside for him to pass, feeling slightly guilty that she was not doing something useful. He was carrying the new spears that he had been making with Vincenzia and Donzolnia, and he signaled a greeting as he went by, but did not stop. Ayla thought he had been acting strangely toward her since Brun had given him his status back. She had expected him to act more like he used to, and maybe even give her the signal, but something was different. Then, ever since she had been given full rights as a hunter, Broud had been treating her more like a brother than a woman. It was very disconcerting.

Ayla watched Broud walk toward the other men. When he got to the practicing men, he gestured to Grov that she was watching, and Grov turned around and beckoned her over.

Ayla's eyes got wide, and she looked over at Brun. Brun immediately ordered that she obey her mate. Ayla blushed, she had not meant to resist Grov's command, but she was nervous, and this was all so new. As she crossed the practice field to join the men, she gripped her spear tightly. There were few men that decided to leave, Grod, Crug and Norv included, because they just could not watch a woman with a spear. Hunting with a sling had been one thing; it was an old man's weapon, but the spear was too much for them to handle.

When Ayla got to her mate, he took her spear from her, and handed her one of the new ones, and gestured that she should try to throw it. Ayla walked over to Vincenzia, but didn't know what to do. The man realized that this was all new to them, and showed her with his own spear. Ayla watched carefully, then made an attempt. The spear flew quite a distance, and stuck in the ground.

"Good Ayla," Vincenzia said.

Ayla smiled at the man. "It's not so hard."

"No, not hard to throw. You just have to aim carefully, so that you hit your target. It takes practice," the man said.

"Like with my sling. It took lots of practice to be good at that," she said, blushing slightly. She hadn't spoken about her sling hunting to any man, except Grov, since the day she had been caught using it to save Brac, and she wondered if she should have mentioned it.

"Yes, Ayla is the very best sling hunter in the Clan," Zoug gestured, making the woman blush even deeper. The nearby men were nodding, and as Ayla looked around, she realized that all the men were nodding; even Broud. She didn't know that they had noticed her skill with the sling; she had always hunted alone.

"Well Ayla, maybe you could show me your skill with the sling sometime," Vincenzia said. "But right now, who else wants to try this spear?"

Several of the men nodded, and tried out the Others' spears, but the weather soon made it so everyone wanted to go back inside. It was clear, but so cold.

When Ayla got back to the hearth, she saw that Uba was there, and that the pregnant Jendoza appeared to be in some pain. "Is it time?" Ayla asked, setting her spears down in the place where Grov kept his.

Uba shook her head. "No, she still has some time left, and she's not even dilated the smallest amount. I think she still has half a moon left, but Oga came to me and said her back was hurting." Uba continued making Jendoza a calming tea. Ayla smiled, grateful that her sister could help when she was not available.

"I am fine Ayla. Just tired. How was the spear demonstration?" Jendoza said, pulling up her leggings, and rubbing her belly that had grown significantly since they had come to be staying with the Clan.

Ayla smiled again. "It was wonderful. I wish that it was spring, so I could try to use it."

"Well, it will be spring soon enough, and then you can," Jendoza said. "And, I am hoping that you will come visit us that the earthlodge in spring too."

Over the next few days, Ivanolia and Brulenzia behaved themselves, mostly for Laurana's sake, but Brulenzia had forgotten about his little bowl of egg that he had hidden under Ivanolia's bed until he heard the commotion going on in the hearth next to him.

Laurana was sleeping soundly, and he was propped up on an elbow, staring down at her delicate face and grinning like a fool when she opened her eyes. She gasped in a startled manner. "What are you doing?" she asked reaching up with both hands and caressing his face, then sliding her hand under the furs to caress something else.

"Ohhhhhh," he groaned. "Just watching you sleep. You are so beautiful Laurana, and I am so lucky."

She smiled at him. "Well, _I_know that you're lucky," she said with a laugh, "but . . ."

Brulenzia laughed at her and kissed her, then froze, realizing that something was going on in the next hearth.

"Ivan! You need wash foot coverings. They smell bad," Danie was saying with typical Mamutoi openness.

Ivan held his inner foot covering up to his nose. "It is not my foot coverings Danie. Here! Smell them yourself!"

Danie was shaking her head vehemently. "I not going to smell them. I want you wash them," she said.

"I'm telling you, it's not my foot coverings that smell, maybe it's yours that smell," he continued.

"Mine? I wash my clothes more than you. Not blame me for smell."

"In fact, I'm sure it's yours and not mine. I didn't smell it until after came back here last night," the blond man said.

"What are you talking about? We come back together last night. I not smell anything then."

On the other side of the hearth wall, Brulenzia suddenly realized what they were talking about, and snickered.

"What is so funny?" Laurana asked.

"Well," he said looking guilty. "I sort of put the egg that Ivan put in my shoe, under their bed."

Laurana rolled her eyes. "You realize that now he's going to want to get back at you again, and that I'm going to pay for all this yet again."

Brulenzia smiled. "I know, but I forgot that I did it, after the whole chase and everything. We better get dressed and get out of here, so he doesn't catch us lying here laughing.

Laurana smiled at the man and nodded. The two of them got up and dressed quickly, and listened to what was going on in the other hearth.

"Why you blame me?" Danie said in an angry voice, then she lapsed into Mamutoi and they could no longer understand the woman.

"That's not fair Danie! I can't understand you when you speak Mamutoi. You need to yell at me in my language, so I can fight back! Danie! Danie, where are you going?"

The two slinking figures saw her throw the privacy curtain back, and storm out of the hearth. She stomped down the hallway babbling in Mamutoi, obviously going to find her mother or sister.

Brulenzia smiled, but Laurana nudged him. "It's not her fault that it stinks in there. You have to go fix it so they don't fight." They could here Ivanolia throwing things around in the hearth. He would find the offending item soon, and would so mad.

"We should go tell Danie, so she knows that this is _your_fault, and not Ivan's," Laurana said.

Brulenzia nodded. "But it's his fault too. If he didn't put it in my shoe, then it wouldn't be under his bed right now."

"You're right, but it's still not Danie's fault," Laurana was adamant, and Brulenzia nodded.

When Brulenzia and Laurana found Danie, she was in Vilognia's hearth crying, and speaking in Mamutoi to her sister. The couple scratched on their curtain, and was admitted immediately. Laurana looked at the woman, and elbowed Brulenzia. "This man has something to tell you." Danie sniffled, but looked at the man eagerly.

Brulenzia looked at the ground. "I . . . I sort of . . . put . . ." Laurana elbowed him again. "I put a bowl of egg under your bed. This isn't Ivanolia's fault."

Danie stared at him, and was about to say something, but just at that moment, they could hear Ivanolia screaming. "I FOUND IT DANIE! BRUUUUU! WHERE ARE YOU MAN?"

Danie smiled, then frowned again. "You did it, but he blame me. Not believe me not me."

Just then, Ivanolia angrily threw back the curtain. They could see he was seething mad; his face was red, and his eyes were bulging. Laurana pushed past Brulenzia, and went to her brother. "Now Ivan, Bru was just trying to be funny. You have been doing far worse, and you did start it."

Ivanolia looked at his sister, and then he looked at Danie. She was still upset. Then he looked at Brulenzia over his sister's head. "You are lucky you have this girl to protect you," he said indicating Laurana. "But you will be sorry."

"Now wait a minute Ivan," Brulenzia started in, "this _woman_is neither a girl, nor is she protecting me. You should be more respectful to your pregnant sister, and you have had quite a hand in all this yourself. Don't . . ."

" . . . you dare blame Brulenzia for this," Danie cut in. "You are one to start trouble by tickle with feather. That not him. Then you do many things. Brulenzia only try be funny. You are one that blame me for smell. You should be sorry."

Ivanolia listened to Danie's broken Sungaea, and couldn't help but smile. She was so pretty, and even more so when she was mad. He couldn't help but melt when she was upset. "I am sorry Danie," he said sincerely.

Danie eyed him suspiciously, then went to him. "Okay, I come back, but no do again. If I say not me, you believe." Ivanolia nodded to her, but gave Brulenzia a look that told him it wasn't over.

Laurana rolled her eyes, wondering how many "funny" things she'd have to survive before her baby was born.

**************************************************  
><strong>A Break in Winter's Monotony<br>**

For a few more days, there wasn't any funny business in Oak Camp, or so most thought since there was no yelling going on, or chases, or things falling on people, but Ivanolia was quietly thinking about what he would do next. Danie had put up her hand, claiming she didn't want to know about it whenever he brought up his ideas, and demanded that he keep his activities out of their hearth, as she did not want to be the recipient of retaliation.

The day had been miserably cold and stormy, and everyone had been stuck inside, so Gredenzia, Oak Camp's Shogur, decided the people would get together for a communal meal in the cooking hearth, and a mother festival. There was no special occasion, except that he wanted to get the people together to break up the monotony of the winter.

Laurana was feeling somewhat sad, because she knew that her sister would be delivering any time now, and that she wouldn't be at Oak Camp when it happened. Laurana hoped that someone knowledgeable was taking care of her, and she decided that she didn't want to be away from home when it was her time. She considered that she may be at the summer meeting, but would ask that they delay their departure if they could.

Brulenzia was changing his leggings. Laurana had just made him a new pair, and he was admiring her sewing ability. "I didn't know you could sew so well," he commented.

"Hummm, well there's been nothing _to_do, so I've been working on it. You really needed new ones; those are so tattered," she said flinging her hand at the ones lying crumpled up on the floor. "You need to get rid of them."

"But these are my favorite leggings," he said picking them up. "They're stretched out just where they need to be."

Laurana smiled. "Dump the old pants, or I'll stretch you out," she said giggling. She was sitting on the edge of his bed with her knees drawn up to her chest, and her feet resting on the wooden platform, crossed at the ankles.

Brulenzia laughed. "Aren't you going to change?"

"Yeah, but I need to go get something from my mother's hearth. I've worn everything that's here, and besides, nothing here is appropriate for a mother festival."

Brulenzia looked around. "You know, you ought to just move all of your things over here. It's not like you even stay at your mother's hearth anymore."

Laurana jumped up off the bed, and smiled. "Well, I was wondering when you might ask me to move in permanently." She did a little dance in the middle of the room, and he laughed at her.

"I didn't know you were waiting for a formal invitation. We have, after all, already announced our intention to join, _and_you're having a baby. I figured that you would just move your stuff."

"Well, that just shows what a man knows. A girl likes to be invited; at least this girl does," Laurana giggled, and put her arms around him and held him tight.

Brulenzia eyed her. "Don't call yourself a girl. I feel awkward doing this to a girl," he said pushing her back onto the bed, and kissing her hard on the lips.

"Hummmm," she groaned with a smile. "Not too awkward it would seem."

About the same thing was going on in Ivanolia's hearth. The man knew that there would be drinking going on that night, and the possibility of either of them sharing someone else's furs was great, so he wanted to pleasure his mate before all that nonsense began. Until he met Danie, he had been essentially celibate, with only the occasional roll in the furs with a woman. Now, he didn't really want to share anyone else's furs, and he hoped that Danie wouldn't either.

The rest of the earthlodge was getting ready for the evening, but Darvie was feeling rather morose, since it was the middle of winter and there had been no sign that her mate would return anytime soon. She had been sending pleas for the return of her mate to Sumata on a daily bases, but so far they had not been answered. Gredenzia told her that she would have to be patient, and that he thought Vincenzia was fine; just trapped away from the lodge because of the severe winter.

For the most part, she had been kept quite busy by her children, her mother, and her sister, who all seemed to somehow know just when she needed them most, but on the night of the communal meal the thought of having a celebration without her mate there made her even more sad. She decided that she would go to the celebration, for the sake of her children, but that she would retire early; before the coupling began.

The meal was going as expected. The women had cooked up a fantastic feast. They sure had been lucky in the pre-winter hunt, Tagnolia thought as he dished up a plate for his mate. Zarina thanked him, and went to sit with Wäglodia. Zarina and the headwoman's mate had always been close. The quiet woman was extremely attracted to the fiery haired man, so much so, that she often shared his furs when the leaders of Oak Camp were busy with the dealings of the lodge. Tagnolia watched his mate sit down, then he glanced over at Morina, whom he was sure was started by Wäglodia spirit, and not by his own, then he shrugged and joined Vilognia, Serana and Darvie. He did not feel any jealousy over his mate's attraction to the other man. That was just the way it was, and the people of Oak Camp understood this on a subconscious level.

Some of the younger members of the group had dished up plates, and were sitting together by the fire. Laurana was talking to Tabita and Fürlasa, whom she hardly ever visited with anymore, while Brulenzia, Ivanolia and Tinozia sat off to the side discussing whatever it was that young men discussed.

"Are you getting excited Laurana?" Tabita asked, wondering what it was like to be pregnant, yet not wanting to be so soon.

"I suppose so, now that everyone knows. It was so hard to not tell anyone, especially Ivan. I was so afraid that he would get mad."

Fürlasa snorted. "Well, that may still come, so don't think he won't just yet. I vaguely remember when he and Nemlora had trouble; he always brings up the past when he gets upset."

Laurana smiled. "I know that. I was raised in the same hearth as the man, but he's just afraid for me Fürlasa. He doesn't want me to die giving birth like your sister did." The three young women looked over at Braydalana. "Ivan sure had done a good job of raising Nemlora's daughter though. I think many were surprised that he wanted to raise her instead of giving her to a woman to care for."

The women were nodding, but Tabita looked uncomfortable. "Aren't you at least scared about giving birth?"

Laurana thought about it for a minute, then shook her head. "No, I have watched women give birth before. I just know it won't be _that_bad."

Brulenzia and Tinozia were so involved in their conversation that they did not even notice that Ivanolia was not contributing much, or that he was fiddling with the sealed bowl that contained the salt. When Brulenzia picked up his plate to finally start eating, he took one bite and asked for the salt container. Ivanolia gladly passed it over to the man.

Brulenzia was still talking as he tried to remove the lid to the salt, and didn't even interrupt himself when he found that he could not just pull it off. Instead, he exerted pressure, and suddenly the top popped off, and salt flew everywhere, including all over his meal.

The man looked at the mess he had made, then narrowed his eyes suspiciously, and turned to Ivanolia, who was sitting there with a positively devious look on his face.

"Great Mother, Ivan! Don't you ever quit?" he said standing up and brushing the salt off of himself and onto the seated man.

Ivanolia had fallen back off of his seat, and was again laughing at the trick he had pulled on Brulenzia. Brulenzia took his plate over to the place that they disposed of the refuse, and scraped off as much salt as he could, then returned to his place. "Can't you think of more worthy things to do with your time than to torment me?"

Ivanolia was still laughing. "I probably could, but this is much more fun."

Tinozia and Brulenzia were shaking their heads, and so were many others in the lodge.

After the meal, they got the music and dancing started, and Tagnolia began pouring Lion Camp's bouza. Serana had made some of her wonderfully sweet blackberry wine, which was a favorite of many of the women, especially the younger ones. Danie had never tried blackberry wine, since it was a Sungaea treat that had not been available to her while she was Mamutoi, and Laurana, Tabita and Fürlasa were being given their first cups of it as well.

It didn't take long before the winter party was in full swing. The children played where they were until they dropped, and the adults did various activities. Gredenzia and Tiflona sat together discussing Tinozia's ability to become a Shogur. Tagnolia sat with his dinner companions for a very long time, trying to reassure Darvie that Vincenzia would return safely. Wäglodia quietly slipped away with Zarina, since both of their mates were busy with other activities. And Fraylora retired early.

The younger adults' activities weren't much different than their elders. When Danie noticed that Darvie and Travie were leaving, she poured herself another cup of blackberry wine, then excused herself. She was worried about her sister, and wasn't thinking about mother festivals. Ivanolia watched her go, then shrugged his shoulders, thinking that he had already pleasured her that day. He took another swig of his cup of bouza, then turned back to the men.

Tinozia was drinking his bouza rather slowly, and sitting with Ivanolia and Brulenzia. He wasn't usually a drinking man, and the alcohol was going to his head. Ivanolia was making fun of him, as usual, and Brulenzia was watching Laurana with her friends. When she saw him looking at her, she came over and slipped her arms around his waist.

Ivanolia rolled his eyes. "Oh you two, get a hearth."

Brulenzia laughed. "You're just jealous because my mate will be coming to my bed and yours is nowhere to be found."

Ivanolia laughed. "Your mate?" he said. "You two are not mated yet."

Brulenzia smiled. "We are in our hearts, and that's all that matters."

"Well, I might just try to entice one of the these nice young women to my bed then," Ivanolia said as a joke, but looked at Tabita and Fürlasa with some interest.

Then it was Brulenzia's turn to laugh. "But I thought they were too young. They're more years younger than you than Laurana is younger than me."

Ivanolia smiled. "Well, you cannot expect a man to be alone on a night of honoring the Mother, now can you?"

The people smiled as they watched the drunken man saunter off toward the two younger women. Laurana kissed Brulenzia's ear, and then whispered in it. "You do not have to take me to your bed tonight if you are interested in . . ." her voice trailed off, as he turned around and kissed her.

"I am not interested in . . . well, unless you are," he said looking over at his cousin, Tinozia, who sat there quietly drinking his bouza.

Laurana followed his gaze, then shook her head. She took another sip of her wine, then smiled at the man. "Nope, I'm fine with just you."

Brulenzia let out his breath, relieved that she did not want to honor the Mother with anyone other than him. He did not like the idea of sharing her, though that was the norm of their society. He had not realized that he did not want to take anyone else to bed either until faced with the opportunity. The man kissed her again, then took her wine cup out of her hand, and picked her up to carry her off to bed.

Tinozia smiled and watched them go. He was happy that his cousin had finally found one woman to love. And that Ivanolia had too, for that matter, though he seemed to be trying to romance Tabita into his furs at the moment. Tinozia had often worried that Brulenzia and Ivanolia, but it appeared that he did not have to anymore. He decided to join Ivanolia, Tabita and Fürlasa, and quickly realized that he and Fürlasa were about to be left alone, as the other two left to go honor the Mother themselves.

Not long after the Oak Camp's mother festival, Jendoza's water broke in the middle of the night. The blond woman sat up as the sharp pain stabbed her, then lay back down and groaned. Donzolnia had not awoken by her groan, so she leaned over and shook the man. "It's time Don. I need you to go get Ayla." Donzolnia got up, dressed quickly, helped her to the medicine hearth, then went to get Ayla.

Grov's fire was burning low, but Donzolnia could easily make out the forms of the sleeping people. He lay his hand on the sleeping women, who opened her eyes immediately. Then, knowing why he was there, she carefully got up, so as not to wake her mate, dressed, then followed the man out of the hearth.

**************************************************  
><strong>Jendoza's Baby<br>**

Ayla arrived at the medicine hearth with her medicine bag in time to see Jendoza look of pain as a contraction began. Ayla waited for it to pass, then she examined the woman.

"You look good Jendoza. How long have you been in labor?" Ayla asked.

"Quite a while, but when my water broke, I decided . . ." she paused as another contraction took over. Ayla waited.

". . . I decided I wanted you here," the woman finished.

Donzolnia frowned. "Why didn't you wake me soon Jen?"

Jendoza smiled at her mate. "There was no need, you could no do anything, so why would I want to wake you?" Donzolnia shrugged and sat by her side.

Ayla smiled. "Not much longer now, and you will be holding your new baby. Do you have a name picked out?" the medicine woman asked, knowing that the Others allowed their women to choose their child's name.

"Yes, if it's a girl, she will be . . . aghhhhh," Jendoza groaned with another contraction, and Donzolnia rubbed her back. "She will be called Evanoza. And if it's a boy, he will be called Teglodia."

"Those are nice names," the medicine woman said. "Evanoza sounds similar to Evanora."

Jendoza smiled. "Yes, that is what we wanted to do, but also like Vinoza, my mother's mate's sister, and it's similar to Ivanolia too. He will like that." Jendoza grimaced as another contraction took her.

Ayla waited, thinking that the woman's labor was progressing nicely. "And Teglodia? Is there a special reason for that name?"

Donzolnia smiled this time. "He was Vinoza's mate, and my mother's mate's best friend. He will be happy to know his friend has not been forgotten."

"I think Grov will like both names as well. I know he liked both Vinoza and Teglodia, though they were not called by those names when they lived with the Clan; they were Teg and Oza then."

Jendoza was thoughtful for a moment. "Your names would change too, if you came to live with Oak Camp. Well, not Annaliza's name, and maybe not yours, but Grov, Durc and Ora's would."

Ayla frowned. "I am not sure I would want my son's name changed. He is named after the man in my favorite legend, The Legend of Durc. Our old Mog-ur knew it was my favorite, and chose that name to please me. I would not want to call my son anything else."

Jendoza went into another contraction, and when it finished Ayla decided to examine her again. "I think that you can start pushing with the next contraction Jendoza. You are fully opened. I would like to go get Uba, if you do not mind."

Jendoza shook her head. "No, that is fine, it always good to have two healers available. In fact, Oak Camp doesn't even have one right now. I think I am in better hands here than I would be there."

Ayla smiled. "I am going now."

Ayla left the medicine hearth to go get Uba, but decided to stop off to tell Grov where she was going. The woman put her hand on her mate, and shook him gently. The man groaned, then opened his blue eyes, and looked up at her. "Is everything okay," he gestured.

Ayla grinned. "Yes, Jendoza is in labor. I am going to go get Uba. I just wanted you to know."

Grov got up on his elbow, and kissed his mate. "Do you want me to walk with you to Vorn's hearth? It is very dark in the cave."

"No, that is alright, I can go myself. You sleep."

Grov sighed. "Okay, I will go back to sleep then, but I will bring Annaliza to you if she wakes." Ayla nodded, then left the hearth.

Ayla made her way through the dark passageways of the cave, and paused at the entrance to Vorn's hearth. "Uba," the woman whispered.

Vorn stirred a bit as Uba got up. "Is Oza in labor?" the second medicine woman gestured knowingly. Ayla nodded, and Uba got her medicine bag.

Back at the medicine hearth, Jendoza was pushing hard, and Ayla and Uba were surprised to see Donzolnia sitting behind her. The two were holding hands, and had their fingers laced together. It seemed to be giving her leverage. It is a good position for the woman, Ayla thought, but the two medicine women had not thought of that position before, and it looked strange to them, not to mention that a man wasn't usually at a birth.

When the contraction ended, the medicine women examined the laboring woman again. "The baby had very dark hair," Uba signed.

Ayla translated, then said, "Only a few more pushes Jendoza."

The woman smiled. "I was so nervous about delivering here, but this is going so . . . wait . . ." she said as she started to push again. Ayla and Uba were amazed that she did not cry out at all. During this contraction, the baby's head emerged with a pop, and the child sneezed immediately. Uba cleared out the child's mouth, and they waited for the next contraction to come, so the baby would be fully born.

Jendoza lay there waiting, and smiled when the next one started. "Okay," she said as she pushed with all her might.

Uba held the baby's head, as Ayla guided the baby into the world. "You have a son Jendoza," Ayla said with a smile. Ayla cleaned off the baby, then handed him to Uba to wrap up, so she could deliver the afterbirth. Uba bundled the baby, then passed him on to his mother.

Jendoza took the child, and smiled down at him. "Oh Don, look at him. He looks just like you," she said with tears in her eyes.

He grinned at this woman, and her new baby. "I think I see you in there too, Jen. He is _your_son after all."

Ayla watched them, and started thinking about her theories on the conception of babies. Jendoza's baby looked nearly identical to the man holding her. Ayla could see it even now, just after birth. Ayla was sure the child was Donzolnia's child.

I think a man makes babies start, not his totem, she thought to herself. I think it happens when he puts his organ inside a woman. That must be how. Does that make the child just as much his as it is hers? Ayla wondered about this quietly, then she and Uba excused themselves so that the new family could be alone.

**End of Part TWO!**

* * *

><p><strong>Post Script<strong>

As stated at the top of this page, there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is unfinished...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an unfinished story. Continue at your own risk!

Again, it took me over an hour to transfer part two from the site where I originally posted it to here (copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past...and so on), so it might be a while before I transfer parts three through ten. I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	4. Part 4

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – this fic is UNFINISHED...so when you get to (and through) part ten, don't bitch at me that you weren't warned!

And again...I **apologize** for the _possible_ lack of scene divisions. They were there when I uploaded this document, I swear! But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write. However, though I said (in part one) that I wouldn't edit them back in, I have tried...might have missed some though...sorry. So aggravating! *sigh*

And further...**sorry** about the typographical errors. This was written _years_ ago, when I was new to writing and just didn't know any better. I have, since then, learned A LOT! However, not all the errors are mine, as this site seems to make changes without my knowledge and/or consent. It's WEIRD!

**After the Death Curse – Part Four (of ten)**

**************************************************  
><strong>Hearth Listings <strong>(as you can see, I got lazy with my "hearth listings"...they no longer have **~*~ **before the children's (or grandparent's) names...sorry)**  
><strong>

**Brun** (34) – Leader (Bison totem)**  
>Ebra<strong> (32) – Brun's mate, Broud's mother**  
>Eda<strong> (2.5 moons) – Ebra's

**Grod** (30) – Brun's second in command, son of the mate of Zoug (Brown Bear totem)**  
>Uka<strong> (28) – Ebra's sister, Ovra's mother**  
>Zoug<strong> (44) – second in command to the leader before Brun, Grod's mother's mate

**Goov** (21) – Mog-ur (Aurochs totem/Ursus totem)**  
>Ovra<strong> (19) – Goov's mate (Beaver totem)**  
>Droov<strong> (9 moons) – Ovra's first twin son**  
>Creb<strong> (9 moons) – Ovra's second twin son

**Grov** (17) – mixed man, master hunter (Leopard totem), first mated to Nora (quake death)**  
>Ayla<strong> (15) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman, "Woman who hunts," (Cave Lion totem)**  
>Durc<strong> (4) – Ayla's son, Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)**  
>Ora<strong> (2) – Nora's daughter (Alpine Marmot)**  
>Annaliza<strong> (7.5 moons)

**Vorn** (14) – Aga's son**  
>Uba<strong> (9) – second medicine woman, Iza's daughter**  
>Brev<strong> (9.5 moons) – Uba's first twin son**  
>Berc<strong> (9.5 moons) – Uba's second twin son

**Droog** (32) – toolmaker, mated to Goov's mother before Aga**  
>Aga<strong> (25) – Droog's second mate, Vorn and Ona's mother**  
>Groob<strong> (7) – Aga's son born to Droog's hearth**  
>Aba<strong> (36) – Aga's mother

**Crug** (23)**  
>Ika<strong> (21) – Crug's mate, Borg's mother**  
>Igra<strong> (7) – Ika's daughter, recently a woman, unmated**  
>Dorv<strong> (2) – Ika's son

**Broud** (22) – former leader (Wooly Rhinoceros totem), living at Grov's hearth**  
>Oga<strong> (18) – formerly Broud's mate, living at Grov's hearth**  
>Brac<strong> (8) – Oga's first son**  
>Grev<strong> (5) – Oga's second son**  
>Agra<strong> (4 moons) – Oga's mixed daughter

**Dorg** (21) – toolmaker (Red Tailed Hawk totem), first mated to the mixed woman Ala (quake death)**  
>Uga<strong> (17) – first mated to Dreg (quake death), was mother to Ega (quake death), now Dorg's woman (Lark totem)**  
>Vorg<strong> (8) – mixed child, Ala's son**  
>Breg<strong> (6) – Uga's son

**Corg** (18) – takes on leadership role after cave's collapse, takes on an advisory role to Brun, sibling to Oda**  
>Aza<strong> (16) – Corg's mate**  
>Orga<strong> (6) – Aza's first daughter**  
>Egra<strong> (3) – Aza's second daughter

**Daub** (18) – Dorg brother, Dreg's twin (deceased)**  
>Eka<strong> (16) – mated to Daub**  
>Ada<strong> and **Aka** (4) – Eka's twins

**Norv** (16) (Moose totem)**  
>Oda<strong> (13) – Corg's sibling, now mated to Norv (Hamster totem)**  
>Nouz<strong> (10) – son of Norv's deceased first mate, newly a man**  
>Nala<strong> (5) – daughter of Norv's deceased mate**  
>Ura<strong> (3) – mixed child, created by the totem of a man of the others (Red Wolf totem)

**Borg** (10) – (Boar totem), Ika's son**  
>Ona<strong> (10) – (Owl totem), Aga's daughter

**Visitor's Hearth**

**Vincenzia** (36) – Ayla's true mother's mate**  
>Donzolnia<strong> (21) – first son of Oak Camp Headman's mate**  
>Jendoza<strong> (17) – Donzolnia's mate**  
>Teglodia<strong> (newborn) – Jendoza's son

**************************************************  
><strong>Brun's Dilemma<br>**

Back at Grov's hearth, Ayla and Uba discussed whether or not they needed to go inform Brun about the birth of Jendoza's son. "They are not Clan. I don't know if Brun would want to know," Ayla said.

Uba pondered the thought for a moment. "True, but the child _was_born here. He may still want to see the child."

"But what for? The child is Others, he was born to Others, and they will not be staying once the weather is good enough to travel again," Ayla gestured. She did not want to wake their leader if they did not have to.

Uba thought about it again. "Yes, you are right, but Ayla, two of your children are Others, and he wanted to know about Annaliza."

"That is different Uba. I am part of the Clan. Brun had to decide whether or not she would be accepted. There is not need for that here. They will be leaving, and their customs are different; a woman keeps her baby no matter what."

"I suppose you are right, but I think we should tell him anyway." The younger medicine women didn't want to do anything that may upset the leader.

Ayla nodded. "I will do it. It's late, you go back to Vorn's hearth." Uba nodded, then left.

Grov rolled over and opened his eyes. "Well?" he gestured.

"This woman is pleased to report that the woman had a son."

"Ayla, you don't have to tell me like that. Save it for Brun." The man smiled at her. "Are you going to go tell Brun."

"I was just going to go tell him about the baby, but . . . Do you think he will want to know?"

Grov shrugged. "I don't know if he will _want_to know, but you still have to tell him. If I were leader, I would want to know about a new baby, no matter what."

Ayla agreed and looked over at Annaliza. The child was awake, lying in her furs looking at her mother, and sucking her two middle fingers. When Ayla started to leave, she began to cry. "I will take Annaliza with me," she said as she scooped up her tearful daughter.

Seeing Ayla pick up her sister, Ora sat up. "I want to go with Mamma too."

Ayla smiled, and held out her hand. "Come on Ora, you can come. Take your doll with you," she said to the almost three year old. Then the woman turned to her mate. "We are going now."

As she made her way through the darkened passageway again, she noticed that some people were starting to stir; some were already awake. It must be morning already, she thought. The night had passed quickly for her, but now she was tired.

As she approached the leader's hearth, she looked in surreptitiously to see if anyone was awake. Ebra was nursing her daughter. When the older woman noticed her there, she gestured a greeting, and waved the medicine woman in. "I saw Uba go by. Does that mean there is another baby in the cave?"

Ayla nodded, and sat down next to the woman. "Yes, I have come to tell Brun, but . . . I don't know if he will want to know. I see that he is still sleeping," she said as she opened her wrap and put Annaliza to her breast. The child latched on, and grabbed a handful of her mother's hair to hold while she nursed. Ora sat close to Ayla, but when she discovered that Eda was nursing too, she took out her doll and pretended to be a mother too.

"Eda kept us awake late. He will probably sleep for a while. I do not remember Broud keeping me awake so much." She looked down at her suckling daughter. The two and a half moon child was not one that liked to sleep. She was an extremely happy baby, and never even cried out, but was nearly always awake, which made sleeping difficult for the whole hearth.

"I could make you a calming tea, that would probably reach Eda through your milk. That might make it possible for you both to get more rest," Ayla suggested.

Ebra nodded. "I think that would be good. Brun needs to get some rest, and this child is not allowing it. Maybe I am just too old to have this baby."

Ayla frowned. "You are not too old Ebra. You are _older_, but you are in good health. This hard time will pass." Annaliza began to fuss. She appeared to be full. Ayla spread out her small birthing blanket, and set her baby down on it in a sitting position. The baby looked around the hearth and gurgled. Ayla tried to keep her quiet, but the child babbled away, and Ayla could tell that she was disturbing Brun.

Ebra noticed too, and handed Eda to Ayla. "Here, you hold Eda, and I will make a morning meal and some tea. Brun will be hungry."

Not long after Ebra had started the meal, then man woke up. When he got out of his furs, Ayla put Eda down next to Annaliza, and approached the man. She knelt down in the customary position and waited for his tap. When he tapped her shoulder, she began.

"This woman is not sure the leader wants to know this, but I am pleased to report that the visiting woman Jendoza, has given birth to a healthy son."

Brun stared at her for a moment. He had considered that this was going to happen, but still hadn't decided what to do. "I will go talk to Goov after I have a morning meal."

Ayla nodded, and picked up one of her daughters, and took the hand of the other. "We are going now."

Brulenzia lay quietly stroking Laurana's hair as she slept, and looked at her sleeping face. She looked like such a child when she was sleeping, he thought, and smiled. The young pregnant woman groaned, and rolled over so that her small, but definitely pregnant tummy was leaning against him. He smiled at her again, caressed her belly, then got up, and threw on some leggings. He wanted to get in and out of Ivanolia's hearth, before the man woke up.

Brulenzia quickly went into the other man's hearth, did what he wanted to do, then returned to his own hearth, and crawled back into his furs.

Laurana groaned again, but this time she was awake. "You are cold. Where were you, and why are you in bed with your leggings on," she said pushing the man away from her.

Brulenzia laughed quietly. "I have them on because it's cold out there, but I can take them off if you're offering me anything," he said, sidestepping her first question.

Laurana missed that the didn't answer fully, and giggled. "Well, I just might be, but I don't know right now. I can't see if you're _really_interested unless you take them off," she said playfully.

The man grinned. "You think you're funny, don't you?" he said tickling her, then kissing her neck.

She giggled again, but pushed him away. "No, I'm serious, I want to see you take your leggings off."

He rolled his eyes, and started to take them off. She watched him, and admired his lean young body. She ran a finger along his chest, and then reached up to kiss him. "Okay, you can have me now," she said. Unable to wait any longer, she took her hand from his chest, found his manhood, and guided him into her.

After eating, Brun left his hearth and went to go see the Mog-ur. Ovra was feeding her sons, but set them down to get the leader some tea. Brun gestured his appreciation at her consideration, then looked at Goov.

"Mog-ur, the woman Oza has given birth to a son. Do I need to go examine the child to see if it is fit to stay with his mother, or do I not, because it is an Others child?" The leader looked somewhat stressed.

Goov considered the question carefully. "Well Brun, I'm not sure this has ever happened before. No clan has ever had someone that was not part of the Clan deliver among the Clan, so you will have to decide on your own." The young mog-ur paused. "I think that if you examine the child, and allow him to stay with his mother, then you would be accepting him into the Clan. If there had been no Ayla, then this would also be a new concept for us, but you _could_accept the child, and make him Clan, even though he is Others."

Brun frowned, not sure he wanted to accept the male infant into his already too large clan.

Goov continued on before Brun could object. "That is one option. Another option could be doing nothing, and leave them to handle the child on their own, but I think it may be awkward to have a baby in the cave that has not been accepted. _And_, the spirits were not angered by the accepting of Ayla, or any of the new people or babies since Ayla was found. I think they like it that we will help anyone."

Brun was nodding. "So then, you think we should accept the woman's son into the Clan providing that the child is normal?"

Goov considered for just a moment. He knew that this went against all Clan traditions, but their clan was unlike any other clan he knew of. No other clan had had Others living among them, and not many had mixed people either. This would be new, and new was nearly impossible . . . but not for this clan. "Yes Brun, I think we should accept the child if he is normal," the Mog-ur began, then paused. Another idea came to him; another new idea. The man wondered where these new ideas were coming from, but immediately realized that this child could be important. "Brun, I have just thought of something else. If you accept this child, and he grows up knowing about the ways of the Clan, it may make it easier for the Others to accept the Clan. We are, after all, living in their territory, and I have heard of fights breaking out, because of misunderstandings."

Brun was nodding again. "I do believe you are right Mog-ur. We do have Grov and Ayla, and their children to help with that too, but it could be good to have someone that is outside the Clan as well. Do you think these people will visit us again to make this all possible?"

Goov nodded. "They most definitely will, Ayla is their kin. I do believe that Grov is planning to take Ayla to meet all of her people in the Spring. They will spend time with them, and return to us with much knowledge. It will be good for both people."

Brun agreed with the Mog-ur, and gestured that they should go see the new child.

Ayla had returned to the hearth quickly, and walked in to see Oga serving Grov and Broud their morning meal, and the boys playing in Broud's hearth while Agra lay on a map next to the working woman. "I will come help you Oga, but first I have to go talk to Jendoza."

Oga waved her off. "I will take care of this, you go tend to your patient." Ayla smiled at the woman, and left to go see Jendoza.

When Ayla got to the medicine hearth, the couple was still sitting together, but Vincenzia was there, holding the baby. Ayla smiled when she saw the man, and Ora ran over to see the new baby. "Baby so small," the little girl said loudly, startling the baby.

"Yes Ora, the baby is very small, just like Annaliza was," Jendoza said with a grin.

Ayla looked at the people, then sat down. "I am wondering something. Do you accept all babies born to your people?"

The three Others looked at her. "Well yes, of course," Vincenzia said. "Why?"

Ayla frowned. "Well, the Clan does not. If the leader deems that a child is deformed, and will be a burden to the Clan, then the mother of the child is ordered to dispose of the child."

Jendoza gasped. "That's awful! I could not do that to my baby," she said looking over at her new child. The a strange look crossed her face. "Ayla, why are you asking this? Brun isn't going to order that I do that, is he?"

Ayla shook her head. "No, he could ignore that you have had a baby, or he could come inspect it, but you do not have to worry, your baby is perfectly normal, so that is no problem. _But_, if he chooses to inspect your baby, then he would be considering accepting the child as part of our Clan. How would you feel about that?"

Jendoza worry turned to relief, and she turned to look at Donzolnia. "I would not have a problem with that, if Donzolnia doesn't. It's not like we will be living here, and he's not a girl so I would not worry about how he was treated. What would you think Don?"

Donzolnia shook his head. "I don't care if you don't care. I don't see how it will affect us."

Ayla let out her breath, she had been worried that Brun would come to accept the baby, and they would be offended. "I don't know if it would affect you either, but it would tie your hearth to our Clan, and that could be good."

Vincenzia smiled. "But we are already tied to each other through you, Durc, Ora, and Annaliza."

"Yes, and that is important too, but the more ties the better, I think. Don't you?"

The Others were all nodding when Brun and the Mog-ur arrived. Jendoza looked down, so as not to look at the Clan men. She had been around long enough to know how she was expected to act at this time. She had after all been around for several births, and had seen every woman react in the same manner. Vincenzia was holding the new baby, and did not know the protocol. Jendoza held out her hands to receive the child, unwrapped him, and then held him up to the men to inspect.

Brun and Goov leaned in to look at the baby. "Now that is the smallest baby I have ever seen," Brun gestured to Goov.

The Mog-ur nodded. "Yes, even smaller than Ayla's new daughter was, and look at how weak his neck is. That is the same as Ayla's daughter's neck was." The two men looked over at the medicine woman, who sat silently looking down at her daughter that was sitting in front of her.

"Looks like _her_neck is just fine," Brun gestured as they turned back to look at the new baby.

"This baby is acceptable to me Brun, if it is to you."

Brun finally grunted. "The baby appears to be normal. He may stay with his mother. If he lives until the naming day, he will be accepted." The leader paused for a moment, still looking at the teeny tiny infant, then turned and left the hearth.

**************************************************  
><em><strong>Euphorbia<strong>_** esula  
><strong>

The days went by quickly, and on the morning of the seventh day the clan gathered outside in the deep snow and blowing wind for yet another unusual break in tradition; the naming and accepting of an Others child. A child that had already been named by the Others, but had to be named in the Clan way in order for it to be truly accepted by the Clan. As far as anyone could remember, this had been done only one time before, and that was when the Clan accepted Ayla many years before.

Everyone stood around, cloaked heavily, yet still shivering in the winter weather, and waiting for the Mog-ur to start the ceremony. Most were a little nervous at the prospect of the naming of this foreign child, but none questioned their holy man. At Mog-ur's signal, which announced that he was ready, the Clan and the Others came to attention.

It was very early in the morning, just as it was for all namings, when he beckoned the woman forward. Jendoza had been instructed by Ayla so she would know what to do, and at Goov's gesture the woman hurried to join the holy man who stood in front of all his people. Ayla had suggested that she kneel down, so that she would not be taller than the Mog-ur, so that is what the woman did. As she kneeled before the Clan's magician, she uncovered her son, and then just as every other woman always did in a naming ceremony, Jendoza held the baby up while _the magician looked over her head making the gestures that called the spirits to attend the ceremony. Then, with a flourish, he began._

Dipping into the bowl…he drew a stripe from the

the place just above the dip in the baby's face, where the brow ridges should have been, to the tip of his tiny, unclan-like _nose with the red-ochre paste._

The Mog-ur then looked at the child, and just as he had for the naming of Ayla's new baby, he verbalized the name that the Others wanted for their child. "Teg-lo-dee-a, the boy's name is Teg-lo-dee-a," Mog-ur said in a slow and deliberate manner. The naked infant, who was furious at being taken away from his mother's warm breast, and held out in the freezing temperatures, _voiced a healthy howl which drowned out_the clan people's attempts to practice the child's name.

"Teglodia," Jendoza _repeated, cuddling her shivering baby in her arms…. The members of the clan filed past, each repeating the name to familiarize themselves and their totems with the newest addition._ Most shortened the child's name to Teg, but some made an attempt to say his full name. Jendoza managed to follow custom by keeping her head down _so she would not inadvertently look upon any of the men who came forward to acknowledge her_ son. _Afterward, she wrapped the infant in warm rabbit skins_, and looked at her mate.

Donzolnia smiled at her, then put an arm around the woman and child. Everyone was already filing back into the cave.

It seemed like it had been forever since Brulenzia had sneaked into Ivanolia's hearth to set up his prank, and Brulenzia was beginning to think the man would never encounter the joke, but it soon became evident that it would happen.

Everyone of Oak Camp usually came and went as they pleased, worked on whatever task they had going, but most met in the Cooking Hearth at least once a day for a meal, or for other tasks that needed more space than was available in any hearth.

On this day, it was the afternoon meal, and many had congregated there. Brulenzia and Laurana arrived, and filled up their plates with food, then went to sit with some of the younger adults. Danie was among them, but Ivanolia was not.

"Where is Ivan?" Laurana said, inquiring about her brother.

Danie frowned. "He is in hearth, complaining about . . . leggings," she said touching her thighs. "He says that they are itchy, and that he needs to change. I not understand, he wear all morning and not complain until now."

Laurana cocked her head, not understanding either, then comprehension dawned on her, and she turned to look at Brulenzia. Brulenzia did his best to avoid her look, and tried to excuse himself. "I . . . I need to . . . get more food," he said as he got up, and tried to walk away.

Laurana jumped up quickly, and grabbed his tunic sleeve. "Now wait a moment Bru. What have you done to Ivan?"

Danie had noticed that the man was trying to sneak away, but when Laurana jumped up to prevent him from leaving, she too got up. "What you do to Ivan, Brulenzia?"

Brulenzia flushed a deep shade of red. "Well, I did nothing to Ivanolia. I didn't touch him."

Laurana's eyes narrowed, as she looked at Danie. "What did you do to Ivanolia's leggings, Brulenzia?"

The man stared at the glaring women for a moment, then shrugged, knowing that he couldn't lie to them. "I . . . sort of put . . . sort of rubbed some leaves in his leggings . . . leaves that would cause him to itch." The man flinched as the women abruptly let go of him.

"That wasn't very nice," Laurana called over her shoulder, as she and Danie left to go find Ivanolia, leaving Brulenzia standing there staring after them.

"Oh Sumata," he said. "It's not like he hasn't been causing trouble for me," he yelled at the retreating backs of the two young women.

Danie and Laurana reached Ivanolia's hearth in time to see him staring down at the rash that had appeared in his inner thighs and groin area. When he looked up to see them standing there, he picked up his leggings and held them in front of himself. "Doesn't anyone scratch on the curtain anymore?" he said angrily.

"Ivan, we just find out Brulenzia did this. He trying to be funny again," Danie informed her mate, and Laurana was nodding her head, verifying that his mate was right.

The man's face turned beet red, and he took the leggings he was holding in front of himself, and threw them on the ground in front of him. "WHAT IN SUMATA'S NAME IS WRONG WITH HIM!" he screamed.

Laurana looked away from her half naked and angry brother, and blushed since it was her man that was causing Ivanolia the discomfort, but Danie frowned up at him. "Ivan, you started trouble, not Brulenzia. You stop this, and it over. You keep it going and it not stop. I think your fault." She paused while he looked away stubbornly, with his hands on his hips. "Now, put something on, and come see mother. She give you cream for rash. It will be gone tomorrow," she said as she picked up a clean pair of leggings, and handed them to him.

Ivan stood there for a time, looking angry, but Danie lightly smacked him to get his attention. "This silly. Please come," she said pleadingly. The man could not listen to her pleading with him, and did what she wanted. Laurana sighed, glad that he was acquiescing, and looked back at him when she knew his leggings were back on.

Ivanolia tied his leggings with a snap, and glared at Laurana. "You tell Brulenzia that . . ." but seeing that his little sister had tears in her eyes, he stopped and hugged her. He knew he had started this, and figured that he should end it too. End it with just one more prank, he thought. Then Danie led him away. Laurana watched them go, then went to Brulenzia's hearth, and lay down; she was feeling rather exhausted.

Danie practically had to drag him to see Travie, but the woman was waiting for them when they arrived at Vincenzia's hearth where she was residing. She had questioned Brulenzia as soon as the two women stormed away, and knew exactly what Ivanolia would need. She was melting a large pot of snow over the hearth fire, and was making something else in a smaller pot.

"Come in, take off clothing Ivanolia," the older woman said. He looked questioningly at Danie, but she gave him a look that told him to do as ordered, so he did. Travie stirred her smaller pot of water, then threw in some crushed stems, and something that looked like another type of weed.

"What is that you are putting in there," the man asked as he took off his leggings.

Travie paused and looked at the man. "Take off all clothes. We must make sure that rash has not managed to go to other parts of your body. And this," she said pointing at the pot that was now boiling, "is water, crushed aloe stems, and jewelweed leaves. It will take away the itching, and with luck, the rash too." As she spoke, she removed the large pot of melting ice from the fire, and set it aside.

The man appeared relieved that the woman seemed to know what she was doing, and removed his tunic. Travie looked him over carefully, and sighed. She was kneeling on the ground in front of him. "This rash appears to only be on your manhood and legs," she said looking up at the red-faced man. Then she turned to look at her daughter. "Danie, go get this man some clean clothes, and just burn those, so we don't have to try to clean them." Danie nodded and left.

When Danie was gone, the woman scooped up some dirt from the floor of the lodge, and used it to wipe off the man's infected area. "What are you doing?" Ivanolia asked her as she rubbed the dirt all over him.

"You have no blisters yet, and this is the best way to removed the poisonous oil that comes off of the Leafy Spurge plant. If there were blisters, then we couldn't do this," the woman said as she continued to rub in a rather rough manner. Ivanolia gritted his teeth, and looked away.

When the woman finished the process, she directed the man to sit on a log that she had dragged over and covered with a soft fur. She then picked the pot and began pouring it over the infected area, much to Ivanolia's displeasure.

Ivanolia jumped up. "What are you doing now? Why cold water?" he said, obviously upset about having cold water poured on his groin area.

The woman put the pot down, stood up, put her hands on his shoulders, and pushed him back down. "I have to use cold water, because hot water opens the tiny holes in you skin and allows more oil to get inside, causing the rash to continue to make you itch. It is hopeful that the oil has been absorbed by the dirt, and that it is gone, but we do not want to take that chance, do we?"

Ivanolia shook his head, and gritted his teeth again as the woman continued to put the almost freezing water on him. Danie appeared at the hearth entrance with the clean clothing her mother had asked for, and giggled at the sight she saw.

Ivanolia looked up at her, and wasn't at all happy about her giggle. "What is so funny woman? Do not think this will go unpunished." Danie immediately stopped giggling, and silently asked Mut to end the man's jokes.

Travie looked at the man, then at her daughter, then at the man again. "I will tell you this right now, and I will tell Brulenzia later, this better be the last _'joke'_this winter, or I will make both of you sorry that you cannot find other ways to amuse yourselves."

Brulenzia stood in the Cooking Hearth until he realized Laurana wasn't coming back, then he excused himself. He peeked into Vilognia's hearth, thinking that Laurana might have gone there to avoid him, but seeing that she wasn't there, he headed for his own hearth. He was able to get to his hearth without passing Vincenzia's hearth, which made him happy, but when he saw Laurana on their sleeping platform crying, he suddenly felt terrible, and rushed to her side.

"Laurana . . . _Laurana_," he said, but the woman kept her face in the furs and did not respond to him. "Please Laurana, I am sorry. I didn't mean for you to get so upset." But still she didn't turn over. He could hear her sobbing. "Laurana," he said, "I cannot keep talking to your back. Please roll over."

The woman kept sobbing. "I can't," was all that she would say.

"What do you mean, 'you can't'? Surely you can roll over," he said as he gently shook her. The woman continued to cry, but eventually rolled over so that he could see her. When she did, he gasped. "Hahh! Laurana, what is all over your face?"

She closed her eyes, and covered her face. "Whatever you put in Ivan's leggings, has gotten on me too," she sobbed. "But it got on my face . . . I'm sure I am _so_ugly," she said through her tears. Brulenzia now felt even more awful, and he lay down beside her to comfort her.

"You are not ugly, you could _never_be ugly," he said to her. "And I am so sorry Laurana, please forgive me. If it makes you feel any better, I seem to have gotten a rash as well."

She stifled a sob, opened her eyes to look at him, and sure enough, his face and hands were covered with the rash as well. "Hummm, it does make me feel a little better," she said wiping her tears away, and inspecting his face. "Your rash looks much worse than mine feels," she replied with a smirk, "just as it should. Take off your tunic. I want to see your chest and back." He did as she bid, and her intake of breath told him it was all over his chest and back as well. "How did you get that plant all over yourself?" she demanded.

Brulenzia shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. I did this days ago, so I don't know how I could have gotten it today, or you too, for that matter. I thought I was being so careful with it too, but I guess not, huh?"

Laurana frowned. "What did you do with the plant when you finished with it?" she asked, suddenly curious.

Brulenzia looked around, "I put it under here," he said showing her where he had placed the hand coverings he had used when grinding up the plant.

Laurana gasped. "Oh Sumata! I found those just this morning and tossed them on the bed with all of our dirty garments. I was going to take them outside on the next clear day and rub snow on them to clean them up a bit. You must have touched them somehow while they were there. Oh my," she said, suddenly jumping up off their bed platform. "I think _you_should be the one to clean our furs."

Brulenzia sighed. "I will Laurana, but first come on, we should go see Travie."

When they got to Vincenzia's hearth, they could hear the man inside complaining about the treatment, and Brulenzia almost wanted to return to his own hearth and wait until the man was gone. Laurana gave him a look and he stayed, but he turned around to face the other way. She scratched on the curtain, and waited. When Danie appeared, then woman gasped at them. "What happened to you?"

Laurana sighed, and pulled her man into the hearth with her. "Brulenzia happened to _all_of us," she stated simply, making the man turn around to show them that he too had the rash.

Ivanolia has just finished his ice cold shower of sorts, and was drying himself off with a blanket, and laughed out loud at his friend. "HAH! Serves you right!" Then he looked at Laurana, "But look at what you did to my sister," he said pointing at Laurana's rashy red and tear-stained face. "And me, look what you've done to me," the man continued, pulling the blanket away and exposing his rashy manhood and legs." Laurana looked away again, but a smile crept onto her face. Then the three of them burst into laughter.

"Humpf," the older woman breathed. "I cannot believe you two are friends, or that you two are with these two 'friends.' I would not be one bit happy with a 'friend' that did this to me," she said to them. Then she looked at Brulenzia. "I have warned Ivanolia about these 'jokes' and now it's your turn. This better be the last _'joke'_this winter, or I will make both of you sorry that you cannot find other ways to amuse yourselves." The woman was shaking her finger at the man as she spoke, and then looked at her daughter. "Rub that salve on your mate's rash. It will draw out the itch, and make him more comfortable. You will need to apply is twice a day. I will make more, since it appears we will need quite a bit more of it." Then she turned back to Brulenzia and Laurana. "And you two, take off your clothing."

**************************************************  
><strong>Woman Talk<br>**

Darvie returned to hers and Vincenzia's hearth with her children, and Braydalana. The two girls were there to get their dolls, and Darvie wanted her son to take a nap. When they entered the hearth, they were shocked to see the three naked, rash-covered people, and Darvie burst into laughter. Travie didn't know what was so funny, _she_was rather annoyed with the shenanigans of these two young men, and thought their women were paying for all of it, but was glad her daughter was laughing. It had been difficult on her since Vincenzia had been gone.

Darvie saw the irritation on her mother's face and quelled her laughter. "Well, what might be going on in here?" she asked, knowing full well what had happened. She had heard Brulenzia's explanation to her mother, and one look at him told her that he had been infected as well, and Laurana too for that matter.

"It seems that my _joke_, has spread to more than its intended victim," Brulenzia said with a smirk toward Ivanolia. Ivanolia cast the same look back at his friend. Travie then grabbed the newly naked man, and slapped a handful of dirt on his back, and rubbed it rather roughly. "Ouch, Travie. Not so hard." Darvie could hardly contain her amusement.

Ivanolia, on the other hand, didn't bother to contain it; he laughed outright. "Try having that done to your manhood. And just wait for the rinsing," he said starting to laugh hard.

Travie glared at the man. "_You_ are finished. You may leave _now_," the woman said angrily, pushing the man toward the curtain. "Danie, please bring me clean clothing for these two as well, and keep your mate from causing trouble for a while."

Danie looked at her mother, and felt like a little girl being scolded for something she hadn't done. Braydalana saw that tears were welling in her new mother's eyes, and hugged her. "We'll help you Danie, won't we Crisana?"

The other girl nodded. "Sure we will AuntDanie."

Danie looked her new daughter, and her sister's daughter, and smiled. "Come on girls. I could really use your help, but try not to touch anything that you don't have to. I don't want you two to get a rash too." The two young girls followed her out.

Ivanolia stood outside the curtain waiting for his mate, but she just pushed past him. "Hey Danie. This one is _not_my fault," he said to her back.

"Not your fault?" she said questioningly as she turned around. "You start it in beginning, it your fault too. You need stop. I not think you will, but you should. You will be sorry. I never saw mother so angry. You will be sorry," she said and spun around.

The two girls watched her leave, then Braydalana looked at the man of her hearth. "Ivanolia, please stop. It's not funny anymore. Mother is not happy." The seven year old girl had grown close to her new mother, and she did not like to see her upset. Crisana didn't say anything, but she too gave the man a dirty look, and left with her cousin to catch up to Danie.

Darvie watched her sister go, then helped her son into his furs. "Just try to sleep for a little while," she said kissing the boy, and closing the curtain that separated his bed from the rest of the hearth. "Mother, can I help you with this?"

Travie sighed. "Yes, you could work on Laurana. It appears to only be on her face, but rub her down completely anyway." Brulenzia rolled his eyes, knowing that the woman planned to do the same to him. When he caught Laurana's eyes, he smiled sheepishly, and she grinned back.

"You know Travie. If you just tell us what we should do, we can do this ourselves. There is no need for you to do this all over again," Laurana said.

"Yeah, Travie, I could rub down Laurana, and she could do the same to me."

The woman considered their plan, then pulled the two pots off the fire. "Good, that will save me the hassle. Rub each other down with the dirt. You must do it with rigor, or the plant oil may not be absorbed, and it would have been useless. Then you must rinse it off thoroughly, with cold water. Then pat dry, cover with this salve, and reapply twice a day." The woman looked at them one last time then left the hearth.

Darvie watched her mother go, then turned toward the naked couple. "She's really mad," she said with a smile on her face. "I have never seen her so mad."

At the Clan's cave, Ayla was enjoying her time with Vincenzia, and the others, and Jendoza's new baby was a delight to have around. Ayla, Oga and Jendoza often sat together at Grov's hearth talking and nursing their babies, while the men went off to do the things men do.

Brun had finally given Igra to Nouz, which gave the women something else to talk about. "I don't understand why a woman has no choice in who she mates. That is terrible," Jendoza said, thinking about her mate and being thankful that she had someone she loved.

Ayla translated for Oga, then spoke in words and gestures. "The Clan believes that women are not capable of choosing a man, and that a man must do it for her, but a closeness develops over time, for most people. There are exceptions, my adopted mother Iza never liked her mate. He was mean, and cuffed her often, but for the most part, people are happy with their mates." Oga was nodding her agreement.

"But Nouz and Igra are still children. How can Brun mate them so soon?" Jendoza asked still not understanding.

"No Jendoza, Nouz has been a man for a while, and needs a mate. Igra became a woman over a year ago, and it would be unlucky if she were to get pregnant and not have a mate. They are lucky that they like each other. When I was young, there was no one that wanted me, and no one wanted the burden when I became pregnant.

Jendoza frowned. "Ayla, you are fifteen years, right?" Ayla nodded. "And Durc is four? You were only eleven when your son was born?" Ayla nodded again. "That is so young. It's hard to understand what you went through at such a young age." Ayla smiled at her, but didn't say anything. "So, Grov was not around when you had Durc, but Durc looks like Broud. He must be of Broud's spirit."

Ayla nodded, blushing at the mention of Broud. The woman did not know about all she had gone through with the man, and Ayla didn't really want to tell her. "Yes, I am certain he is of Broud's totem spirit, just like Brac and Grev are of his totem spirit, and Ora, Annaliza and Agra are of Grov's totem spirit."

Jendoza looked at Ora, and the two baby girls, then back at Ayla. "So, when were you _given_to Grov?" the woman asked.

Ayla nodded. "I was given to him when we found this cave. He is my first mate. No one ever wanted me before. I am just too ugly, but he does not seem to think so, or maybe he does, and he doesn't care."

Jendoza laughed. "Ayla you are not ugly. I have always been considered a pretty woman, and we look nearly identical, so you cannot be ugly. In fact, I think you are prettier than me. I cannot wait for you to meet my sister Laurana. She looks just like me too, but she is closer to you in years than I am."

Ayla laughed. "I am not pretty Jendoza. Grov just took me because I was given to him."

Jendoza did not think Ayla really considered herself ugly until she heard that comment from cousin. "Ayla, you are not an ugly woman. Among our people you would be considered beautiful. And Grov does _not_think you are ugly either. I can see it in his eyes. He may have mated you because you were given to him, but he really loves you." Ayla smiled, not sure she believed the woman.

Oga watched Ayla and Jendoza speak, and was thankful that Ayla was translating the whole conversation as they spoke. The conversation made her look closely at the two Others women; they did look very similar. Jendoza's eyes were bluer than Ayla's were, and Ayla was slightly taller than the other woman, but then, all these Others are tall, she thought.

Oga looked at them closely, knowing that most people thought the Others to be ugly and unintelligent. Though many realized they were smarter than they had been given credit for, most still considered them ugly. Oga hadn't really thought about it for some time; Ayla was just Ayla. But ever since Oga had been staying in Grov's hearth, where she had been signaled to relieve the man's needs on occasion, she hadn't thought about it at all. In fact, ever since Grov had shown her that a woman could be relieved as well, she felt attracted to the man. He was different, but she liked the way he looked.

Leave? Oga thought, coming back from her daydreaming. She had never considered that Grov and Ayla might leave someday.

Ayla was thinking about what Jendoza had been saying, and could hardly wait for the time when she could journey to Oak Camp to meet her true people, but wondered how she could leave the Clan; they were family too. "So Jendoza, in Oak Camp the woman chooses the man?"

"Well no, not really. Two people choose each other really. Do you remember Brulenzia?"

Ayla nodded. "Yes, he looks just like Donzolnia. He is Donzolnia's brother, right?"

"Yes, that is right," Jendoza said with a smile. "Before we left to come visit you, he and my sister were spending a lot of time together. I think they will choose each other."

"Hummm, do you live in a large cave like this one?" Ayla asked.

"Well, no actually. We live in an earthlodge. Most Sungaea live in caves, but there wasn't a cave where our camp wanted to settle, so we built shelter."

Ayla frowned. "How can you build a shelter large enough to fit so many people?"

Jendoza smiled. "It's rather remarkable really. We built it out of trees, bones, antlers, mud and clay, like the Mamutoi do, but first we have to measure how big we want it to be, and dig down into the soil a bit. Then we make the frame and cover it. During the winter it settles down a bit, and in the spring we retouch, and a more clay as needed. Before we left, we added onto the lodge so that it would be bigger. You will see it in the spring when you visit."

Ayla smiled. "I am looking forward to . . . visiting," she said, noticing that Oga didn't look too happy about the conversation.

**************************************************  
><strong>Back In Order<br>**

The winter was passing at a decent speed, and spring was just around the bend. Vincenzia stood in the mouth of the Clan's cave, looking out over the valley before him. He had to admit that this land was beautiful, and that the daughter of his hearth had stumbled upon good people. He worried about what _his_people would think of her, and her family, but he really didn't care anymore; she was truly the daughter of his heart, and he was so glad he finally knew who she was.

Vincenzia thought about the woman he had so doted on as a little girl, and could not believe that so much time had passed; that his Annalisa had perished in that earthquake, and that his Andreyta was no more. The man's eyes filled with tears as he stared out onto the frozen land and thought about his loss, then he shook his head to clear the pain. I have my little girl back, he thought. And she brings much more to my hearth than I could have hoped for. Vincenzia thought about her, and his eyes welled again. Ayla had a _good_mate and three wonderful children to bring back to their camp, if she would come back there, he thought. He was excited about their visit, and fervently hoped Oak Camp would be as accepting.

The man watched the grasses blow, and saw a herd of winter reindeer milling at the other end of the valley. They didn't need to hunt the reindeer; Brun was an excellent leader, and had anticipated the cave's every need, but the thought of survival was never too far away in these cold ice age days.

Vincenzia looked up at the sky, squinting into the sun, and wondered when it would be safe to journey back to his home. He would miss Annalisa's daughter; _his_daughter, but he missed Darvie and her children too. For all these years he had been consumed with grief over losing her; his Annalisa, but now that he had been separated from Darvie, his heart ached for her, and her children. He thought about the woman with the dark, dark brown hair and light gray eyes that he was mated to, and his heart ached anew.

He watched the sky, and considered the weather. It wasn't too cold, nor was there a warming trend, but Vincenzia could tell by the clouds that a break in the stormy weather was coming. He knew the weather would not really be warmer, but it would be less harsh. He stood there for quite sometime, and then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"You will be leaving soon," Ayla said. "I can tell."

The man looked down at the woman, and took her into his arms. "Yes Ayla, I have to get back to my camp."

Ayla sighed. "I knew it would come, but I am so glad that you were able to spend so much time here; to get to know my mate and my children." She smiled. "And that Jendoza was able to deliver her baby here."

The man smiled down at her again. "You have a wonderful mate. I can tell that you are happy, and you have beautiful children. I hope you will visit in the spring."

Ayla laughed, something she had learned was expected by the Others. "You could not keep me away Vincenzia."

On the morning that appeared to be the first in a long line of clear days, Vincenzia, Donzolnia, Jendoza and the baby, set off once again. Ayla watched them go with Grov at her side, but this time she sobbed openly at the loss of her mother's mate. She thought about what the man meant to her, and couldn't help but think that he should have a different title; using his name seemed so formal, as did the term mother's mate.

Grov wiped her tears, and kissed her. "I will take you there in the spring. You will not be separated from them for long; spring is not far away." The man told her this even as he doubted that he would be accepted there, or that Durc would be either, for that matter, but he kept silent about his fears; maybe they would not come to pass.

Quite quickly, they fell back into their routine, and the hearth became the quiet Clan hearth it had always been. Ayla spent time pruning her hawk, and Shriek became interested with the woman's hair. Ayla discovered that the bird had made a stash of it near his perch, and for amusement he would hop down and pull it out, then carry it back up. It was actually quite funny; even Broud thought so.

Ora's crush on Broud had not subsided, much to the man's displeasure. When there was no distraction the child would stop at nothing to sit near the man, or on him if he was sitting. Broud was definitely a different man, but even the new Broud could not take the child's incessant handling. He was holding Agra, while Oga made a meal. Annaliza had crawled over to the man to be near Agra, and Ora was trying to sit on him too. Finally, the man broke.

"Grov!" he said loudly in desperation, causing everyone to turn around. "Can you get your daughters off of me?" Broud did not even think about his wording, he just said what was on his mind; that part of him was no different.

Grov looked at Broud, then he looked at Oga and Ayla, who started to come for their daughters, but Grov signaled that he would take care of it. Grov went to Broud, and took Agra into his arms, then bent over and picked up Annaliza too. "Come Ora! Leave Broud alone." The child reluctantly acquiesced, making Broud wonder what kind of woman she would make if she couldn't even obey the man of her hearth properly.

The hearth was back to normal, and everyone could feel it.

When the day dawned sunny, though no warmer than any other day, Darvie began her vigil on the earthlodge roof again. People of the camp took turns sitting with her, and Danie brought her sister her meals, and hot tea. Occasionally Travie came out to talk, but the older woman thought her daughter had lost her mind; for why would one sit in the cold when she wasn't likely to see what she wanted to see?

"He's coming mother, I can feel it," she said not even looking down when her mother came out. "I know he's on his way." Travie looked up at her daughter, wondering how the woman had known she was there, or that it was in fact her. It could have been someone else. Maybe Vincenzia was on his way.

Then, early one morning, Darvie had just climbed up with her hot tea, and had settled down in her parka, when she saw movement on the horizon; three figures approached. She knew it was them, but waited to be sure. Then, when she was, she shouted. "They're back!" she screamed. "Vincenzia is home! Donzolnia and Jendoza are home! Everyone come look!" the woman had practically jumped down from the lodge, and was racing across the snow covered plain as fast as she could manage; the snow was rather deep.

When Darvie reached the travelers, she flung herself at her mate, and the force of her blow, knocked them both to the ground. "Oh Vincenzia, you are home!" she said kissing her mate, and smiling. The blond man kissed back fervently.

"It is so good to be home," he said, as he lay on the cold snow enjoying his mate's embrace, and warm lips.

The people were coming out of the lodge excitedly, and the newcomers were instantly surrounded by their families. Zarina, a normally reticent woman rushed up, and hugged her son tightly. Then, knowing that it was long past her son's woman's day of delivery, she looked at Jendoza. "Well, let me see that baby."

Jendoza smiled, and pulled out the wrapped up baby, and handed him over. "We would like you all to meet Teglodia. He was delivered by Ayla, and Uba too, the Clan's healer," Jendoza said, looking around to see Ivanolia's reaction. The man was not there.

Brulenzia came forward, and clasped his brother close, then bent over and picked up his brother's mate for a hug. When he put her down, he smiled at her, and looked over at Zarina, who held the baby.

Laurana, who had been putting on her foot covering when she heard the commotion, came up with a huge smile on her face. "Jendoza!" she yelled, as she pushed past the people to get to her sister. "I am so happy you're home." Laurana was in her parka, so her condition was undetectable, but as Jendoza hugged her little sister, she frowned, and pushed her away.

"What is this?" Jendoza said pulling open her sister's parka. "I leave for a while, and you end up pregnant? Oh my Sumata," she said as she touched her sister's belly. "How far are you anyway?"

Laurana grinned. "I have three moons left," she said excitedly.

"Don't tell me you have gotten mated and didn't wait for me to return," Jendoza laughed.

Laurana was shaking her head, as Brulenzia put his arms around her, and kissed her cheek. "No," he said, "we haven't joined yet. That will this summer though. We tried to wait to tell everyone about it and the baby until you returned, but you took too long, and we couldn't hide it any longer."

Just then Donzolnia and Ivanolia came over and discovered what they were all talking about, and grinned widely. "Well, someone has finally tamed this man," Donzolnia said grabbing hold of his brother, and pushing him into the snow.

"Yeah, never thought it would last, did you?" Ivanolia said joining his two friends in the snow for an impromptu snowball fight. Brulenzia picked up a handful of snow and smashed it into Ivanolia's face, then ran away quickly.

Laurana rolled his eyes. "You will never believe the trouble these two have caused while you were away. You'd think Brulenzia was promised to a ten year old by the way Ivan's been acting. It's been awful," she said, then she giggled. "But I guess awfully fun is more like it. Hey, who has that baby?"

Jendoza hugged her sister again, and Zarina brought the child over to his aunt as they walked back to the earthlodge.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Sleeping Trio<br>**

Once inside, the travelers dropped their packs in the entry area, hung up parkas and outer clothing, put away their gear, and then took the rest on to their hearths. Vincenzia greeted everyone happily, and played with Darvie's children for a while; they seemed to have grown considerably. Then, when the visiting was all said and done, he carried his woman off to their furs; he had been away from her for over five moons, and could hardly contain himself.

Donzolnia carried his and Jendoza's belongings to their hearth, and noting that it was extremely chilly there, he started a fire in their pit. He wanted to get out to talk to everyone; he had not realized how much he had missed his friends and family. They all had so much to talk about. He also knew that Jendoza would want everything back in its place before she would relax. He busied himself around the hearth so she would be able to join him sooner. As he finished up with the fire, Jendoza and Laurana entered the hearth.

"So, where are you going to put Teglodia?" Laurana asked as she kissed the baby in her arms.

Jendoza looked around the hearth, and smiled at Donzolnia. "I don't know, where do you think we should put him Donz?" The man shrugged. "Hummm," she said looking around. "I wish I would have thought about this sooner," she said frowning.

"Well, it's not like you expected to be gone for so long," Laurana sighed, sitting down on the bed platform and cuddling the baby.

Jendoza dropped down beside her. "I am so tired. I think I could sleep for days." She looked up at Donzolnia, who obviously wanted to go hang out with his brother and friends. "You don't have to stay, I'll finish up here," she said with a smile. "I want to talk to Laurana anyway." He leaned over and kissed her, then he planted a kiss on Laurana's cheek, and left the hearth with a smile.

"So, tell me all about your trip," Laurana prompted as she put the sleeping baby down on the furs. "And about Ayla, and the flatheads, and Teglodia's birth."

Jendoza flinched at the word flathead. "Laurana, please don't say flathead. They are not animals. You will meet Ayla, her mate, and their children very soon. You must not say that."

Laurana had the decency to blush crimson. "I am sorry Jen. That's just what we have always called them. Is Ayla's mate really . . . what did you call them?"

"Clan . . . they call themselves Clan, and yes he is." Then she frowned. "But he can't have too much Clan spirit in him, it's hardly recognizable, and the two little girls don't seem to have any Clan spirit in them at all. But her son Durc, he's definitely part Clan, and not of her mate's spirit. He looks nearly identical to the other man of her hearth, but he is not her mate."

Laurana was confused. "So there are two men at her hearth, and three children?"

Jendoza shook her head. "No, actually there are the two men, Grov and Broud, but only Grov is her mate. Broud is mated to Oga, who lives there too. Then there are Ayla's two children, Durc and Annaliza, and Ora, who was born to Grov's hearth while he was mated to Evenora. _Then_," she continued, "there are Oga's three children, Brac, Grev and Agra. Her two sons are definitely of her mate's spirit, but I would guess that Agra is of Grov's spirit."

Laurana frowned again, still confused. "And, you stayed in their hearth the whole time? That sounds very full."

Jendoza laughed. "Their cave is huge, Laurana. The biggest cave I have ever seen, but no, we stayed in the visitor's hearth. It's not like it mattered though, because I spent so much time at their hearth anyway."

"Weren't you worried about giving birth to a baby of mixed spirits? I'm not sure I want them around when my baby is born."

"I wondered about that myself, but Donz never mentioned it. I did talk to Ayla, and she has very interesting ideas about how babies get inside a woman. She thinks a man puts the baby inside with his manhood when they share pleasures." The two young woman looked down at Teglodia, who was sleeping soundly. "I've never shared pleasures with anyone but Donzolnia, well, except for the summer of my first rights, and that was so long ago, nearly four years, but I have been around many men, and now the Clan men too. In fact, there were . . . ummm, fourteen Clan men at their cave, and only Vincenzia and Donzolnia from our camp. I was certainly there long enough, and near enough to them, for my baby to have come out mixed, but I have no doubt that this baby is definitely of Donzolnia's spirit. I think Ayla might be right about this."

Laurana smiled. "Well, I like that idea, because that means that my child could only be of Brulenzia's spirit. I have not shared pleasures with anyone other than him since my first rites." Laurana caressed her burgeoning belly, as she looked at Teglodia. "I hope my baby looks just like yours. He is so beautiful."

Jendoza smiled, and lay back on the furs. "I am so tired."

"Well then sleep. We don't have anything to do right now, except for putting your things away, but that can hold, can't it?" Laurana said.

"Hummmm yes, and it's so good to be lying on my own furs." The two women lay there in silence for a while. Jendoza had closed her eyes, and Laurana was looking at her sister's baby, and daydreaming. Soon, with Teglodia between them, they were both asleep.

In the cooking hearth, Tagnolia was searching for the bouza. "We didn't drink it all during the Mother festival, did we?" he said looking at Zarina, who stood next to him with Tiflona. They were preparing a quick meal, and both women rolled their eyes at the man.

"That's all my brother thinks about," she said. "Food and drink, food and drink, food and drink." Zarina laughed.

"That is just _not_true Tiflona, I think about many things," he said nuzzling Zarina's neck. "But right now, where is the bouza?"

Suddenly, as if on cue, Serana appeared carrying two skins. "Not to worry man. The bouza has arrived . . . along with the blackberry wine. This batch is much sweeter than the last," she said smiling. "I think Laurana will like it better this time."

Tiflona smiled. "Hummm, and Danie and Tabita and Fürlasa . . . they all thought the last skin was too strong, but then they're all so young."

Zarina took the skins from Serana, and poured her mate a cup of bouza. "Now don't drink too much. You haven't eaten yet, and you know this gives you a headache if your stomach is empty."

Tagnolia kissed his mate, then took the cup from her. "Yes _mother_," he said as he walked off. As he moved away from the women, Travie and Fraylora walked up with more food, and the women got serious about making the meal.

The four young men were sitting in their usual place, laughing and carrying on as they usually did. Everyone was amazed at the closeness that they shared. None of them had chosen to mate woman from other camps, and move away, because they all wanted to stay together. Ivanolia was the only one to have a foreign mate, but she had been adopted by Oak Camp, so that didn't count. And then there was Tinozia. He was still unmated, and it was still possible that he could leave the group, but most thought that unlikely. Now their group included Jendoza, Danie and Laurana, and occasionally Tabita and Fürlasa. It was a cozy group.

As the meal was brought out, it was noticed that Jendoza and Laurana were not present, so the brothers went looking for them. They had had several cups of bouza, and went stumbling down the lodge passageway, laughing and carrying on. Brulenzia followed Donzolnia to his hearth, since they figured the woman would be together. When they found them on the furs sound asleep, they smiled down at the two beautiful blond women that were surrounding the sleeping babe. "Go get one of your furs," Donzolnia whispered. Brulenzia nodded and left, but returned shortly with Laurana's favorite blanket. Donzolnia had already covered Jendoza and the baby, and Brulenzia did the same for Laurana. "Do you think we look as much alike as they do?" Donzolnia whispered, as he bent over to pull a long stand of blond hair off Jendoza's cheek, and kiss it gently.

Brulenzia smiled. "Well, I can't really see myself, but I have been mistaken for you on several occasions before, so I'd guess yes. I wonder if Laurana's baby will look like Jendoza's baby."

Donzolnia looked down at the sleeping trio, and smiled. "Let's go eat."

**************************************************  
><strong>Brun Ponders Leadership<br>**

Vincenzia never returned to the gathering, choosing instead to spend the entire evening and night with his mate, but Donzolnia, with Brulenzia, did return. The men stumbled back in, announced that the women would not be eating, then joined Ivanolia and Tinozia again. The women had left the area to do other things.

As the evening came to a close, and people went to their beds, Travie wondered where she should go. She didn't want to intrude on her daughter, since her mate had just returned, and supposed she could just stay in the Cooking Hearth, until Vilognia and Serana invited the woman to their hearth. Travie thought about it, then shrugged, and followed them.

Tinozia, who wasn't able to drink too much bouza, had in fact consumed much more than he should have, and was being taken care of by his friends. "Ohhhhhh, you guys cannot let me do this again," he said after a wave of nausea had passed.

Ivanolia and Brulenzia could not contain their laughter. They were lying on the ground of the cooking hearth, completely inebriated, while Donzolnia sat with Tinozia. "You guys, knock it off." Donzolnia had had just as much to drink, but he was just a little more sensitive to the plight of his cousin.

Fürlasa, who had been just about to leave herself, came over and sat down next to Tinozia. She too was feeling dizzy, but not sick. She remembered how she had felt the last time she consumed too much of Serana's wine, and did not make the same mistake this time. "You've had a long day Donzolnia. I will take care of him. You guys go to bed."

Donzolnia smiled at the young woman, and patted Tinozia's back. "Is that okay with you Tinozia? I can stay if you need me to."

Tinozia looked at his cousin. "Go," he groaned. "Fürlasa can stay." He looked at the young woman, remembering the good conversation they had had at the last Mother festival, and thinking that he wouldn't be very good at conversation on this night. Donzolnia gave his back one last rub, and reluctantly got up to leave with Ivanolia and Brulenzia.

As the three men staggered down the passageway, trying rather unsuccessfully to be quiet, Ivanolia put one arm around each of the two dark haired men, and complained about being in between their hearths. "Now I'm going to have to listen to _both_of you pleasuring my sisters," he said.

"Well, not tonight you won't. They're both asleep on my bed platform," Donzolnia replied. The men walked into their hearth area, and noticed that Danie was asleep as well, and that Tabita had come back to the hearth, and had fallen asleep there as well. The three men went to Donzolnia's hearth, and looked at the woman. Ivanolia looked at his sisters carefully. "They sure look alike. Especially lying there so quietly," he said. "I never really noticed it before."

Donzolnia and Brulenzia smiled. "That's what we were saying earlier," Brulenzia said. "And, you wouldn't have noticed it before, Laurana was still a child until this last summer, and Jendoza's been a woman for several years."

"Just wait until you see Ayla again," Donzolnia interjected. "I'm sure you remember that she's a little taller than they are, but nearly identical."

Ivanolia frowned. "Is she really coming here in the spring?"

"As far as I know." Donzolnia could see the man's frown, and wondered if the man would eventually accept his cousin's life. Brulenzia had had the same opinion of the Clan that Ivanolia did, the same opinion that many people had, but after being there to deliver Ayla's baby, and seeing the love she felt for them, and most of them for her, he could not deny that she was happy, or that the Clan was definitely a group of people; different people, but people all the same. He still struggled with the man Grov, but only because he had been mated to Evanora, a fact that Brulenzia could not forget every time he looked at the little girl Ora.

"Is her mate and that _boy_coming with her?" the man asked.

"Ivan, you're going to have to get over this. Yes, they will be coming too, and the _boy's_name is Durc. Ayla is your cousin, and she is happy. I hope that you will not cause her pain when she comes. I learned a lot about her growing up, and it was not easy for her. Those Clan people are people, but their ways are very different, and very difficult," Donzolnia scolded his friend. Brulenzia was nodding, obviously agreeing with his brother. Ivanolia dropped the subject, figuring that he couldn't win.

"Well . . . I'm going to go to bed. It seems that I have two beautiful women in my furs this fine night, so I'll leave you two alone with your women," Ivanolia said as he turned to go. "Night."

Donzolnia sat down behind his sleeping woman and began removing his clothing. Brulenzia looked down at his sleeping woman. "I guess I'll just carry Laurana back to my hearth," he sighed, but as he went to move her, so rolled over and opened her eyes.

"Oh my, did we miss everything?" she said.

"I'm afraid so. Everyone's gone to bed, and now it's our turn." Brulenzia kneeled down next to her, and kissed her.

"But I'm so hungry. I need to eat, or this baby will starve," she said patting her belly.

Donzolnia grinned. "Now _that_sounds familiar." The man's voice woke the baby that was still lying between the women. "Hummmm, seems that he's going to be hungry too." As the man was speaking, his mate opened her eyes as well.

"Seems we've missed the evening meal," Laurana informed her sister. "I'm starving. Do you want me to bring you some food, so you do not have to get up." Jendoza nodded sleepily, then sat up, picked up her son, bared her breast, and began feeding him. Donzolnia lay back with his eyes closed, and began drifting off, and Brulenzia got up to follow Laurana to the Cooking Hearth.

At the Cooking Hearth, Laurana eyed Tinozia and Fürlasa, who had curled up on a sitting platform, and had fallen asleep. "I think Tinozia needs his own hearth," Laurana said. Brulenzia nodded, wishing that they had added more hearths in their area when they had added the extra space the previous summer. There were still empty hearths available, but the younger people usually liked to be together.

Brun sat watching his mate nurse her baby, and wondered what made the spirits start life in her again after all these years of no life starting. The baby was such a happy baby, so unlike Broud had been. The old leader started thinking about the young man that he had had such high hopes for. He had been so proud that his mate had produced a son, so that his line of leadership would not be broken, but now, that line would break. He had already decided that Broud could never lead again, but who would take over when Ursus called him back? No one was trained, Grod was too old as well, _and_his mate had no sons to take over later. The leader began considering each man in the Clan.

After Grod, he considered each man in order of rank. Goov was a good age to lead, and he had two sons that could eventually take over, but he was the Mog-ur, and there had never been a man that was leader and Mog-ur at he same time. That just would not work.

Then he thought about Grov. His rank after Goov was only due to his mate's status. It was highly unusual, but Ayla's status as first medicine woman of the Clan was an advantage to the young man. Brun considered him. He was a good man, and handles his woman quite well; better than any other man could have handled her, he mentally noted. And the way he's turned Broud around, that is worthy of respect, but he is very young, probably too young.

Next was Vorn, who had a similar situation as Grov as far as why he was ranked where he was, but he was far too young, much younger than Grov. _And_, Brun thought deeper, he had shown that he too was incapable of leadership when he was willing to please Broud, even when Broud was beyond reason. No, Vorn could not lead, even if he was older.

Droog was too old too, older than Grod in fact, if I remember correctly. The leader chided himself for forgetting such details, but his mind was getting too old to remember everything. This both saddened him, and frightened him.

He next considered Crug. He was of a good age, and his mate had a son to pass leadership onto later. Little Dorv was only three years old, and that would make it so Crug would have to lead to an even older age than Brun if his mate's son was going to take over, but it was still a possibility.

With a heavy heart, Brun skipped over Broud, the only son of his mate, and went onto Dorg. Now, Dorg was a good man. He was of a good age to take over, _and_there were two sons at his hearth that could potentially take over. True, Vorg was mixed, but he was a good Clan boy.

Then there was Corg. He was a natural leader, and had always given decent suggestions at he men's meetings, but again, his mate only had daughters. Brun frowned, wondering why all the men that were possibilities had mates that could not produce sons.

Daub was next, but again, he had only daughters at his hearth, _and_no interest in leading. Norv followed, but there was just something about the young man that Brun did not like. He was sure it was the fact that the man questioned his decisions. He was very much like Broud had been. No, he thought, not Norv. The last two young men were first Borg, and then Nouz, but both were too young to even consider. And old Zoug was so old that Brun didn't even consider of the man.

Brun then thought about Brac, who was not yet a man, but whose chance to lead was spoiled by Broud's inadequacies. Again, Brun's heart ached at the thought of breaking their long line of leadership. If only there was a way. He thought about Grev, who he could see playing with Durc across the fire. Grev was nowhere near the age of manhood, but Brun knew he would have taken Brac's place if something were to happen to his older brother, and the leader shook his head. Neither of Oga's sons would ever lead, he thought sadly.

Then a thought occurred to him, as he watched the boy play with his milk brother. There was no question that Brac and Grev had been started by Broud's totem spirit, and as Brun watched the two boys play, he could see that their was also no doubt that Durc had been started by Broud's totem spirit too. Brun thought about the son of his mate, and wondered about Ayla's son. If Brac was going to take over when Broud got too old, then why couldn't Durc take over? But that would mean giving leadership to Grov, so that he could start preparing the son of his mate to lead when the time came. The leader liked the boy, and he the idea, because it kept his long line of leadership unbroken.

Brun continued to watch the boys play, and decided that though the idea had it merits, it also had its drawbacks. It looked like Grov and Ayla, and their children would be leaving very shortly, and who knew if they would return. If he wanted Grov to take over someday soon, then he needed to tell him, so that the man did not make other plans. And then, what of the boy's training? If he spent a considerable amount of time with the Others, would he be _fit_to lead later? Then Brun wondered how Broud would react to the idea of Ayla's mate leading in his place. The man was sure the son of his mate knew he would never lead, but Ayla's mate? Could Broud take that? The man shook his head to dispel those thoughts. This is the best plan I have right now, so I better get used to it.

For the time leading up to Grov and Ayla's departure, Brun watched them and considered his plan. When he realized he only had a few days left to talk to the man, he made time to seek the man out. It was a rainy spring day, and most people were busy with something or another, and Brun had not seen Grov for a while, so he decided to go to the other side of the cave to find him. As the leader walked, he mulled over what he wanted to say. When he came upon the man's hearth, he stood silently watching them until they noticed his presence.

He saw that the two families were working together well. He would have never guessed that Broud could have become this decent man that he saw before him, and he was impressed that Grov could turn Broud around; he became even more resolved to turn leadership over to Grov.

It was Ayla who noticed him first, and then Oga, and the two women came forward to service their leader. Brun tapped them both, and made a signal that told them he did not want anything even before they could offer. The two women backed off, and Brun stepped forward. "Grov, I need to talk to you, before you travel."

Grov glanced at Broud, then nodded to the leader. "I can come to your hearth now Brun, if that is what you want." The leader grunted, and they left. Broud watched them go, wondering what Brun wanted with Grov, then deciding it didn't matter, he picked up his Others' spear, removed the tip, and began sharpening it, just as he had been shown by Vincenzia.

Ayla was beside herself with curiosity, causing Broud to give her a dirty look. "You will find out what the leader wants soon enough, I am sure. Your mate tells you _everything_, though he shouldn't," he gestured to her, thinking about the woman and all her male attributes.

Ayla nodded, and offered the man some tea. She knew something was up, and that Broud had no idea what it was. She needed to keep busy, and this was the best way to do it. Broud accepted the tea, and then Ayla sat down with Oga; the two women were working on traveling clothes in the style of the Others for Grov, Ayla, Durc, Ora and Annaliza.

Grov was following Brun back to the hearth, then realized the leader was taking him to the men's ceremonial cave, so they could be alone. The fire in that chamber of the cave was not always lit, but Brun must have lit it earlier; it was rather warm in the room. The two men sat down.

Brun began. "This man is going to be very open with you. I am faced with a problem, and I want to know if you can help me." Grov frowned, but kept silent. "I am an old man, and it is time that I pass leadership on to someone, but Broud cannot be the one. I am greatly saddened that my line of leadership will be broken by this, but I may have come up with a solution. I have carefully considered the men of this cave, and there are a few that _could_relieve me, but that would not solve my problem over lineage. I have thought about how Brac and Grev are tied to Broud, they are most probably of his totem spirit, but because of his inadequacies, they will not be able to lead." The man paused to watch the young mixed man. Grov wasn't sure yet where he was going. "With careful consideration on my part, and meditation by the Mog-ur, I have decided that Durc is also of Broud's totem spirit, and since Broud is probably of my totem spirit, Durc is of my lineage as well."

Suddenly a light went on in Grov's eyes. "You want Durc to take over for you when you step down?"

"Well yes, but he is too young, and I cannot wait for him to be old enough, so that is not my plan." Grov frowned. "What I want to do sometime in the next year is to give leadership over to you, so that you may lead, and train the son of your hearth how to lead as well."

Grov was shocked, and he didn't mind that it was written all over his face. "Me? Lead? I don't know Brun. How would Broud feel about this?"

Brun shook his head. "It does not matter what Broud thinks. He gave up that right when he insulted Ursus by cursing Ayla, and beating his woman for no reason. Besides, it is my choice, and I want to give it to you. I think you are the best man for the job, _and_you are Durc's mother's mate. Will you at least consider it?"

Grov looked down at his hands. "No, I will not consider it," the man said, looking up at the leader. "I am greatly honored that you have chosen me as the _first_Clan's leader, and I will accept the duty that you have offered me. No consideration is necessary."

Brun sighed with relief; he almost thought the man would turn him down, and was pleased that he would not have to wait for an answer. "Do you have any idea how long you will be gone?"

Grov shook his head. "At least for the summer season, but not longer than through the fall. We must return before winter."

Brun nodded. "I will not tell anyone just yet. You may inform Broud, if you wish, but I understand if you do not want to. And you may tell Ayla, but only after you leave the cave for your journey. I know that will be difficult to keep from her, but I do not want her coming to me with any questions. Is that understood?" Grov nodded, and they stood up to go.

Grov walked back to the hearth, thinking hard about the responsibility he had just accepted, and wondered what Ayla would think. Any other woman would be so happy to be mated to the leader, but he didn't know what she would think, or if it would please her. And, he didn't know how he was going to keep it from her until after they left. He decided that they needed to leave as soon as possible, so that he could tell her right away, but first, he had to tell Broud; the man deserved to know.

**Hearth Listings**

**Brun** (35) – Leader (Bison totem)**  
>Ebra<strong> (33) – Brun's mate, Broud's mother**  
>Eda<strong> (4.5 moons) – Ebra's

**Grod** (31) – Brun's second in command, son of the mate of Zoug (Brown Bear totem)**  
>Uka<strong> (29) – Ebra's sister, Ovra's mother**  
>Zoug<strong> (45) – second in command to the leader before Brun, Grod's mother's mate

**Goov** (22) – Mog-ur (Aurochs totem/Ursus totem)**  
>Ovra<strong> (20) – Goov's mate (Beaver totem)**  
>Droov<strong> (1) – Ovra's first twin son**  
>Creb<strong> (1) – Ovra's second twin son

**Grov** (18) – mixed man, master hunter (Leopard totem), first mated to Nora (quake death)**  
>Ayla<strong> (16) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman, "Woman who hunts," (Cave Lion totem)**  
>Durc<strong> (5) – Ayla's son, Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)**  
>Ora<strong> (3) – Nora's daughter (Alpine Marmot)**  
>Annaliza<strong> (10 moons)

**Vorn** (15) – Aga's son**  
>Uba<strong> (10) – second medicine woman, Iza's daughter**  
>Brev<strong> (1) – Uba's first twin son**  
>Berc<strong> (1) – Uba's second twin son

**Droog** (33) – toolmaker, mated to Goov's mother before Aga**  
>Aga<strong> (26) – Droog's second mate, Vorn and Ona's mother**  
>Groob<strong> (8) – Aga's son born to Droog's hearth**  
>Aba<strong> (37) – Aga's mother

**Crug** (24)**  
>Ika<strong> (22) – Crug's mate, Borg's mother**  
>Dorv<strong> (3) – Ika's son

**Broud** (23) – former leader (Wooly Rhinoceros totem), living at Grov's hearth**  
>Oga<strong> (19) – formerly Broud's mate, living at Grov's hearth**  
>Brac<strong> (9) – Oga's first son**  
>Grev<strong> (6) – Oga's second son**  
>Agra<strong> (5.5 moons) – Oga's mixed daughter

**Dorg** (22) – toolmaker (Red Tailed Hawk totem), first mated to the mixed woman Ala (quake death)**  
>Uga<strong> (18) – first mated to Dreg (quake death), was mother to Ega (quake death), now Dorg's woman (Lark totem)**  
>Vorg<strong> (9) – mixed child, Ala's son**  
>Breg<strong> (7) – Uga's son

**Corg** (19) – takes on leadership role after cave's collapse, takes on an advisory role to Brun, sibling to Oda**  
>Aza<strong> (17) – Corg's mate**  
>Orga<strong> (7) – Aza's first daughter**  
>Egra<strong> (4) – Aza's second daughter

**Daub** (19) – Dorg brother, Dreg's twin (deceased)**  
>Eka<strong> (17) – mated to Daub**  
>Ada<strong> (5) – Eka's daughter**  
>Aka<strong> (5) – Eka's daughter

**Norv** (19) (Moose totem)**  
>Oda<strong> (14) – Corg's sibling, now mated to Norv (Hamster totem)**  
>Nala<strong> (6) – daughter of Norv's deceased mate**  
>Ura<strong> (4) – mixed child, created by the totem of a man of the others (Red Wolf totem)

**Borg** (11) – (Boar totem), Ika's son**  
>Ona<strong> (11) – (Owl totem), Aga's daughter

**Nouz** (11) – son of Norv's deceased mate, mated to Igra**  
>Igra<strong> (8) – mated to Nouz, Ika's daughter

**Visitor's Hearth**– Empty

**************************************************  
><strong>Breakfast In Bed<br>**

Grov walked back to the hearth, and hesitated before he entering. When he did, everyone looked up at him expectantly. The man could tell that both Broud and Ayla were almost bursting with curiosity, but Ayla didn't even try to hide it. Broud tried to act like he didn't wonder why Grov had been summoned, but Grov knew differently. "Broud, let's take a walk."

The man got up, too interested to refuse, and Ayla's jaw almost dropped to the floor. Grov never just ignored her before, but this time he didn't really looked at her. She averted her eyes, so he would not see her tears, and went back to stitching up the leggings she was sewing.

Grov walked through the cave passageways, working his way toward the northern entrance, and Broud walked next to him. They did not talk. Broud was immensely curious, and figured it was something big, or the younger man would not have asked him to come along.

When they got to the windbreak, Grov unfastened it from the rock wall of the cave, and they went outside and sat down. It was no longer raining, but the sky was a deep gray, and the ground was soggy with slushy snow and rainwater.

"This man needs to talk to you about something, but I do not want you to get mad. Will you listen, and think about it before you get upset."

Broud frowned. "I cannot promise not to get mad, but go ahead."

Grov looked at him, and thought the man's response was reasonable; he wouldn't blame Broud if he got upset. He would be upset if _his_mother's mate had chosen someone else to lead. "Brun has offered me leadership of this Clan," Grov gestured quickly, and watched the man. Grov saw that absolutely no expression crossed the former leader's face; he just stared back at him. Grov continued to watch him. "Did you see what I said?"

Broud nodded, a sort of clipped nod; he head barely moved. He raised his hands to say something, but then dropped his hands into his lap. Grov could now see the man struggling with his emotions. This was something the Clan men never liked to do. Grov could see pain on the man's face. It was not just pain, if was self-loathing as well. "I knew that he would not choose me, but why did he choose you?"

Grov sighed. "I will tell you if you really want to know. It may not make you feel any better, but I think it will make sense to you."

Broud nodded again. "I do want to know."

"First of all, Brun is not announcing it for some time. I don't know for _how_long, but at least not until I get back from visiting the Sungaea. I am telling you now, because I felt like you had the right to know; to get used to the idea." Broud grunted, he appreciated the thought of the younger man, and it made sense. "Now, Brun considered a couple other men. I think Crug and Dorg, because they are young, and have sons to pass leadership onto someday, but the reason he chose me was because of Durc."

Broud brow crinkled up. "Durc? What does Ayla's son have to do with this?"

"Well," Grov went on. "Brun was very saddened by the fact that _his_leadership line would be broken; that Brac or Grev would not be able to lead, because you were not leader." Broud blushed, and some of the humiliation returned as he considered his behavior. "Then he considered that that did not have to happen if he could give leadership to Durc one day."

Broud was still looking at him blankly. He had not drawn the connection. "Brun thinks, and I agree, that Ayla's son was started by your totem spirit. I'm sure you realize that by now. The boy looks more like you than Oga's sons do, and that makes him part of Brun too. He has asked me to lead now, so that I may train Durc to take over when he grows up, so that the lineage will not be broken."

Broud finally understood, and nodded his head. "And you have accepted?"

Grov looked at him. "Yes Broud, I have." The former leader looked dejected, but admitted to himself that Brun was a wise man. He knew that he would not have thought of this plan, but it would do just what the leader wanted; keep their lineage unbroken. "Broud, is there anything you want to say?" The man shook his head. "Do you mind if I go in?" Broud shook his head again. Grov could tell the man wanted to be alone, so he got up to leave. When he got to the cave entrance, Grov turned around again. "Broud!" he called. The man turned to look at him again. "Brun has asked that we not tell Ayla yet. I will tell her after we leave." The man nodded his head, and looked away.

Inside the cave, Grov was almost dreading being back at the hearth, and having to not tell his mate. No other woman would dream of asking, but he was sure that Ayla would ask, and he was not wrong. As soon as he entered the hearth, she practically accosted him.

"Well, what happened, and why did you go outside with Broud?"

Grov looked at her calmly. "A woman of the Clan is not supposed to ask a man questions," he said avoiding her direct questions, then decided to turn it around. "And how did you know that Broud and I went outside."

Ayla's breath caught. She knew asking that had been a mistake. "Because . . . because this woman . . . followed you . . . to see where you were going."

"Ayla, you are not supposed to do that. If Broud knew you were following us, he'd be so mad, and rightly so."

Ayla's eyes welled up again, and sensing her upset, the baby in her arms began to whimper. "This woman feels bad. She knows that it was wrong to follow a man, but I did not see anything. I just wanted to know where you were going." Ayla had put the whimpering baby down, and was sitting at her mate's feet, pleading for his understanding.

Grov looked down at her, then knelt down next to her. "Ayla, stop crying," he said in Sungaea. He reached out and wiped her tears away. "And stop talking like that, you are in _our_hearth, remember? You don't need to do that here."

Ayla looked into her mate's blue, blue eyes, and sniffled. "Well?"

Grov sighed. "I cannot tell you what happened." She frowned at him. "Brun has asked me not to, but he has given me permission to tell you after we leave."

Her frown deepened. "Well then, let's leave soon, as soon as we can be ready." She stood up and looked around. "I can be ready by the afternoon meal."

Grov laughed at her. "You are so funny. We cannot leave just yet. We have to wait to make sure the rain clears. Floods can be very dangerous, you know?"

Ayla looked at him sheepishly. "Oh . . . but I can still start packing, right?" How much can I carry, she silently asked herself as she looked around their hearth, and started choosing the things she might want to bring?

Grov was watching her carefully. Either she was _really_ excited about going to visit the people she was born to, or she _really_wanted to know his news. He figured that it was a little of both, but also that he'd never calm her down now, so he pulled out what he wanted to take too.

When they had a pile in the middle of the hearth, Ayla stared at it. "I cannot carry all of this," she said.

"Don't worry about it Ayla. I will help you. We have to behave like the Others do, and _their_men help the women with everything it would seem. You know, Donzolnia told me that some Others men cook, and that most Others women hunt?"

Ayla smiled up at the man. He was holding Annaliza, and trying to comfort the ten moon old child, but she wanted a breast. Ayla took her from him, and sat down to nurse.

Life at Oak Camp was droning on as usual, and the spring rains were making the ground outside a muddy mess. The people had been making plans for the spring hunt, but they knew they couldn't go hunting until the ground dried up, and that could be a while.

Laurana lay in her warm furs, listening to her sister's baby cry. Brulenzia was gone already, but would probably be bringing her a meal soon. He always let her sleep, and never let her miss a morning meal. Laurana heard Teglodia's cries cease, and smiled, no doubt a breast had been offered.

Laurana continued to lie in the furs, and rubbed her belly; she was getting huge, yet she still had at least two and a half moons to go. Finally Brulenzia appeared, and he had Ivanolia and Donzolnia with him.

"Are you going to stay in the furs all day, little sister?" Ivanolia asked, as he flopped down on the bed beside her. "The sun is nearly centered in the sky, and you're still sleeping."

Laurana smiled at her brother, and accepted a plate of food from Brulenzia. "Thank you, I am starving," she said, as she put a bite into her mouth. "And, I haven't been asleep for some time now. I'm just lying here, trying to keep warm."

"Are you cold?" Brulenzia asked, getting up to stoke the fire.

Donzolnia waved him off. "I'll get it. I'm already up." He threw on another piece of wood.

"Hummmmm, just a little. Enough to stop me from getting up," she said with a smile. Ivanolia reached out and took a piece of meat off of her plate, and shoved it into his mouth. "Hey, that's mine." She smacked his hand, and he laughed. "Where's Tinozia? You four are never very far apart."

Donzolnia smiled. "Fürlasa has managed to finally get that man into her furs. They're not out of bed yet either." Ivanolia and Brulenzia laughed.

Laurana smiled. "Well it's about time. She's been trying to interest him for so long. Now, what are we going to do about Tabita?"

"Well, I'm sure I can keep her busy . . . until someone else catches her attention that is." Ivanolia was grinning. "And, Danie seems to like having her around."

Brulenzia leaned over and smacked the man on the back. "Ivan here, is trying to make up for lost time. He went _forever_without the company of a woman, so now he seems to need two. Thank Sumata Danie finally broke him out of his depression."

Ivanolia shrugged the man's hand off his back, and laughed, then changed the subject. "My Laurana, you're getting huge!" he said then quickly got up.

Laurana looked at her brother with an unfathomable expression, then picked up a piece of her food and threw it at him. "Out! Get out!" she said in a friendly way as she tried to get out of bed. The other two men laughed too, then Donzolnia and Ivanolia left the hearth.

**************************************************  
><strong>Many Goodbyes<br>**

When Donzolnia and Ivanolia got to Donzolnia's hearth, Jendoza looked up. She was still feeding Teglodia, but she patted the bed, indicating that they should sit down. The two men sat. Braydalana was sitting there with a wistful expression. "Oh, wouldn't it be nice to have a baby at our hearth too," the girl said, making Ivanolia blanch.

"No!" he said. "Jendoza's and Laurana's babies will be enough for a while." He didn't think he'd ever get over the loss of the girl's mother, and had been terrified when he found out Laurana was pregnant. He still was, and secretly begged the Mother to bring his sister through her delivery with safety. "And we'll soon have another when Ayla arrives."

That seemed to brighten up the girl's spirits. "Oh, I can't wait. When will they be here?"

"I don't know Bray. It could be today, though I doubt it with all that awful mud outside, and it could be a moon from now," Ivanolia said.

The girl frowned. "How will they know how to find us. They have no one to guide them."

"Actually, I gave them detailed instructions. And if they follow the shoreline, they can't miss us. Don't worry Braydalana," Donzolnia reassured the girl, "they will get here."

The girl looked skeptical. "Maybe someone should go get them."

"Bray, they'll get here, just be patient. Grov and Ayla are very capable of finding us." Jendoza patted the girl's hand. "Now, how about you take this baby for me, while I get dressed," she said, handing the child to the girl, and getting off of the bed platform. That distracted the girl, and Jendoza slipped her sleeping clothes off to change for the day.

Broud had been acting strange, and Ayla knew it had something to do with Grov's secret, but the man was not doing anything bad, so she didn't pay it much attention. Oga, however, was sensing her mate's pain, and was trying harder than ever to ease it.

Grev knew that Durc would be leaving soon, so the boys were never away from each other. Oga and Ayla were allowing them to stay up as late as they wanted, and many mornings the boys were found asleep next to the fire, as if they had played until they dropped where they were. Durc was sad to be leaving Grev, but excited about the journey, and he promised to bring something Others back for Grev. Ayla was glad her son had such a good friend.

Agra and Annaliza were aware that something was going on too, but they were too young to know what. For them, Oga and Ayla were trying to keep them apart as much as possible, so they wouldn't feel the loss so much when Annaliza left. That was very difficult, considering they were all in one hearth, and the babies were mobile enough to crawl to one another easily. The two mothers knew that this would be hard on them.

On the day of their departure, Grov woke Ayla up early, and she made tea. Grov put on his new Others leggings and tunic, then sat down to drink his tea. Ayla drank her tea as she dressed. "That tunic is very nice. I can see that you have put a lot of effort into these. How long have you been working on them?"

Ayla smiled at his praise, but she had to think about it. "I started them when Jendoza woke up after her injury. She helped me. I have made us each . . . three . . . outfits," she said holding up three fingers. "Jendoza says they have several outfits, and I didn't want us to be without."

Grov nodded. "What about Shriek?" he said. "He has been out for a while. How will he find you?"

"He is probably outside, somewhere close. He will come when he sees me." She paused. "He doesn't stay around much. Sometimes, when he's gone for several days, I wonder if he will eventually leave for good. It makes me very sad."

When they had everything ready, Ayla woke Durc, and helped him into his new clothing. "This is very warm, Mama. Do the Others always wear wraps like this?"

"Hummmm, I think so Durc, but we will have to wait and see." Ayla kissed her son's forehead.

"I will miss Grev, Mama. What if there's no one to play with there?" the boy asked.

Ayla hugged her son. "I know you will miss Grev. I will miss people too, but there will be children to play with there too. Vincenzia says that his mate has a son that is the same years as you. His name is Brenevia, and you remember Braydalana, right?" Durc nodded. "Well she will be there too."

Durc frowned. "But what if Grev forgets about me."

Ayla smiled at her son. "Grev will not forget about you. He is Clan; he will never forget," Ayla said touching her sons hair, and caressing him. "Now, I need help with your sibling."

"Sister, Mama, the Others say sister."

"Yes, you are right Durc, they do. See how good your memory is? Grev's is just as good. Now, can you help Mama?" Durc nodded, and went to get his sister up.

"Ora, get up. It's time to get dressed." The three-year-old girl was up quickly, and struggling to put her arms through the strange wrap that her brother was shoving over her head. "Mama, she won't hold still!" Ayla came over and finished the job, then dressed and fed Annaliza, and positioned the child on her hip with a strap of leather.. Grov had carried everything to the northern entrance, and it was time to say their goodbyes.

By this time, many in the cave were up, including Broud's hearth. Oga looked sad, but she hugged Ayla, and Ayla cried. Grov glanced at Broud, then he hugged Oga too. Broud stiffened; he still did not like the thought of sharing Oga, but Grov had not signaled the woman since Agra was born, and Broud knew he probably wouldn't do it again if he could avoid it. As they left the hearth, Broud gestured, "Walk with Ursus." Grov nodded, and took Ora's hand. Grev followed them out.

They decided to go hearth to hearth to say goodbye, since it was still cold out, and they didn't want people to have to go outside. When they got to Goov's hearth, Ayla hugged Ovra. "Take care of these two. I will miss them," she said.

Then they stopped at Norv's hearth, but only because Ura saw them, and squealed. Norv gave the child a dirty look, but she got up and came to hug Ayla, Durc and Ora. "We will be back Ura. Not until after summer probably, but we will be back." Ura smiled, and Ayla smiled back. The little girl's smile looked just like Durc's.

"Durc has to come back to mate me," she said.

"Yes Ura, Durc will be your mate, but not for a long time. You are much too young to mate," Ayla said, trying not to smile, since Norv was watching. "We have to go now."

The next hearth they stopped at was Vorn's hearth, and Uba looked really sad. "Oh Ayla, I will miss you so much. This is going to almost be like a temporary death curse, but very long."

"I know Uba, but I need to meet my mother's people, and I will be back," Ayla said, a freshet of tears beginning to fall. Uba put her arms around her sister, she had no tears to add, but her feeling was not less.

As they left the hearth, Vorn signaled, "Walk with Ursus."

The last hearth they stopped at was the leader's hearth. Brun and Ebra were sitting and drinking tea, but the older couple got up to say goodbye. Ayla took Eda from Ebra's arms and cuddled the baby close. "She is getting so big. I will not even recognize her when we get back."

Ebra indicated that she wanted to hold Annaliza one more time, so Ayla handed Eda to Grov, took her own daughter out of the strap that bound the child to her hip, handed her over to the leader's mate, then took Eda back from Grov. Ayla had tears in her eyes again, and blinked hard to disperse them.

After a short time, and a cup of tea, it was time to go. The women switched babies, and Ayla put Annaliza back on her hip, then they left. Brun walked them to the cave's entrance. Grev went too.

The stoic leader didn't say much to them, but watched them pack themselves with their belongings. He noted that Grov's load was extremely heavy, and that Ayla's was too. _And_, the woman was carrying the baby. Durc too had a pack, though he bore it well. The boy was thinner than he other Clan boys, but he _was_strong, and tall and smart too. Only Ora had no load; she just carried the doll that that Others girl made for her.

Grev handed Durc a spear. "I made this for you, with Broud's help. Your old spear too short."

Durc took the spear, then hugged his milk brother, wishing he had something to give to him. He remembered his promise to bring something back, and relaxed. Ayla's eyes watered yet again, at the sight of her sad son.

Brun watched them walk away, trying to avoid the various puddles of mud, and when they turned around for one last look, he made a motion. "Walk with Ursus."

**************************************************  
><strong>The Journey<br>**

Grov and Ayla headed in a north northeastern direction for a short time, so that they could bypass one of the two rivers they had to cross. It was still very cold, and the river would probably be more of a frozen stream, but they didn't want to take any chances, since it had been raining so much, and they had two small children and a baby.

By the time they got to the end of the first river, and made their way around it, darkness was nearing. They headed southeast toward the second river. Grov wanted to reach the larger river before they stopped for the night. Ayla was exhausted from the weight of her burdens, and Ora complaining of cold. When they finally reached the river, Grov started a fire, while Ayla set up the traveling tent, and Durc held Annaliza. The shelter was the same one that she made when she and Ebra were separated from the Clan.

The fire and tent were set up in no time, and Ayla nursed Annaliza. Grov put all of their things inside the tent to keep them dry, and pulled out the traveling food that Oga made for them. He looked at the sky; it did not look like rain, but he was still worried about his family. When Annaliza was finished nursing, Ayla changed her swaddling, and put her in Grov's lap so she could make them some hot tea.

The four of them sat silently munching on their food, drinking tea, and staring into the fire. Ayla was still dying to know what Brun told Grov, but he hadn't offered any information, so she just waited. After eating, Ayla put the children to bed. They would all be sharing the same tent; first, because they just couldn't carry another tent; second for warmth; and third because she wouldn't want her children sleeping in a separate tent anyway. When they were all snug in their furs, she came back out, and sat by the fire with her mate.

"Raawwwkkkk." They looked up to see Shriek flying above. He must have been following them, she thought. She quickly pulled out the leather glove she made to cover her hand and arm, put it on, and held out her arm for him. He landed, shrieked in her face, and then ruffled his feathers. Ayla reached into her carrying basket, and fed him a piece of raw meat. Shriek took the meat and flew over to the tent, where he perched himself on its peak.

Grov could see Ayla visibly relax, and smiled at her. She smiled back. "So, do you want to know what Brun had to say?" Ayla nodded vigorously, and waited. "Well, first of all, he's ready to hand over leadership again." Ayla frowned, knowing what had happened the last time Brun did this gave her a bad taste in her mouth. "Just wait, I'm not finished. He said that he would not make Broud leader again, though I'm certain he would not be so awful if he had another chance."

Ayla relaxed again. She was glad that Brun would not force the son of his mate upon the Clan this time. Grov was probably right about Broud though. He was not _mean_anymore, but he wasn't the sharpest spear in the armory either, and they'd be better off with almost anyone, but him. "So, who will be leader? Crug? Dorg?"

Grov smiled, she had obviously been thinking about this too; she had come up with the same two names that Brun had. "Who do you think would be better?"

Ayla was shocked that he wanted her opinion on topics that were only for men. "Crug would be good. He is a fair man. I do not think he really likes me, but that doesn't matter; he is still a good man. And, his mate has a son to pass leadership onto someday. But, Dorv is really young, so Crug would have to be leader for a long time." She paused. "Dorg would be good too. His mate has two sons that could take over later, _and_he is a very accepting man. I think I like Dorg better." Grov smiled at her. "So, who did he choose?"

"Neither." Grov got up to pour more tea, but Ayla jumped up too.

"I will get that, you keep talking. Who did he choose if not Crug or Dorg?" she asked.

The man smiled again. "Brun is sad that his mate's son is not capable, because now his lineage of leadership will be broken." Ayla nodded, she knew that. She handed the man his tea, and sat back down. "Then he came up with someone else that is part of his line."

Ayla frowned. "You are not making sense. If Broud does not lead, then Brac cannot take over, or Grev for that matter, so who else is there?"

Grov smiled. "Who else is tied to Brun through Broud?"

Ayla thought for a moment, she went over everyone in the cave, and was really confused. "Only Durc, but Durc is just a child. He cannot lead."

Grov was happy that she had figured that much out. She was a very intelligent woman. Evenora had been that way too, and he supposed all Others women were quicker than the Clan women. "Yes, you are right, Durc is too young to lead . . . right now."

"But Grov, Brun cannot wait for Durc to grow up. If he could, then he could just wait for Brac to grow up. Brun is already too old to be leading."

"You are right again, he does not plan on waiting," the man said. He paused again, but he could tell that Ayla was getting agitated that he was not just telling her. "Brun has offered leadership to me, so that I can train Durc to lead our Clan one day."

Ayla stared at her mate. She was stunned. "But . . . but, you are not full Clan. You are not even as much Clan as Durc is. You hardly even look Clan."

"I know, and I was surprised too, but he whole point is that the blood line not be broken, and this way, it will not be. Durc is of Broud's spirit, and Broud is of Brun's spirit. It works. I am only temporary, and then your son will lead the first Clan." Grov waited and watched her. She did not seem displeased.

Ayla was not unhappy. This would be great for her son, and for Ura too, she thought. She did not even think of herself. As first medicine woman, she already had plenty of status, more status than the leader's mate, so even if she had been thinking about that, it would not matter to her. "This is why Broud has been acting so strangely? Did he even get upset when you told him?"

Grov nodded. "He was upset, and I think he has reason to be, but he was upset with himself, and he didn't get mad. And, he also understood the importance of keeping a pure bloodline, _and_I bet Durc chooses Grev as his second in command. I'm sure Broud has thought about that." Ayla was in agreement with that, and she was happy that Broud had not relapsed into the old Broud, and hit someone. Grov put an arm around her. "Now that you know the secret, can we go to sleep now?" Ayla nodded.

The next morning started early with a crying baby. Ayla took off her tunic, thinking that it was much harder to nurse with these clothes on, then rolled over, and pulled her daughter up to her breast. Annaliza felt for the nipple in the dark tent, and latched on. Ayla kept her eyes closed as her daughter suckled, and she thought about the previous night's conversation; her son would one day lead Brun's Clan.

Grov looked at his woman in the darkness. He could barely see her, but he could tell that she was smiling as she nursed the baby, and that made him smile. He leaned over and kissed the side of her head, then got up to get the fire blazing.

It was very cold outside despite the bright sun, and there wasn't a cloud in sight. The man quickly got the fire going, and put water over the fire. When he returned Annaliza was sitting on the furs with Ora's doll. Grov got back into the furs. "Oh! You are freezing," Ayla said, then she grinned. "Come here, let me warm you up."

Grov did not feel the need to be the one to make the orders, so he grabbed her and pulled her close. Her body warmed him quickly, and then he started kissing her. She responded to his advances, and soon they were struggling to get out of their clothing. "This sure is much more difficult," she whispered. He grinned and climbed on top of her. They had not had time for this in a while, with packing and everything else they had been doing, and she was very ready for him. Grov entered her slowly, enjoying her warm, moist depths. Ayla moaned as he pushed himself in and out of her, and realized she would not be able to hold on much longer herself. It had been much too long for her, and within moments she exploded with pleasure. He did not go much longer either. When he finished, he collapsed on top of her, and they lay still until Annaliza grabbed hold of his hair and pulled hard.

"Ouch!" he said, as he opened his eyes to look at the baby. Ayla reached up, disentangled her daughter's fingers from Grov's hair, and smiled. While their focus was on the baby, Ora sat up.

"That's my doll," she said, and started to climb over Grov, who was still on top of, and inside of Ayla. Ayla started to giggle, and Grov extracted himself, sat up, then attempted to put his leggings back on.

"These clothes are much harder to take off _and_put on, but they sure are warmer," the man said. He looked at his woman, who was lying there naked, and thought he was very lucky to have met her. "Well, we should get up, eat, and move on. Don't you think?"

She nodded. "Let me just clean myself. She got up to go outside.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"I have to go clean myself before I get dressed," she replied.

"But it's freezing out there. Are you going outside without your clothes on?"

"Well I can't clean myself if I have my clothes on. I'll just be a moment." He shook his head as she ran outside naked. He watched her wipe herself down. She poured some of the hot water from the cooking pot into a cup, added some ice to it, then splashed it onto herself. When she was done, she ran for the tent. Inside she dressed quickly, then dressed Ora, then Annaliza, then she woke Durc. Everyone wore the same clothing as the day before. There was no need to get more than one outfit dirty.

They ate and packed up, then approached the river. It appeared to still be frozen over, but they were nervous. This would be the scariest part of the trip. If they could get across this river without trouble, then there would be no problems.

Grov walked out onto the ice-covered river. It seemed sturdy to him, but he was still nervous. He came back to where Ayla stood. "What do you think?" she asked.

He frowned. "I'm worried, but I think it will be fine. The ice is very thick."

Ayla nodded. "Well then, let's go." Ayla handed Durc his pack, then adjusted Annaliza, and picked up her things.

The crossing went well, Ora slipped and fell down twice, then Grov scooped her up, and put her on his shoulders, so she would not fall again. Once on the other side, he put her down. As they started out, Grov set a leisurely pace, because the children needed to be able to keep up, and because it did not matter how fast they traveled. They had been told that it was a three to four day journey if moving fast, or more if traveling more slowly.

By the end of the second day they had reached the mountainous area that Vincenzia said they would. They were told to turn south at that point and follow the mountain around to the east, until it ended. They camped up against the mountain on the second night, which protected them from wind, and slept soundly all night.

For the third and fourth day, there was nothing interesting to note, except for the breathtaking land. They followed the mountain, which was actually more of a large hill, until it was time for an afternoon meal; that was where the mountain ended. The large body of water to the south had been steadily getting closer as they traveled, just as Vincenzia said it would. They still weren't very close to the sea, but it was in sight, and that was good. After their meal, then continued on, but not for very long.

"Grov, I am tired, and the children are tired. Aren't you tired too? Can't we stop for the day?" He looked around, the sea was now starting to look farther away, and that was exactly how it should be.

The man shrugged his shoulders, and Ayla dropped her packs. Durc did the same. Ayla quickly put out a hide, put Annaliza down on it, and went to work on set up. Grov started on his normal fire building routine, and Durc wanted to help. Grov saw it as a good time to start the boy's training. After there was a hot fire burning, they rested. The night was one of rest. They went to bed early, and slept soundly again.

On the fifth day of their journey, Ayla woke early, and got up. Grov told her that they would probably reach Oak Camp that day, sometime near the afternoon meal, so she wanted all of them to be wearing clean outfits that were not travel stained. She slipped into her second outfit. This one was darker than the first one, and she had decorated it differently, but the cut was the same. Ayla took out clean outfits for everyone, then left the tent to start packing.

When Grov got up, he dressed and came out. "I guess we're leaving early," he said looking around at their empty camp.

Her breath caught in her throat. Had she anticipated incorrectly? "If that is alright with you. This woman did not mean to presume that you would want to leave early. I can put everything back out if you do not want to go." She looked nervous.

"Ayla, I did not mean it like that. We can leave early. You need to get used to making decisions, especially when you're with the Others."

She sighed with relief, and hugged the man. "I cannot wait to see Vincenzia and Jendoza, and meet all the other people." She was smiling widely, and stood on her toes to kiss him.

"You do remember how Ivanolia behaved when he was at Brun's cave, don't you?" She frowned, then nodded. "And you do know that most of the Others do not like the Clan, right?" She nodded again. "And that there could be trouble for you because of your son and me. You are aware of this, right?"

Ayla looked into his eyes, then backed up a bit. "Are you worried?" He didn't say or do anything. "Why didn't you tell me you were worried?"

Grov shrugged. "You have been so excited, and I promised that we'd go, so we're going, but I just want you to know that there could be trouble." He smiled at her, and hugged her. He did not want her to be worried, just aware.

She put her arms around him too, and squeezed him tightly. "Any chance of getting you back into the furs," she said. She could feel his desire between them, and knew that he would not signal her because she was bound up in her new clothing, and her traveling cloak. _But_, she thought, if I make the offer, maybe he would be willing. He nodded, and they quietly crept back into the tent and removed their clothing.

Once naked, Ayla kissed him, first gently, then feeling slightly more brave, she kissed him a little more roughly. He tried easing her down into the furs, but she wouldn't have it; she had other ideas. This time she eased _him_back, and straddled him, carefully guiding him into her. The man closed his eyes and groaned quietly. He did not want to wake the children again, but he could not control the sound that came from somewhere deep inside him. His mate was taking control and he liked it. Ayla watched him as she moved, and she could tell when he was almost finished. When he did, he moaned again, and she ceased her movement. Ayla reached over, grabbed their furs, and covered them up. She knew she made him feel good, and she was very satisfied with herself.

Grov and Ayla drifted off to sleep again, but woke up when Annaliza started to cry. Ayla started to sit up, but Grov held on to her for a moment. When she finally got up, he smiled up at her, then she went to get the baby.

The man watched her as she talked to her daughter. She was such a good mother. Finally, Grov got up, woke the rest of the crew, and they were off before Ora could whine about walking again. Grov prevented that problem by hefting the child onto his back. He figured he could carry her for the rest of the distance; they had to be rather close.

Since the day was sunny, and the ground was nearly slush free, many children were playing outside Oak Camp. Three boys were standing on top of the earthlodge throwing snowballs off the side, and watching them explode on the ground. Talneezia, a tall red headed boy laughed and threw another snowball, outdistancing his friend. Gildenozia picked up a large handful of snow, and prepared to throw, then stopped. "Look, someone's coming," he said, pointing.

The other two boys turned, then looked back at their blond friend. "I'll race you inside," Vegodia said as he took off. Not to be beat, Gildenozia ran for the closer edge, and Talneezia followed him. Both boys jumped over the side, landing closer to the entrance than Vegodia did.

The two boys ran inside, with the third right behind them. "People are coming!" they yelled in unison.

The younger adults were still in their hearths, so Tagnolia sent Braydalana to get them. He figured the travelers couldn't be anyone other than Vincenzia's first mate's daughter and her family, so he sent Crisana to get him. Vincenzia had taken to staying in the hearth with Darvie, until she was ready to come out, which sometimes could be pretty late.

Braydalana and Crisana went running down the passage, and went to Vincenzia first. "Visitors are coming. Vegodia, Talneezia and Gildenozia saw them coming," the girls said excitedly. Vincenzia smiled at them, and they ran off.

Then they ran down the other passage to tell Jendoza. When they came running into the area, they almost ran into the three men, who were on their way out. "Where is Jendoza?" Braydalana asked.

"Whoa, slow down, she's still in bed with the baby, why?" Ivanolia questioned.

"Well she needs to get up. Visitors are approaching, the older boys saw them," Crisana replied.

Ivanolia looked at the other men, then he walked out to find Danie. Donzolnia went to get Jendoza up, and Brulenzia went to get Laurana up, and the girls went back to the Cooking Hearth, grabbed some food, then went outside to wait.

"They're here?" Jendoza sputtered. She jumped out of bed, and started throwing on clothes.

"Calm down Jen. The boys said they were off in the distance. I'm sure you do not have to rush." She relaxed, but still got ready with more speed than usual.

"Laurana," Brulenzia whispered, shaking his woman. "You need to wake up now. Your brother saw people approaching. It's probably Ayla."

The woman rolled over, and rubbed her eyes. "Really? Now that's a good excuse to get out of the furs," she said throwing the furs back and getting up.

Grov and Ayla could see that they were heading in the right direction. They saw the people on the top of something, and saw them get down and disappear inside. It was not long before more people came out, and then some more, and then more.

Ayla suddenly got really nervous, and fell in behind her mate. Grov stopped. "What are you doing?"

Ayla looked up at him. "I do not want them to think bad of me. I need to be in my place."

Grov laughed. "Ayla, we are going to meet the Others, not the Clan, and they are your mother's people; _your_people. Get up here next to me."

Ayla smiled, suddenly shy, and took Durc's hand. Grov waited for her to get to his side, then he started walking again.

"I still do not recognize anyone," Ayla began, but even before she had the words completely out of her mouth she changed her mind. "I see Vincenzia! Look," she said pointing. "There he is." Grov saw her excitement as they approached, and he sent a plea to Ursus that they would be all that she hoped.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Journey<br>**

Grov and Ayla headed in a north northeastern direction for a short time, so that they could bypass one of the two rivers they had to cross. It was still very cold, and the river would probably be more of a frozen stream, but they didn't want to take any chances, since it had been raining so much, and they had two small children and a baby.

By the time they got to the end of the first river, and made their way around it, darkness was nearing. They headed southeast toward the second river. Grov wanted to reach the larger river before they stopped for the night. Ayla was exhausted from the weight of her burdens, and Ora complaining of cold. When they finally reached the river, Grov started a fire, while Ayla set up the traveling tent, and Durc held Annaliza. The shelter was the same one that she made when she and Ebra were separated from the Clan.

The fire and tent were set up in no time, and Ayla nursed Annaliza. Grov put all of their things inside the tent to keep them dry, and pulled out the traveling food that Oga made for them. He looked at the sky; it did not look like rain, but he was still worried about his family. When Annaliza was finished nursing, Ayla changed her swaddling, and put her in Grov's lap so she could make them some hot tea.

The four of them sat silently munching on their food, drinking tea, and staring into the fire. Ayla was still dying to know what Brun told Grov, but he hadn't offered any information, so she just waited. After eating, Ayla put the children to bed. They would all be sharing the same tent; first, because they just couldn't carry another tent; second for warmth; and third because she wouldn't want her children sleeping in a separate tent anyway. When they were all snug in their furs, she came back out, and sat by the fire with her mate.

"Raawwwkkkk." They looked up to see Shriek flying above. He must have been following them, she thought. She quickly pulled out the leather glove she made to cover her hand and arm, put it on, and held out her arm for him. He landed, shrieked in her face, and then ruffled his feathers. Ayla reached into her carrying basket, and fed him a piece of raw meat. Shriek took the meat and flew over to the tent, where he perched himself on its peak.

Grov could see Ayla visibly relax, and smiled at her. She smiled back. "So, do you want to know what Brun had to say?" Ayla nodded vigorously, and waited. "Well, first of all, he's ready to hand over leadership again." Ayla frowned, knowing what had happened the last time Brun did this gave her a bad taste in her mouth. "Just wait, I'm not finished. He said that he would not make Broud leader again, though I'm certain he would not be so awful if he had another chance."

Ayla relaxed again. She was glad that Brun would not force the son of his mate upon the Clan this time. Grov was probably right about Broud though. He was not _mean_anymore, but he wasn't the sharpest spear in the armory either, and they'd be better off with almost anyone, but him. "So, who will be leader? Crug? Dorg?"

Grov smiled, she had obviously been thinking about this too; she had come up with the same two names that Brun had. "Who do you think would be better?"

Ayla was shocked that he wanted her opinion on topics that were only for men. "Crug would be good. He is a fair man. I do not think he really likes me, but that doesn't matter; he is still a good man. And, his mate has a son to pass leadership onto someday. But, Dorv is really young, so Crug would have to be leader for a long time." She paused. "Dorg would be good too. His mate has two sons that could take over later, _and_he is a very accepting man. I think I like Dorg better." Grov smiled at her. "So, who did he choose?"

"Neither." Grov got up to pour more tea, but Ayla jumped up too.

"I will get that, you keep talking. Who did he choose if not Crug or Dorg?" she asked.

The man smiled again. "Brun is sad that his mate's son is not capable, because now his lineage of leadership will be broken." Ayla nodded, she knew that. She handed the man his tea, and sat back down. "Then he came up with someone else that is part of his line."

Ayla frowned. "You are not making sense. If Broud does not lead, then Brac cannot take over, or Grev for that matter, so who else is there?"

Grov smiled. "Who else is tied to Brun through Broud?"

Ayla thought for a moment, she went over everyone in the cave, and was really confused. "Only Durc, but Durc is just a child. He cannot lead."

Grov was happy that she had figured that much out. She was a very intelligent woman. Evenora had been that way too, and he supposed all Others women were quicker than the Clan women. "Yes, you are right, Durc is too young to lead . . . right now."

"But Grov, Brun cannot wait for Durc to grow up. If he could, then he could just wait for Brac to grow up. Brun is already too old to be leading."

"You are right again, he does not plan on waiting," the man said. He paused again, but he could tell that Ayla was getting agitated that he was not just telling her. "Brun has offered leadership to me, so that I can train Durc to lead our Clan one day."

Ayla stared at her mate. She was stunned. "But . . . but, you are not full Clan. You are not even as much Clan as Durc is. You hardly even look Clan."

"I know, and I was surprised too, but he whole point is that the blood line not be broken, and this way, it will not be. Durc is of Broud's spirit, and Broud is of Brun's spirit. It works. I am only temporary, and then your son will lead the first Clan." Grov waited and watched her. She did not seem displeased.

Ayla was not unhappy. This would be great for her son, and for Ura too, she thought. She did not even think of herself. As first medicine woman, she already had plenty of status, more status than the leader's mate, so even if she had been thinking about that, it would not matter to her. "This is why Broud has been acting so strangely? Did he even get upset when you told him?"

Grov nodded. "He was upset, and I think he has reason to be, but he was upset with himself, and he didn't get mad. And, he also understood the importance of keeping a pure bloodline, _and_I bet Durc chooses Grev as his second in command. I'm sure Broud has thought about that." Ayla was in agreement with that, and she was happy that Broud had not relapsed into the old Broud, and hit someone. Grov put an arm around her. "Now that you know the secret, can we go to sleep now?" Ayla nodded.

The next morning started early with a crying baby. Ayla took off her tunic, thinking that it was much harder to nurse with these clothes on, then rolled over, and pulled her daughter up to her breast. Annaliza felt for the nipple in the dark tent, and latched on. Ayla kept her eyes closed as her daughter suckled, and she thought about the previous night's conversation; her son would one day lead Brun's Clan.

Grov looked at his woman in the darkness. He could barely see her, but he could tell that she was smiling as she nursed the baby, and that made him smile. He leaned over and kissed the side of her head, then got up to get the fire blazing.

It was very cold outside despite the bright sun, and there wasn't a cloud in sight. The man quickly got the fire going, and put water over the fire. When he returned Annaliza was sitting on the furs with Ora's doll. Grov got back into the furs. "Oh! You are freezing," Ayla said, then she grinned. "Come here, let me warm you up."

Grov did not feel the need to be the one to make the orders, so he grabbed her and pulled her close. Her body warmed him quickly, and then he started kissing her. She responded to his advances, and soon they were struggling to get out of their clothing. "This sure is much more difficult," she whispered. He grinned and climbed on top of her. They had not had time for this in a while, with packing and everything else they had been doing, and she was very ready for him. Grov entered her slowly, enjoying her warm, moist depths. Ayla moaned as he pushed himself in and out of her, and realized she would not be able to hold on much longer herself. It had been much too long for her, and within moments she exploded with pleasure. He did not go much longer either. When he finished, he collapsed on top of her, and they lay still until Annaliza grabbed hold of his hair and pulled hard.

"Ouch!" he said, as he opened his eyes to look at the baby. Ayla reached up, disentangled her daughter's fingers from Grov's hair, and smiled. While their focus was on the baby, Ora sat up.

"That's my doll," she said, and started to climb over Grov, who was still on top of, and inside of Ayla. Ayla started to giggle, and Grov extracted himself, sat up, then attempted to put his leggings back on.

"These clothes are much harder to take off _and_put on, but they sure are warmer," the man said. He looked at his woman, who was lying there naked, and thought he was very lucky to have met her. "Well, we should get up, eat, and move on. Don't you think?"

She nodded. "Let me just clean myself. She got up to go outside.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"I have to go clean myself before I get dressed," she replied.

"But it's freezing out there. Are you going outside without your clothes on?"

"Well I can't clean myself if I have my clothes on. I'll just be a moment." He shook his head as she ran outside naked. He watched her wipe herself down. She poured some of the hot water from the cooking pot into a cup, added some ice to it, then splashed it onto herself. When she was done, she ran for the tent. Inside she dressed quickly, then dressed Ora, then Annaliza, then she woke Durc. Everyone wore the same clothing as the day before. There was no need to get more than one outfit dirty.

They ate and packed up, then approached the river. It appeared to still be frozen over, but they were nervous. This would be the scariest part of the trip. If they could get across this river without trouble, then there would be no problems.

Grov walked out onto the ice-covered river. It seemed sturdy to him, but he was still nervous. He came back to where Ayla stood. "What do you think?" she asked.

He frowned. "I'm worried, but I think it will be fine. The ice is very thick."

Ayla nodded. "Well then, let's go." Ayla handed Durc his pack, then adjusted Annaliza, and picked up her things.

The crossing went well, Ora slipped and fell down twice, then Grov scooped her up, and put her on his shoulders, so she would not fall again. Once on the other side, he put her down. As they started out, Grov set a leisurely pace, because the children needed to be able to keep up, and because it did not matter how fast they traveled. They had been told that it was a three to four day journey if moving fast, or more if traveling more slowly.

By the end of the second day they had reached the mountainous area that Vincenzia said they would. They were told to turn south at that point and follow the mountain around to the east, until it ended. They camped up against the mountain on the second night, which protected them from wind, and slept soundly all night.

For the third and fourth day, there was nothing interesting to note, except for the breathtaking land. They followed the mountain, which was actually more of a large hill, until it was time for an afternoon meal; that was where the mountain ended. The large body of water to the south had been steadily getting closer as they traveled, just as Vincenzia said it would. They still weren't very close to the sea, but it was in sight, and that was good. After their meal, then continued on, but not for very long.

"Grov, I am tired, and the children are tired. Aren't you tired too? Can't we stop for the day?" He looked around, the sea was now starting to look farther away, and that was exactly how it should be.

The man shrugged his shoulders, and Ayla dropped her packs. Durc did the same. Ayla quickly put out a hide, put Annaliza down on it, and went to work on set up. Grov started on his normal fire building routine, and Durc wanted to help. Grov saw it as a good time to start the boy's training. After there was a hot fire burning, they rested. The night was one of rest. They went to bed early, and slept soundly again.

On the fifth day of their journey, Ayla woke early, and got up. Grov told her that they would probably reach Oak Camp that day, sometime near the afternoon meal, so she wanted all of them to be wearing clean outfits that were not travel stained. She slipped into her second outfit. This one was darker than the first one, and she had decorated it differently, but the cut was the same. Ayla took out clean outfits for everyone, then left the tent to start packing.

When Grov got up, he dressed and came out. "I guess we're leaving early," he said looking around at their empty camp.

Her breath caught in her throat. Had she anticipated incorrectly? "If that is alright with you. This woman did not mean to presume that you would want to leave early. I can put everything back out if you do not want to go." She looked nervous.

"Ayla, I did not mean it like that. We can leave early. You need to get used to making decisions, especially when you're with the Others."

She sighed with relief, and hugged the man. "I cannot wait to see Vincenzia and Jendoza, and meet all the other people." She was smiling widely, and stood on her toes to kiss him.

"You do remember how Ivanolia behaved when he was at Brun's cave, don't you?" She frowned, then nodded. "And you do know that most of the Others do not like the Clan, right?" She nodded again. "And that there could be trouble for you because of your son and me. You are aware of this, right?"

Ayla looked into his eyes, then backed up a bit. "Are you worried?" He didn't say or do anything. "Why didn't you tell me you were worried?"

Grov shrugged. "You have been so excited, and I promised that we'd go, so we're going, but I just want you to know that there could be trouble." He smiled at her, and hugged her. He did not want her to be worried, just aware.

She put her arms around him too, and squeezed him tightly. "Any chance of getting you back into the furs," she said. She could feel his desire between them, and knew that he would not signal her because she was bound up in her new clothing, and her traveling cloak. _But_, she thought, if I make the offer, maybe he would be willing. He nodded, and they quietly crept back into the tent and removed their clothing.

Once naked, Ayla kissed him, first gently, then feeling slightly more brave, she kissed him a little more roughly. He tried easing her down into the furs, but she wouldn't have it; she had other ideas. This time she eased _him_back, and straddled him, carefully guiding him into her. The man closed his eyes and groaned quietly. He did not want to wake the children again, but he could not control the sound that came from somewhere deep inside him. His mate was taking control and he liked it. Ayla watched him as she moved, and she could tell when he was almost finished. When he did, he moaned again, and she ceased her movement. Ayla reached over, grabbed their furs, and covered them up. She knew she made him feel good, and she was very satisfied with herself.

Grov and Ayla drifted off to sleep again, but woke up when Annaliza started to cry. Ayla started to sit up, but Grov held on to her for a moment. When she finally got up, he smiled up at her, then she went to get the baby.

The man watched her as she talked to her daughter. She was such a good mother. Finally, Grov got up, woke the rest of the crew, and they were off before Ora could whine about walking again. Grov prevented that problem by hefting the child onto his back. He figured he could carry her for the rest of the distance; they had to be rather close.

Since the day was sunny, and the ground was nearly slush free, many children were playing outside Oak Camp. Three boys were standing on top of the earthlodge throwing snowballs off the side, and watching them explode on the ground. Talneezia, a tall red headed boy laughed and threw another snowball, outdistancing his friend. Gildenozia picked up a large handful of snow, and prepared to throw, then stopped. "Look, someone's coming," he said, pointing.

The other two boys turned, then looked back at their blond friend. "I'll race you inside," Vegodia said as he took off. Not to be beat, Gildenozia ran for the closer edge, and Talneezia followed him. Both boys jumped over the side, landing closer to the entrance than Vegodia did.

The two boys ran inside, with the third right behind them. "People are coming!" they yelled in unison.

The younger adults were still in their hearths, so Tagnolia sent Braydalana to get them. He figured the travelers couldn't be anyone other than Vincenzia's first mate's daughter and her family, so he sent Crisana to get him. Vincenzia had taken to staying in the hearth with Darvie, until she was ready to come out, which sometimes could be pretty late.

Braydalana and Crisana went running down the passage, and went to Vincenzia first. "Visitors are coming. Vegodia, Talneezia and Gildenozia saw them coming," the girls said excitedly. Vincenzia smiled at them, and they ran off.

Then they ran down the other passage to tell Jendoza. When they came running into the area, they almost ran into the three men, who were on their way out. "Where is Jendoza?" Braydalana asked.

"Whoa, slow down, she's still in bed with the baby, why?" Ivanolia questioned.

"Well she needs to get up. Visitors are approaching, the older boys saw them," Crisana replied.

Ivanolia looked at the other men, then he walked out to find Danie. Donzolnia went to get Jendoza up, and Brulenzia went to get Laurana up, and the girls went back to the Cooking Hearth, grabbed some food, then went outside to wait.

"They're here?" Jendoza sputtered. She jumped out of bed, and started throwing on clothes.

"Calm down Jen. The boys said they were off in the distance. I'm sure you do not have to rush." She relaxed, but still got ready with more speed than usual.

"Laurana," Brulenzia whispered, shaking his woman. "You need to wake up now. Your brother saw people approaching. It's probably Ayla."

The woman rolled over, and rubbed her eyes. "Really? Now that's a good excuse to get out of the furs," she said throwing the furs back and getting up.

Grov and Ayla could see that they were heading in the right direction. They saw the people on the top of something, and saw them get down and disappear inside. It was not long before more people came out, and then some more, and then more.

Ayla suddenly got really nervous, and fell in behind her mate. Grov stopped. "What are you doing?"

Ayla looked up at him. "I do not want them to think bad of me. I need to be in my place."

Grov laughed. "Ayla, we are going to meet the Others, not the Clan, and they are your mother's people; _your_people. Get up here next to me."

Ayla smiled, suddenly shy, and took Durc's hand. Grov waited for her to get to his side, then he started walking again.

"I still do not recognize anyone," Ayla began, but even before she had the words completely out of her mouth she changed her mind. "I see Vincenzia! Look," she said pointing. "There he is." Grov saw her excitement as they approached, and he sent a plea to Ursus that they would be all that she hoped.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Oak Camp Earthlodge<strong>

**Entry Area**– Storage of fuel, implements, outer clothes

**First Hearth** – Visitor's Hearth (to be full very soon)

**Grov** (18) – mixed man, master hunter (Leopard totem), first mated to Nora (quake death)**  
>Ayla<strong> (16) – Clan's first ranked medicine woman, "Woman who hunts," (Cave Lion totem) – mother of Durc and Annaliza**  
>Durc<strong> (5) – Ayla's son, Grev's milk brother (Gray Wolf totem)**  
>Ora<strong> (3) – Nora's daughter (Alpine Marmot totem)**  
>Annaliza<strong> (10 moons) – Ayla daughter (Snow Leopard totem)

**Second Hearth**– Cooking hearth and space for gathering

**Third Hearth** – _Antelope Hearth_

**Tagnolia** (41) – **Headman**, brother of Tiflona**  
>Zarina<strong> (39) – mother of Donzolnia and Brulenzia (as well as children below)**  
>Frala<strong> (14)**  
>Morina<strong> (12)

**Fourth Hearth** – _Jack Rabbit Hearth_

**Wäglodia** (40) – mated to headwoman**  
>Tiflona<strong> (39) – **Headwoman**, sister of headman**  
>Tinozia<strong> (19) – first son of headwoman, unmated**  
>Tabita<strong> (16)**  
>Torina<strong> (13)**  
>Talneezia<strong> (10)**  
>Tena<strong> (7)

**Fifth Hearth** – _Bison Hearth_

**Gredenzia** (36) – mated to Fraylora, **Shogur  
>Fraylora<strong> (36) – Nemlora's mother**  
>Fürlasa<strong> (16)**  
>Fräubita<strong> (14)**  
>Gildenozia<strong> (10)

**Sixth Hearth**– Healer's Hearth - Empty

**Seventh Hearth**– Extension to Shogur's hearth, private ceremonies and gatherings

**Eighth Hearth** – _Winter Stoat (Ermine) Hearth_

**Vilognia** (41) – Vinoza and Vincenzia's brother**  
>Serana<strong> (41) – mother of Ivanolia, Jendoza and Laurana (as well as children below)**  
>Vegodia<strong> (12)**  
>Serlona<strong> (9)

**Ninth Hearth** – _Cave Bear Hearth_

**Donzolnia** (22) – first son of headman's mate, mated to Jendoza**  
>Jendoza<strong> (18) – Ivanolia's sister, Evanora and Ayla's cousin, mated to Donzolnia, Teglodia's mother**  
>Teglodia<strong> (3 moons) – Jendoza's son, born while visiting Brun's Clan

**Tenth Hearth** – _Arctic Fox Hearth_

**Ivanolia** (22) – Jendoza's brother, Evanora and Ayla's cousin**  
>Danie<strong> (21) – Travie's daughter, Darvie's sister, Ivanolia's second mate**  
>Braydalana<strong> (8) – Nemlora's daughter (Nemlora died giving birth at 13)

**Eleventh Hearth** – _Gray Wolf Hearth_

**Brulenzia** (20) – second son of headman's mate, Donzolnia's brother, Evenora's closest childhood playmate, in love with Laurana**  
>Laurana<strong> (15) – not mated to Brulenzia yet, but expecting _his_ child

**Twelfth Hearth** – _Reindeer Hearth_

**Teglodia** (would be 36 if not **dead**) – left to go on a journey 10 years ago when youngest child (Tegasia)was killed in a hunting accident, headman's best friend**  
>Vinoza<strong> (would be 34 if not **dead**) – gladly journeyed with her mate, too sad to stay**  
>Evenora<strong> (would be 20 if not **dead**) – was mated to Grov (as Nora), mother of Ora

**Thirteenth Hearth** – _Snow Leopard Hearth_

**Vincenzia** (37) – Vilognia and Vinoza's brother, loves to travel, visits Mamutoi often, lost first mate (Annalisa) and daughter (Andreyta or Ayla) in such a travel eleven years ago, Ayla finally turns up**  
>Darvie<strong> (26) – second mate, Mamutoi woman, mother of Crisana and Brenevia**  
>Crisana<strong> (Crisanie) (8) – Darvie's daughter**  
>Brenevia<strong> (Brenev) (5) – Darvie's son**  
>Travie<strong> (44) – Darvie and Danie's mother, sufficient healer

**Fourteenth Hearth**– Empty Hearth

**Fifteenth Hearth**– Food storage area

**Sixteenth Hearth**– Empty Hearth

**Seventeenth Hearth**– Empty Hearth

**Back Entry Area**– More storage

**Sweat Bath Area**

**************************************************  
><strong>Oak Camp's Earthlodge<br>**

By the time Grov and Ayla reached Oak Camp, the entire camp had come out to greet them. It wasn't the amount of people that made Ayla nervous, there were more people in their Clan's cave, than here at Oak Camp. Instead, it was the noise level of this many people, all talking at the same time that caught her attention as they approached. Grov did not say anything, but he must have noticed it as well, because he moved in closer to protect his woman.

Ayla was thankful when Vincenzia came forward to greet them first. It was good to see a familiar face. Vincenzia brought with him, a man and a woman, but he hugged Ayla tight before making introductions, encompassing Annaliza as well. "Hello daughter," he said, not wanting to let go. "I am so pleased that you made the journey here to meet everyone." Vincenzia turned toward Grov, and hugged him too. Grov was slightly taken aback; Clan men did not hug one another, but he recovered quickly. Durc stood behind his mother, while Ora sat on Grov's shoulders.

Vincenzia then looked at the man and the woman that stood behind him. "Ayla and Grov, I would like you to meet our Headman, Tagnolia, and our Headwoman Tiflona. And this," he said, smiling broadly, "is Annalisa's daughter Ayla, and her mate Grov." Ayla smiled at the two older people, but did not know what to say. Instead, she took the hands that were held out to her, and grasped them with the same firmness that was being given.

"We greet you," the woman said, then the man took her hands and said the same thing. Ayla was about to let go of his hands when suddenly, a vision went through her mind. She saw the dark haired man, Tagnolia, laughing hard, laughing with another man. With the expertise of a Clan woman, Ayla scanned the people in just moments. It was a man she did not see standing in the crowd, a man with lighter brown hair and laughing blue eyes. Ayla was confused, and the vision made her dizzy, and her eyes became unfocused. Grov must have sensed her state, because he immediately put Ora down, and grabbed Ayla before she, and Annaliza, fell down to the ground.

"Ayla, are you okay?" Vincenzia asked the young woman in Grov's arms. She was shaking slightly, wondering what happened, then she focused on Vincenzia. She could see that Jendoza had come forward.

"Ayla, let me take Annaliza," Jendoza said. Ayla nodded, and Grov untied the strap holding the baby to her hip, and handed Annaliza to the woman. Jendoza kneeled beside the woman, while she held the baby.

"Jendozzaa," Ora said, suddenly recognizing the woman. The little girl had not known where they were going, and was frightened by all these new, loud people. She recognized Vincenzia, but everyone else looked just a little bit scary to her at the moment. Seeing someone else familiar made the little girl relax just a bit.

Grov was still supporting Ayla. "Are you tired Ayla?"

Ayla shook her head. "I am fine. I just felt strange when I took Tagnolia's hands," she said with a frown. "I saw you with another man, but the other man is not here."

"Raawwwkkkk," screeched Shriek high above them, making Ayla start fumbling for her pack.

Grov put a hand on her arm. "I'll get it Ayla." He rummaged through her pack, and pulled out Shriek's leather glove. Ayla was trying to get up, so the man helped her. She took the glove, put it on, then held her arm out. The bird circled around, unsure of the area and all the new people, then he swooped down, and landed on her arm. The crowd gasped at her ability to call the predator to her. Only a few of them had seen her bird before, and none of them had believed the woman could actually control the bird.

Ayla petted the bird, starting with its head and going down its back, and talked to it like it was completely normal to have a hawk sitting on her forearm. When she looked up to see everyone staring, she got the feeling she had done something wrong, and she blushed. Grov smiled at her, and handed her a piece of meat for Shriek. When Ayla fed it to him, he took flight. Ayla was extremely glad that he had come with them, but worried that he would not be allowed to stay. After all, the Clan had not accepted him right off, and it took much discussion before Brun finally allowed the meat eater to stay with them. Now, most of the Clan did not even notice him.

Vincenzia reached down and picked up Durc. Durc's deep brown Clan eyes looked at the crowd somewhat fearfully; he had never seen so many people that looked like his mother before, but being held by Vincenzia made him feel better. He did not realize that these people even existed.

While holding Durc, Vincenzia made a motion and three more people approached; a woman and two children. "This is my mate Darvie, and her children, Crisana and Brenevia." The man put Durc down. "Durc, Brenevia is the same age as you. You can play together."

"Mother, he looks like Rydag," Brenevia said, turning towards his mother.

The woman with hair as dark as the night sky, looked down at her son and smiled. "Yes Brenevia, he does." Then she looked at Ayla. "Greetings Ayla. I have heard so much about you. I welcome you."

Ayla was feeling a little less nervous, except that she wondered how she would keep everyone's name straight. She didn't realize she had an excellently trained memory, and that it would not be a problem. Ayla took the proffered hands of Vincenzia's mate.

Seeing that introductions could be too much for the new people, Tiflona looked back at the group. "Okay let's all go back inside. We can all get to know Ayla and her family in there, and in time."

The people started to disperse, but a few did not leave. Ayla could see Donzolnia, and the other three men that had been at the Clan's cave, and a few women. One woman looked exactly the same as Jendoza, except that she was pregnant.

Jendoza still held Annaliza, and Grov still had his arm around Ayla, giving his support to her both physically and emotionally.

Brulenzia had come out with Laurana. They were the last ones to join the welcoming group. The man watched the visitors has they were greeted by a few of the people, and he had a sudden rush of emotion when he saw the man Grov holding Evenora's daughter. Brulenzia had to swallow hard to hold back the anger he felt toward this man, this flathead man, this Clan man, he thought. It pained him to think that this Clan man had been mated to his Evenora when he could not. Then Brulenzia looked to his side and saw his pregnant woman standing there, and he felt love fill his heart. He loved her so much, and Evenora was just a memory from his childhood. He had never even kissed Evenora; they had just been children. It may take some time, he thought, but I will let this go.

When Laurana put her hand on his forearm and started pulling him forward, he came back to the present, and smiled at her. For the most part, everyone was gone and she wanted to meet the woman and her family. "Come on Bru. I have to meet my cousin."

Since Ayla looked steady, Grov let go of her. The woman looked at her mate with eyes full of appreciation. She could not have made this journey without him, and would not have been able to stand meeting her people without him by her side. Grov smiled back at her.

"I'm sure you remember my brother, Ivanolia," Jendoza said, "and Brulenzia and Tinozia, but you have not met my sister, Laurana yet, or Ivanolia's mate, Danie. And this is Tabita and Fürlasa," she said finishing up. Ayla and Grov looked at all the young adults, and smiled

Donzolnia turned to Grov. "How was the journey?"

"It was good. It was cold and Ora, here, does not seem to like the cold, but otherwise it was good." Ora pulled on Grov's leggings and he picked her up again. Once up at the eye level of everyone else, she looked around, and smiled.

Ayla greeted the pregnant woman, Laurana, and was amazed at how much she looked like Jendoza, and herself. She could not deny that the three of them were related, nor could anyone else. The other three women, Danie, Tabita and Fürlasa, were also commenting on their similarities.

Ivanolia hung back watching. He was still quite unsure about having his cousin and her mate in the lodge. He knew he did not have a choice, but it still bothered him. Danie could see his skepticism, and flashed him a dirty look. She had grown up in a Mamutoi camp that was related to Lion Camp, and she knew that although the child Nezzie took in could not speak, he was in fact human. Danie suddenly realized that Ivanolia was a rather narrow-minded person, something she hadn't known before she mated him, and that upset her. She decided that she would befriend this woman at any cost, and he would have to get used to it.

Danie flashed one last look at her mate, then with the forwardness of the Mamutoi, she marched forward to greet these people properly.

When she had their attention, she thrust her hands out to the man. "Greetings, my name Danie." Grov took her hands, then was shocked when the woman pulled him close for a hug, and kissed his cheek. Then she turned to Ayla. "It so good finally meet you Ayla," she said as she hugged her too. "Sorry my Sungaea not so good. I am Mamutoi."

Ayla smiled at the friendly woman. "Mamutoi?" Mamutoi are different people? People that live to the north, right?"

Danie nodded. "Yes. I am new here too. I mate Ivanolia last summer, and come here after summer."

Ayla studied Danie. "You look very much like Vincenzia's mate. You have the same very dark hair, almost black, and the same light gray eyes.

"That because she is sister. You look much like these two," Danie said indicating Jendoza and Laurana. They all smiled. "I think we should go in."

Jendoza nodded. "Yes, I think that is a good idea. It's still so cold out here." She noticed her brother's look, and flashed him a looked that told him he better not make trouble. Grov saw the byplay, and moved in closer to Ayla in a defensive manner.

As they headed for the lodge entrance, Ayla scanned the area. "How long has Oak Camp been in this place?" she asked.

Grov was walking on one side of her, and Donzolnia was on the other. The tall dark haired man answered her. "Well, last summer we added this part on to the lodge," he said pointing to the addition. "This is where Brulenzia, Ivanolia and I have hearths, but the rest of the lodge has been here for as long as I can remember. This was the home of my mother's mate's mother's mate. We have lived nowhere else." He paused. "Actually Ayla, you have been here before, you just don't remember. I can remember when you left with your mother and Vincenzia. I was almost eleven years then."

Ayla frowned, wishing she could remember the time that she spent at Oak Camp, but the memories eluded her. As they approached the entrance, Donzolnia continued to explain about their lodge, directing his words to both Ayla and Grov. "This is the main entrance, but there are two others; one in the back, and one at the other end. Someone will show you later." They walked into the lodge, and Ayla had to wait a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. "This is the entry area, where we keep our parkas and outer clothing." Everyone began taking off garments, so Grov and Ayla pulled off their cloaks, and did the same to the children. Ora wanted to walk free, so Grov allowed it. The little girl no longer seemed shy, but just a little cautious instead.

As they walked out of the entry area, Donzolnia pointed to their left. "This is the visitor's hearth. You can put your stuff in here." Grov and Ayla walked into the visitor's hearth to put the rest of their things down, and noticed that it had so much more space than their hearth in the Clan's cave.

"I think I would like to put Annaliza down, if that is okay?"

Donzolnia nodded. "I will make a fire so that it will not be cold." Ayla smiled at the man, then began pulling things out of her pack. "Ayla, these are sleeping places," the man said, knowing that they had not seen them before. The Clan did not have the same thing. Ayla smiled at him again, and put her things down on the bed. Jendoza then came in and carefully put the sleeping Annaliza down on the bed next to Ayla and Grov's belongings. Ayla was going to nurse her, but didn't want to wake her, so she just covered her up instead.

After looking at Annaliza one last time, and making sure she would not roll off the bed, Ayla followed the people out of the hearth, and into a room that was larger than the main area, including all its hearths, in the Clan's cave. Ayla and Grov were stunned that someone could build a lodge such as this.

"This is the Cooking Hearth," Donzolnia went on. "This is where we gather, just about everyday and night, especially when the weather is bad. Ayla and Grov looked around, and saw all the people doing various activities, including cooking, sewing, and weapon making. Grov was impressed.

Ayla was taking it all in, and slowly processing the information. She started off walking next to Donzolnia, but just a little behind him, but as they entered the Cooking Hearth, she walked out into the center of the room and looked around more fully. She stared up at the ceiling, and turned around slowly. Then, without notice, that dizzy, unfocused feeling came back. Grov saw it coming and was again at her side. "Ayla, what is wrong?"

She steadied herself against her mate, and smiled up at him. "Grov," she said with amazement. "I have been here before."

"Yes Ayla, I know that. Donzolnia told us that already." Grov did not understand why she was telling him something that had just been told to both of them.

"No, Grov" Ayla said shaking her head. "I _remember_being here." Ayla looked around the room, and then walked about. She suddenly ran over to the other side of the fire, and kneeled down. "I played here. I played here with my dolls. I remember playing here. Right here," she said pointing at the spot where she knelt.

Then the woman looked up sharply, "Grov! I remember Evenora. I remember her. She used to brush my hair with . . . with this," she exclaimed, picking up the implement that some had left lying there. Ayla put the brush down, and she stroked her own long blond hair. People were staring at her, but she did not notice.

Ayla then got up and looked down the long passageway that led to the people's individual hearths. She hesitated for only a moment, then started down the passage, counting the hearths as she went. She frowned when she got to the new passage, and looked back at the people. Some had followed her, others stayed behind. "I used to live here. There used to be a hearth here," she said frowning. She looked back and saw Vincenzia standing there. "My mother was your sister's best friend," she said to him. Vincenzia nodded. He had tears in his eyes.

Ayla turned around, and looked at the empty hearth behind her. "This is where Auntinoza and Evenora lived . . . and Teglodia. _That's_the man I saw with Tagnolia earlier." Ayla had tears in her eyes, as she smiled at her mate. "Oh Grov, I remember. I remember my people."

**************************************************  
><strong>Ivanolia's Problem<br>**

A tearful Vincenzia approached Annalisa's daughter while everyone else hung back. "Ayla, are you remembering your mother?" Ayla looked up at him, and nodded. "That is amazing. I can hardly remember her myself. It has been too many years." Ayla reached for the man and hugged him, and they both cried. Then, Ayla felt a pulling on her tunic. It was Ora.

"Mamma? Are you okay?" Ora asked. She did not like it when her mother cried.

Ayla broke off from Vincenzia, and knelt down so she could look the child in the eye. "Yes Ora, I am fine. I just have not been here in a long time, but Mamma is just fine." Ora smiled, and put her arms around her mother. Ayla looked back at the people standing there watching them, and then turned back to Ora. "Let's go meet everyone else." Ora nodded.

With that, Ayla and Ora, along with Vincenzia, went back to the Cooking Hearth. Tagnolia smiled at the young woman, but directed his words to everyone. "I think we need to have a welcoming celebration tonight. What does everyone think?" There was a chorus of cheers; everyone loved celebrations, for whatever reason, especially in the winter.

Grov watched Ayla's memory return, and was amazed by it as well. He wondered at the chances of him mating Nora first, and Ayla second, and the two women being related. He thought back to the first time he met Ayla, and remembered how shocked he was that she looked so much like Nora. He loved her from the moment he met her. At the time he thought the attraction to Ayla might just be because of Nora, but now he knew differently. He loved her. Grov watched as Ayla carried Nora's daughter, whom she had adopted as her own, and smiled at her. No, he truly loved this woman.

"This is amazing Grov. I remember so much. Not everything, I think, but still a lot," she said, handing the child to him, and then hugging and kissing them both. He could tell that she was excited. He was too. He hugged her back, and kissed her deeply.

Ivanolia watched the couple, and grimaced when Ayla kissed the man. How could she kiss him, he thought? Though the man didn't much look like it, he was a flathead, and Ivanolia could not see past it.

Danie was standing with her sister, opposite Ivanolia, and she saw his look. It both saddened her and made her angry. The Mamutoi had similar feelings toward flatheads as her mate did, and that made her angry too. They were clearly people. Why couldn't so many people see it?

When Danie finally caught Ivanolia's eye, she flashed the man a furious look. He knew exactly what his mate was thinking, and he was decent enough to blush. However, his blush wasn't enough to take away her anger. Over the moons he had seen that she had quite the temper, and he didn't like making her mad. She finally left the cooking hearth. He could tell he was in trouble.

Ivanolia watched her go for a moment, then followed reluctantly. Once at their hearth, he didn't know what to say to her. "Danie?"

She looked at him. "What wrong with you Ivan? Grov seems to be good man. Why you look at him the way you do?"

Ivanolia frowned. "Danie, he's a flathead," he said with disgust, as if that should explain it. "My cousin is mated to a flathead."

"Yes," Danie agreed, "she is, and she has three children that are 'flathead.' Are you going to hate them too? Why everyone hate them? Is not fair. It not right."

Ivanolia shook his head. "They are animals Danie. My cousin has an animal mate and three animal children, and now they are here."

Danie's face got really red. "They NOT animal, and even if they were. Do you hate animal?" Danie paused. "NO, you not hate animal. This not make sense to hate 'flathead." What they call themself? Think Jendoza say Clan. Right? They ARE people! Clan people! Not forget I am related to Rydag, through Talut. Does that disgust you?" she yelled at him. Ivanolia stared at her. She was furious. As she continued to yell at him, he understood less and less, for the woman's language changed to Mamutoi, as it always did when she was angry. "That's it!" was the last thing he understood. The woman started picking up her clothes, and throwing them into a pack, then she stormed out of the hearth. Ivanolia sat down on his bed platform, and just watched her go. When she was gone, the man put his head in his hands. He had a huge headache starting, one worse than any bouza headache, and he didn't know what to do about it.

Grov and Ayla, and the children, spent some time meeting the people, then went back to the visitor's hearth to rest before the welcoming celebration. In the visitor's hearth, the couple drew the curtain closed for privacy, as Donzolnia had showed them, and looked around the space that would be their home while they stayed with the Sungaea. Just as they had noticed on first sight, it was very large. They looked around and counted six sleeping places, one double, and four singles, all lining the walls, and plenty of room for all of their belongings to fit, as well as the belongings of several other people.

The family just stood there for a moment, then Ayla went over to her 'sleeping place,' and began pulling her things out of it. She looked down at Annaliza and noted that she was still asleep, though it appeared she wouldn't be much longer, and smiled, thinking that she had once been that size, and in this very same lodge. She wished she could remember that, but figured that no one remembered back that far, not even the Clan.

Grov watched his mate for a moment, then decided to add another piece of wood to the fire Donzolnia had made. Then he sat down on one of the other bed platforms, and turned toward his mate. He was about to speak when there was a scratching on their curtain.

Ayla was going to go check, but Grov was closer, so he signaled that he would check it. When the man opened the curtain, he saw two children standing there. The five-year-old Brenevia wanted Durc to come out to play, and his sister, Braydalana wanted to play with Ora. She just loved the little ones, and their camp didn't really have any except for Teglodia, and he was too new to play with. Grov frowned, but Ayla smiled. "That will be fine," Ayla said, giving her mate a look that told him everything would be okay, and the children left together. Ayla and Grov watched them go, and saw Braydalana and Ora join a few other girls. Then, noticing that Annaliza was awake, Ayla shut the curtain so that she could take care of her baby.

Darvie watched her son play with Ayla's son, and wondered if he was as sickly as Rydag from Lion Camp. It did not appear that he was. The woman looked on for just a moment, then decided to go back to her hearth to rest. She first told Vincenzia where she was going, then exited the Cooking Hearth.

When she arrived at her hearth, she found Danie lying there on Crisana's bed. "What is wrong Danie? Why are you here?" she said in Mamutoi.

Danie opened her eyes, and sat up cross-legged. "That mate of mine is a hyena."

Darvie laughed. "Really? What did he do now? Did he pull some other prank? You can always tell mother, she'll be glad to put an end to his pranks."

"No, I wish he had," she said with disgust. "He just doesn't want to accept that the Clan are people."

Darvie frowned. "Oh. That's going to be a problem. He's going to have to at least live with it, until they leave," she said, then realized that would not be okay with Danie.

"_No_," Danie said. "He's going to have to do more than live with it. I will not be mated to such a man. I might as well turn my back on our family if I accept this attitude from him . . . and I will not do that." Danie pointed at her pile of things.

Darvie looked down at what her sister was pointing at, and smiled. "So, you're moving in, are you?"

Danie blushed. "I know I should have asked first, but I have nowhere else to go, and I cannot stay there with him, while he's acting so . . . so stupid. Do you think Vincenzia will mind?"

"No, of course not, but I'm sure Ivanolia will. He's going to have a fit. Where is he now?"

Danie blushed again. "Well actually, I've spied on him a few times, and he was just sitting on the edge of the bed platform holding his head. The last time I looked, he hadn't moved."

When Brulenzia and Laurana went back to their hearth, they couldn't help but notice Ivanolia sitting on his bed, head in hands, and wondered about his posture. Laurana approached her brother, and sat down next to him, putting her arm around him, and placing her cheek on his arm. "Ivan, what's wrong?"

For a moment, he thought maybe Danie had come back, but then he realized it was his sister. "Danie's gone," he stated simply, without even looking at her.

Laurana and Brulenzia eyed him suspiciously. "What do you mean, _gone_?" they asked in unison.

"I mean she's taken her things, and run off to her sister," he said, flinging his arm around to make them look around the room.

Brulenzia and Laurana looked around, and sure enough, all of Danie's things were gone. "Well, what did you do?" Brulenzia asked.

Ivanolia looked up sharply. "Why do you think _I_did something?"

Laurana laughed. "You are kidding, right?"

"It's not funny Laur," he said tearfully, then, "okay, I just made one comment about our cousin being mated to a flathead," he admitted.

Brulenzia looked away, he was not one hundred percent okay with this either, but for slightly different reasons; reasons he promised himself that he'd get over quickly. Laurana, on the other hand, rolled her eyes. "Ivanolia, you can't be calling Grov that. Apparently he is a good man, or so Vincenzia, Donzolnia and Jendoza say. In fact, you and Brulenzia spent time with them, at _their_cave. Can you honestly say they are animals after the time you spent there?" Ivanolia frowned at the ground, and when he looked up, he could see Donzolnia and Jendoza coming down the passageway. He dreaded the look and earful he would receive from Jendoza.

When Jendoza saw her brother's teary face, she immediately raced forward. "What is going on here?" she questioned, but no one said anything. Ivanolia looked one way, and Brulenzia looked the other. "You guys, did I not just ask a question?"

Laurana blushed, then told her sister then problem. "Apparently our big brother here cannot accept having a '_flathead_' mated to our cousin, and Danie has left the hearth to go stay with Darvie and Vincenzia." Laurana paused, waiting for Jendoza to explode, but she didn't.

Jendoza kneeled on the ground in front of Ivanolia, and took his downcast face in her hands so that he would have to look at her. "Ivan, I know this is hard to accept. Can you imagine what went through my mind when I woke up in their cave? Can you imagine how scary that was for me, and for Braydalana too? I know what most of the Sungaea think, or anyone else for that matter. I know how we have been raised, but we have to get over this. I truly believe we have been wrong. Our camp is not the first camp to have to deal with the Clan, and I'm sure we will not be the last." Jendoza paused for a moment, then smiled at her brother. "When Teglodia was born in their cave, it was Ayla and their other healer that helped me give birth. If they were animals, then they couldn't have helped. They do know what they are doing. They have healers just like we do. They have Shogurs just like we do. They are not so different than we are."

Ivanolia frowned and looked away from his sister, only to look into the light blue eyes of her mate. "What your sister says is true Ivanolia. They are good people. We even let them name and number Teglodia among them. He may be of the Sungaea, but he is now Clan too."

"You did what?" Ivanolia burst out. "Why would you do that? There was no purpose in that."

Jendoza swallowed and gave her brother a stern look. "No, there was no need, but we were staying in their cave and eating their meat, and sharing in everything that is theirs; and had been for some time. I'm sure that the leader's decision to accept Teglodia was not made lightly. We could not, no _would not_, insult him by refusing. And really, what difference does it make? Except for maybe bothering closed minded people such as yourself." Jendoza was starting to become irritated with the man. "If you cannot accept Ayla's mate and her children, then possibly you cannot accept _my_son either." With that she stood up and went back to her hearth. Donzolnia looked at his best friend, and shook his head, then he followed his mate. Some celebration this would be.

Donzolnia went back to the hearth, and looked at his mate. She didn't really look as angry as she had sounded. He realized it was for effect, and that she would be patient with her brother, but he wondered how patient.

"Are you going to change into something else for the celebration?" he asked her, trying to decide if he should change too.

She nodded. "Nothing fancy though, just something else." She pulled her tunic over her head, then leaned over and picked up her son to nurse. Teglodia suckled his mother, and stared up at her.

Donzolnia sat down beside her, and watched for a moment, then lay back on their bed. "I think I'll nap for a little while. That way I can stay up later tonight."

Jendoza nursed her son, then put him down next to her mate. At just three moons old, it was quite obvious the child was of Donzolnia's spirit. Jendoza thought about Ayla's idea of how babies were formed and she grinned. She would make sure that all of her babies were of Donzolnia's spirit. She watched her son lying there next to the man she loved, and hoped to have several just like him.

After filling her eyes with her two men, she decided to nap as well.

Laurana watched Jendoza go, then she too excused herself, saying that she wanted to get cleaned up. Brulenzia smiled at her, but stayed with Ivanolia. When the woman was gone, Brulenzia sat down on Ivanolia's bed platform and lay back.

"Tell me this bothers you too," Ivanolia begged.

Brulenzia had his eyes closed. "Hummm, somewhat, but for different reasons."

Ivanolia turned and looked at the closed-eyed man. "What does that mean?"

Brulenzia opened his eyes. "Well, when I look at Evenora's daughter, I think that she should have been born to my hearth, not his. When I look at him, I think that she loved me first, and that she should have been mine. When I look at Ayla, I wonder if he knows just what he has."

"But you're not upset that he's a flathead," Ivanolia asked.

Brulenzia frowned. "I know that he is, there's no question about it, but I think it just hurts to have lost Evenora."

Ivanolia breathed a loud sigh, and lay back on the bed beside his friend. "But you have Laurana now, why should that matter?"

"It's just different Ivan. Evenora and I were children together, but we always said we would mate. Grov had something with her that I never had, and it feels strange, sort of like a betrayal. It's not the man's fault, but it still hurts. I do love Laurana, and I can hardly wait to mate her. I know the thought of my joining with your sister has bothered you, but I really do love her, and I've sworn to myself that I will get past the Grov and Evenora thing. I think you should do the same."

The two men were just talking casually, and didn't see that someone was approaching. When they finally did, they saw Braydalana and Crisana standing at the hearth entrance with Ora hanging around Braydalana's neck. "Should I change my tunic for the celebration?" she asked, then looked around. "Where is mother?"

Ivanolia and Brulenzia looked up at the three girls, and Ivanolia grimaced. "Danie is at Darvie's hearth." The two girls could see that something was amiss, but neither questioned further. "Why don't you take Ayla's daughter back to the visitor's hearth, so you can change?" Ivanolia said, thinking that he was helping since Brulenzia had trouble looking at the child.

Brulenzia frowned, I will never get used to her if I don't spend time with her, he thought. "I'll take her, Bray, you change." Ivanolia wrinkled his brow, and watched the man extend his arms for Evenora's daughter. The little girl hesitated for a moment, but then reached out to the man.

Grov and Ayla were having a rare moment alone, and were enjoying the time. For the most part, they never had time without other people, and it felt good. The children were gone, except for Annaliza of course, and she had a full tummy and was contented, and there was nothing that they had to be doing, except resting for the evening.

Ayla had nursed the baby; unpacked all of their belongings, and was lying on one of the sleeping places, when Grov came to lie down beside her. "Are you okay Ayla?" he asked.

Her eyes were closed, "Hummmm, I think so, yes. You?"

Grov smiled and leaned over to kiss her, and she opened her eyes. "Why didn't you just signal me?" she asked, noticing his desire for her.

"Something about doing that here seems wrong. I know that's not how they treat their women."

Ayla smiled. "Well, that's not usually how you treat me either, but we _are_alone. Do whatever you want."

Grov grinned at her, and made the signal, causing the woman to start taking off her leggings. Grov got up to do the same thing, taking off his tunic as well, and Ayla pulled the bedding back so that they could get in.

Brulenzia carried the child in his arms, and she babbled. Brulenzia thought that she sounded a little older than the average three year old, and then remember being told that the Clan aged faster. He thought that was interesting.

When he was passing by Tagnolia's hearth, his mother came out. "Well, who do you have here, Brulenzia? Are you playing with Ayla's daughter? Or are you pretending that Laurana had her baby already?" Zarina asked, tickling the little girl, and getting a stream of giggles.

Brulenzia smiled at his mother. She seemed to sense his difficulty with this, and was grateful that someone understood. "No mother, I was just taking her back to Ayla, so Braydalana could change."

"Well, go on then, I won't keep you." Zarina smiled at her son as he headed into the Cooking Hearth.

Inside the visitor's hearth, Grov and Ayla had just finished satisfying each other's needs, when they heard a scratch at the curtain. Neither wanted to get up. "Come in." Grov called.

Brulenzia moved the curtain aside, and stepped in, then blushed. The couple was under the furs of the double bed platform, and had obviously just been sharing pleasures. Brulenzia wasn't sure what he thought, and he forgot why he had even come.

Ayla smiled, and sat up, then climbed out off of the bed. She still had her tunic on, and it was long, but she did not have her leggings on. Brulenzia stared at her bare legs, then looked at Grov. The man appeared to be scowling at him. "Um, I came . . . to bring your daughter back to you," he said, still uncomfortable.

Ayla continued to smile at him, and took Ora from him. She turned around to place Ora on the bed next to Grov and saw his look. "Stop it Grov," she signaled. "He is just nervous." Brulenzia never saw what she signaled to her mate, and Grov's expression immediately changed. He knew this man had loved Nora, and he did feel bad about his loss.

Ayla turned back around. "Can I get you some tea?" she said picking up the pot she had just boiled, and a cup.

Brulenzia looked at Grov again, and noticed he looked more relaxed. He quickly decided that he would like some tea, and he nodded his head.

Grov got up, put on his leggings, then sat back down on the edge of the bed. Brulenzia watched him, trying not to make it obvious, and noted that the man looked no different than any other man he had seen. Ayla and Grov pretended not to notice, though the Sungaea man's observation was much more intrusive than he thought.

When the tea was ready, the three sat drinking it, mostly in silence. It was rather awkward, but it was a start.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Welcoming Celebration<br>**

Brulenzia sat there sipping from his cup, wishing that he hadn't accepted, because now the silence was deafening, and he didn't know what to say, or how to get away. Ayla and Grov sat side by side on their bed platform, also not knowing what to say. The three adults just watched the little girl play with the baby. Annaliza squealed with delight; as Ora hid her face behind her own hands, then pulled them back to reveal a wide-eyed smile.

"I cannot believe how big Annaliza has gotten since I saw her last," Brulenzia said.

"Yes," Ayla replied. "She was so small when she was born, I never thought she'd grow. She's still so much smaller than the other Clan babies. Do you remember Oga?"

Brulenzia nodded. "Yes, the one that lived at your hearth, right?"

Ayla smiled. "Yes, that is right. She had a baby about three moons after Annaliza was born. When her daughter was born she almost the same size that Annaliza was at three moons. It is remarkable how big the Clan babies are."

Brulenzia frowned, thinking about Laurana. He suddenly worried that Grov's presence could make her child come out mixed. He knew his woman could not have such a big baby. He wondered if there was some way to ask about this without insulting them. "Ah, Ayla, you had a . . . a mixed child while living with the Clan. How did that birth go?"

Ayla grimaced at them memory. "It was awful. I almost died, but Iza saved me. Iza was my mother, and she was the Clan's first medicine woman . . . I mean, healer. It was very hard, but I would gladly do it again to have my son."

"Weren't you afraid when you learned that you were pregnant a second time. I mean, that the baby would be mixed again, since you were so near to the Clan men." Brulenzia looked at Grov, and waited for one of them to explode. Grov narrowed his eyes at the man, but said nothing. Brulenzia did not miss that Ayla put her hand on her mate's leg. Brulenzia could tell that Grov was not happy.

"Well no, actually. I knew my child would be mixed, but I wasn't afraid, because I saw that a mixture between Grov and Evenora had produced a baby that looks like the Others, like us, and they are much smaller as you can see. I knew my baby would be similar to her."

Brulenzia didn't understand what she meant. "But _how_did you know that the baby would be a mixture of you and Grov, and not you and some other Clan man?" he asked.

Ayla smiled. Though she was certain about how life got started, she didn't know how to explain it. "_I_believe that a baby can only get started when a man puts his organ in the place where a baby comes out, and I have only shared Grov's furs. That is how I know."

Brulenzia smiled. "That is an interesting idea; I have not heard that one before," he said, thinking that if that was so, then Grov's presence could not mixed with Laurana's to produce a mixed child.

Ayla watched the smile play across his lips, but it was Grov that spoke. "So you do not have to worry about my spirit getting inside your woman," he said, with a look that Brulenzia could only take as one of insult.

Brulenzia blushed. "I am sorry, I did not mean that the way it sounded. I . . . " his voiced trailed off. Now he really didn't know what to say.

Ayla looked at Grov, and sighed. She knew he had a right to be upset, but she didn't want trouble between him and her people. Grov looked as though he felt bad about what he had said too. "Brulenzia, I am sorry too. I know you did not mean any disrespect. I think it would be good if you and I could start over. Maybe try to get over our Nora problem."

Brulenzia was nodding. "I agree. This whole thing has been difficult; to learn that she was still alive until a few years ago, and then to find out she was mated to you. I did not expect her to coming running home to me someday, though I'm sure many thought that's what I thought. I will let this go, if you can forgive me. It's just so hard."

Grov smiled. "Of course I can forgive you. And I agree, this is very hard."

Ayla was overjoyed that the two men had seemingly worked out their differences, and as if to seal the deal, Ora walked up to Brulenzia, and pointed at his eyes. "Can you see out of those eyes? They look too light. When Clan eyes get that light, they can no longer see. Mamma," she said turning around. "I think Zoug might be blind soon." Ayla nodded to her daughter.

Brulenzia picked up the little girl; Evenora and Grov's little girl, and put her on his lap. "Why yes Ora, I can see out of these eyes. Your eyes are blue too, but not so light, can you see out of yours?"

The little girl giggled. "Of course I can see out of them," she said. The man talked to her for a little longer, then excused himself. He had much to think about. After talking to Ayla, he was certain that Laurana would be having _his_ baby, and that made him smile. If her baby was a boy, he thought, it might look just like Teglodia then, since he looks just like Donzolnia, and I look just like Donzolnia, and the baby is mine. _My_ baby, he thought, she's going to have _my_baby, not just a baby of my spirit.

As Brulenzia slowly walked back to his hearth, he continued to consider that Laurana's baby was just a much his baby, and he was thrilled beyond belief. I'm having a baby, he thought, and laughed quietly to himself at the thought of the child being his. Whoever heard of a man having a baby? Does that make me its mother too? No, he thought, only woman can be a mother, but wouldn't he be something more to the child than just Brulenzia? He decided that he would have to talk to Gredenzia at some point. Maybe the Shogur would have something to say about this too.

After napping for a considerable part of the day, Jendoza woke up, fed her son again, then started preparing the very same meal that she had made for the Clan two seasons before. She knew it was a favorite, and that she was the best at making it.

Laurana had rested until Brulenzia returned, and noticed something different about the man immediately. She didn't ask him about it, but decided to wait for him to tell her when he was ready. It didn't matter either way, because she could tell that the man had reached some sort of decision on something, and that it was good. She smiled at the man, as she made her sweet honey cakes for the celebration.

These two women worked in their own hearths, preferring to cook in their own space; Jendoza's sole purpose of doing this was that she could have her son right next to her the whole time, and Laurana, just because she wanted to rest as much as possible.

In Vincenzia's hearth, Darvie and Danie were cooking a Mamutoi dish that they had not made for Oak Camp yet. Travie had suggested it, since she would be busy cooking with the older women.

Darvie thought the cooking would be good way to keep her sister's mind off her trouble. It worked somewhat, except for the fact that Danie periodically made and excuse to leave the hearth. Darvie knew that she did this just so she could look down the passageway toward hers and Ivanolia's hearth. Darvie shook her head at her sister.

When the sun finally set, the people began to gather in the Cooking Hearth. While many of the younger women had spent time cooking at their own hearths, the older women spent much of their day cooking in the Cooking Hearth, minus Tiflona, since her mate usually did the cooking, and she didn't like to cook. It was evident that a feast was forthcoming by the delicious smells of food were wafting throughout the lodge, and many were commenting on when it would start, including Tiflona's youngest. "Mother, when will the feast start? I am _starving_.

"Humpf," the headwoman replied. "Let you never know what true hunger feels like child. You are not starving. Be patient!" The headwoman was a sweet woman, but did not like exaggerations.

"Are you ready to go out?" Ayla asked Grov, as she picked up a dish she had prepared. He did not look like he was ready, she thought.

The man was dressed in the third outfit she had made, and was pulling at it awkwardly. "This is not as comfortable as our Clan wraps," he commented. "Do you think they wear these in the summer too?"

Ayla smiled at him. "I don't know, but we will get used to them I am sure. They are much warmer for winter. Maybe they have summer clothing as well." For her own third outfit, she had made an attempt to color it, the way Jendoza said the Sungaea did. This one was slightly yellow, but it had no decorations on it at all. It did not need any; the beauty of the woman would make her stand out no matter what she wore.

Grov suddenly noticed that she was carrying a dish. "Did you make your stuffed ptarmigan?" he asked with a smile; they were his favorite. Ayla nodded. "When did you hunt the birds?"

"I killed them while we were traveling. It takes only moments to pull out my sling and let fly. I could not help myself when I saw them. Will you carry Annaliza for me?" she asked. "I do not have enough hands." The man picked up the baby, and they left the hearth, followed by Durc, who was holding Ora's hand.

The family left the visitor's hearth, and went to the Cooking Hearth, only to be surrounded by the throng of people. Zarina approached and took the food Ayla proffered, and Tagnolia poured them each a drink. Ayla and Grov tasted the liquid, and both frowned at its strong taste. Grov took another sip, and decided he liked it.

Jendoza saw Ayla's frown, and came up to them. "Ayla, try this drink. It's a little sweeter," she said, offering the woman some wine.

"Umm, this is good," Ayla said. "Not so bitter."

Jendoza smiled, then eyed Grov. "This woman thinks the man should be careful with the bouza. It gives an awful headache the next morning if one drinks too much of it."

Grov looked at the woman, thinking she had learned a lot while staying with the Clan, and then he looked down at his cup, wondering how the drink could cause a headache. "I will be careful, but Jendoza, I am with your people now, you do not have to address me like a Clan man."

Jendoza grinned. "I know that."

While the people milled around, talking and drinking, several people started making repetitive sounds on the bone instruments that had gone unnoticed until the sounds began. Ayla looked very interested as she watched Oak Camp's musicians drum out a rhythmic tune for others to dance to. It made Ayla think of the woman's dance that she had participated in at the Clan gathering. Jendoza handed Ayla her cup, then joined the dancers.

The music went on for quite some time before someone finally made a plea for food. At that point, the instruments were stacked off to the side where they had been, and the older women brought out the food that had been warming over a low fire near the cooking pipes. The people raced to find places on the sitting platforms, and waited for the cooks to set the food out in the center.

When the cooks had everything set up, the people indicated to Ayla that she should take first. "Me? But I am a woman," she said.

Gredenzia smiled at the young woman. "That is exactly why you must take first Ayla. The Sungaea honor the Great Earth Mother by offering her bounty to women first." Ayla nodded, but looked to Grov for permission first before filling her plate.

Grov smiled at her, and gave her a gesture that was unrecognizable to most. "You must do as the Others do now, Ayla." Ayla returned his look, and stepped forward to choose what she wanted to eat.

As the evening progressed, the people continued to drink, and most thought of some reason or another to sit next to Ayla and Grov for at least a little while. Ayla was feeling happy that she had finally found her people, and that they seemed to accept her. She did notice that Ivanolia never talked to her or Grov, and that Danie was taking pains to stay away from her own mate, but Ayla was too affected by the wine to put too much thought into it. She was positively giddy from the drink.

Grov drank the bouza, but not too much as Jendoza had warned, and he was drawn into a conversation with some of the men on the hunting techniques of the Clan. "You say the women don't hunt?" Wäglodia said.

"They are not able to hunt. They have no memories for hunting," Grov said to the man. "Ayla is the only woman that ever wanted to hunt, and she has been punished twice for hunting when she was not allowed to."

Tagnolia frowned. "Punished? Why?"

"Well, not only are women unable to hunt, but they are also forbidden to hunt," Grov continued. "If a woman hunts, it carries the punishment of death."

"Death? Now that sounds extreme," Vilognia stated in a rather upset manner. He was thinking about his sister, Vinoza, and Vinoza's daughter, Evenora.

Grov could immediately see what he was thinking. "If you are wondering about your sister and her daughter, I will tell you that they too were forbidden to hunt, and they did not seem too upset by the Clan tradition. I have been told that Vinoza never really liked hunting anyway, and Evenora never really learned since an end was put to it before she could really start."

Tagnolia cut in. "So, how was Ayla punished for hunting?" he asked.

"I was not there when she was caught hunting the first time. The Clan was off hunting, and Ayla used a sling to save a child that had been taken by an animal. She had been practicing her sling in secret, but when she used it to save the child, her secret was revealed. The leader put a temporary death curse on her. She had to live away from the Clan for one cycle of the moon. Obviously she survived the death curse, and then they called her the Woman Who Hunts. She is the only Clan woman to have that name," Grov stated proudly.

"And what about the second time she was punished," Vincenzia asked.

"It was because of something she did while we were on the same hunt in which we found Jendoza and Braydalana," he said. "After Ayla became the Woman Who Hunts, she was allowed to hunt with a sling, but nothing else. On that hunt, Ayla saved the life of one of the Clan's little girls, but had to run from a bison that wanted to trample her. She ran, and grabbed a spear, and stabbed the bison in the eye. Again, she saved someone, and herself, but she touched a spear doing it. Our leader had to punish her, or the Clan's spirits might have because displeased with the Clan."

Gredenzia frowned. "That is very strange. Why would spirits become angered by women hunting?" he said, almost to himself. "So, what was Ayla's punishment for killing the bison."

"Brun, our leader, took her sling away, and burned it, then he forbid her to hunt for a half cycle of seasons," Grov said, then seeing the men frowning again, he added, "but she has been given the right to hunt with anything now. Our Clan's best sling maker made her a new sling. Our Clan's best toolmaker made her a spear, and our leader gave her a knife. I'd say that she has been rewarded for the tests her totem has put her through." Many of the men were nodding, thinking that the Clan was rather rigid, but also that Ayla had proved to them that she was worthy of their respect; and that in itself was worthy of respect in their eyes.

Ayla spent most of her time with her cousin Laurana, and really enjoyed the woman's company. They were very close in age, as well as in appearance, and their conversation never seemed to become exhausted. Laurana was extremely interested in the amulet that Ayla, and her family wore around their necks, and Ayla did her best to explain.

"These are our amulets," Ayla told the young woman, as she took it off and handed it to her. "They hold the spirit of our totems, the spirit of the whole Clan, and the spirit of ourselves. For me it holds the Spirit of the Cave Lion. Our Mog-ur, like your Shogur, once told me that if I lose my amulet, then my totem can not find me and I will die."

Laurana's eyes widened. "That would be terrible, Ayla. Do you think it is true?"

Ayla shrugged her shoulders. "There were stories at the Clan gathering about a few people who had died suddenly, and that their amulets were not around their necks when they were found dead. I do not know if it is true, but I would not take the chance." Laurana nodded, agreeing with Ayla that it would not be a good idea to tempt the spirits.

As celebrations usually went, the honoring of the Mother was a part. Slowly, as the night wore on, the people retreated to their hearths to honor properly. Laurana had explained this to Ayla, and Ayla wondered about it as she saw people leaving with people other than his or her mate. Clan men often signaled other men's mates, but usually on when their own mate was not there, and mostly with the permission of the woman's mate. Ayla noticed that no one actually signaled anyone else, and that it was just as much the woman's choice as to whose bed she would go to, or in the case of some, whom she would bring to her bed. It was all very interesting.

As many left, Ayla just sat there, waiting for her mate to come to her. When he did, they returned to the visitor's hearth, and honored the Mother with gusto.

**************************************************  
><strong>Fireside Chat<br>**

Ayla awoke with a buzzing sound in her ears, and a sharp pain in her head, and for a moment she forgot where she was. As her eyes focused on her surroundings and her memory returned, she smiled. She was in her people's earthlodge. After staring at the ceiling of the lodge for a moment, she looked at Grov; he appeared to be sleeping soundly. Then she turned her head to look at her children; they too slept. Ayla decided that she could not wait to pass water, and got up to use the night basket that Jendoza told her about. As she stood up, her head pounded painfully, and she thought about Jendoza's warning against consuming too much bouza or wine. When the woman finished passing her water, she picked up her medicine bag, then left the hearth. She needed to make some tea.

Once in the Cooking Hearth, Ayla glanced around. She didn't know how to use their cooking area, so she decided to put on some water over the central fire to make a painkilling tea. While she waited, she thought about the night before, and looked around the hearth. No one else was awake. Ayla wondered about how early it was, and decided to go look at the sun's position while the water heated. Ayla crossed the Cooking Hearth, entered the entry area, and put on her warm traveling clothes and cloak, then exited the lodge.

When she got outside, she breathed deeply; the air was still and Ayla could feel that spring was on its way. It was crisp and cold, but the air did not have the touch of frost that had been apparent just days before. After breathing the clean air for a moment, the woman looked around. The land on the southern side of Oak Camp's earthlodge was rather flat, and its slope toward the sea was almost unnoticeable. Ayla could see that it did slope, but only slightly.

Ayla could just barely make out the sea that was straight ahead of her, but far off in the distance. As she stood there staring, she thought about some of the food she had tried the night before, and decided that it was good that Oak Camp was positioned right next to the sea; for they used plenty of salt in their cooking. She wondered if all the Sungaea people used a lot of salt, or if Oak Camp used more because of where they were.

After gazing at the distant sea for some time, Ayla looked left, then right, then she started to walk around the lodge, so that she could see more. She walked around the western end first, since it was the closest end, and looked up at the hills that rose behind the lodge. They too were off in the distance, but they were easily seen, because they rose tall. Ayla noticed that the northern entrance looked similar to the southern entrance, and she knew that it opened up into the Cook Hearth. She continued to walk; now in an eastern direction.

As Ayla walked, she continued to breath deep, and rounded the corner of the lodge to find Ivanolia standing in its entrance staring out at the rising sun. "Oh, sorry, Ivanolia," Ayla said, as she stepped back. "I did not mean to disturb you." Ayla could tell he had been avoiding her the night before. She did not know why, really, but it made her nervous.

Ivanolia looked down at the woman that looked so much like his sisters, and gave her a stiff smile. "You are not disturbing me. I am just watching the sun come up, and thinking."

Ayla narrowed her eyes at the man, but he did not see, he wasn't even looking at her anymore. "Hummm, yes, it is beautiful, isn't it?" she said, looking at the rising sun.

"Yes, very," he said, then he said nothing more.

Ayla stood there, staring at the rising sun, but the uncomfortable silence made her look back at the man. "Well, I was just looking around. I am making tea for my headache, so I better get back inside. The water is probably already boiling," Ayla said, as she started for the eastern entrance. He still did not say anything, so she continued on.

Once back inside, Ayla walked slowly through the passageway toward the Cooking Hearth. She noticed the two rooms immediately inside the lodge, but did not know what they were for. Then, she noticed the food storage area, and some empty hearths. She continued on.

As she passed Vincenzia's hearth, she glanced at the closed curtain, then stopped and smiled. I cannot believe I have found my people, she thought. As she stood there staring, the curtain was pushed aside, and Danie appeared.

"Oh Danie, I am sorry to be just standing here staring," Ayla whispered. "I was just out walking."

"That is okay Ayla. I needed to pass water, but I have headache, so I get up," Danie said, putting two fingers to her left temple.

"I have a headache too, so I am making a painkilling tea. Do you want some?"

Danie smiled at the younger woman, and nodded. She started to walk with Ayla toward the Cooking Hearth, but glanced down the passage toward Ivanolia's hearth. Ayla hadn't been in there yet, but she knew that the woman was looking for Ivanolia. "Ivanolia is outside, that way," Ayla said pointing back in the direction that they had come. Danie looked over her shoulder toward the back entrance, wondering how the woman knew who she was looking for, or that she was looking for someone at all.

"It is good that I found you, Danie," Ayla said with a smile. "I might have gone exploring some more, and never made it back to the Cooking Hearth for my tea."

Danie smiled at the woman. "I don't know how you forget. Your headache must not be as bad as mine is." Danie paused for a minute. "How you know I was looking for Ivan?"

Ayla smiled, then shrugged. "I know you and Ivanolia are mated, and that you did not go back to his hearth last night . . . even though you wanted to."

"Is it that obvious?" Danie asked, as a frown creased her forehead.

"To me it is. As a Clan woman, I am trained to see more than what is said. It is the Clan way. Besides, I can see that you love him, and that you are having trouble. Anyone could see that. Why didn't you go back to his hearth last night?" Ayla asked innocently.

Danie frowned. "We had a fight, and I moved out," she said sadly.

"Danie, I can tell that Ivanolia does not like me . . . or maybe it is the Clan that he does not like. Is that right?"

"Oh Ayla, he not dislike you, it's just . . . well . . . he has trouble with you being mated to a man of Clan. He not think that our women should do that," Danie said. Ayla frowned. "That is why we fight actually. It is common among our people to dislike the Clan. He is not alone. This could be hard on you and your family."

Ayla continued to frown, still wondering why people hated the Clan so much. "But you don't seem to dislike the Clan, Danie. Why?"

Danie smiled. This woman is very intuitive, she thought. "My mother is related to the Headman of Lion Camp of the Mamutoi. They have a mixed boy living there. The boy and I are second cousins . . . sort of. He was not born to headman's mate, but they raised him as own, so we are related. Most Mamutoi do not accept the child, or the Clan, but he is just another child to me."

Ayla was very interested. A Clan boy, raised by the Others, just as she was raised by the Clan. "That seems strange that your people would raise a Clan child, since they do not like the Clan."

"Well, Nezzie, the headman's mate, had just had a baby of her own, and she didn't mind offering the boy her breast. And Talut, the headman, and her mate, did not care what others thought." As Danie continued to talk, she slowly shifted back and forth from Sungaea to Mamutoi, and back again. They continued speaking, without realizing that they were speaking a mixed up version of the two languages, and Ayla was learning some of the Mamutoi language in the process.

As they spoke, Ayla and Danie drank their tea, and soon their headaches were gone. "It is strange how much your son looks like Nezzie's boy, Rydag. They could almost be brothers, accept that Rydag is very sickly."

"Sickly? What is wrong with Rydag?" Ayla asked.

"I don't know Ayla. I do not know anything about medicine or sickness, but if you come with us to the Mamutoi summer meeting, then you can meet him and find out," Danie said, then she paused. "But you probably want to go to the Sungaea summer meeting, don't you?"

Ayla frowned. "I will go to whatever summer meeting that Vincenzia goes to Danie, but I would really like to meet Rydag, and the woman that took him in." Danie smiled, and drank more of her tea.

Laurana woke, and looked at Brulenzia. The man was still sleeping so she quietly slipped out of bed to use the night basket. When she was finished, she listened carefully; someone else was awake, she thought, the lodge does not feel silent.

Pulling on her leggings, and camp shoes, the young woman crept out of the hearth. As she left, she peeked into her brother's hearth, and noticed that the man's bed was empty, then she went to the Cooking Hearth. "Good morning Ayla, Danie," she said with a smile.

Ayla smiled broadly at her cousin. "Do you want some tea, Laurana?"

"Yes, have some tea. Ayla's tea is like magic; it took my headache away," Danie replied with a grin, making Laurana nod.

"What are you two doing up so early?" Laurana asked.

"Well, I needed to use the night basket, then I discovered that I needed a painkilling tea for my headache," Ayla replied.

"I needed the night basket too, then I heard someone stirring; it was Ayla," Danie said.

"Hummmm, I noticed that Ivan is not in his bed," Laurana said looking around. "I thought he would be in here."

Danie frowned, and her eyes instantly glistened. "He is outside," Ayla said. "I went for a walk, and found him sitting out there, watching the sun come up. Here Laurana," Ayla finished, handing the woman some tea.

Laurana took the cup, and sat down next to Danie. "Don't cry Danie. Ivan will shape up," she said glancing at Ayla. She did not know if Ayla knew what the problem was. "He just has to, doesn't he?"

Danie smiled. "Well, you know how stubborn he can be Laurana. I not be surprised if it takes a long time"

Ayla knew that Laurana was purposely avoiding the true topic, and wanted the woman to know that she knew. "Laurana, I know what Ivanolia thinks of my mating, and he can think what he wishes. My mate is good to me, and that is all that matters. Ivanolia will have to get over his problem on his own. I will be patient."

Laurana smiled. "I will help if I can, Ayla."

Ivanolia sat outside thinking for sometime. Then a cool breeze came and gave him a chill. That caused him to go back inside. The man walked into the back entry, stripped off his outer clothing, then started walking down the passageway. When he got to the turn that would take him to his own hearth, he glanced toward the Cooking Hearth. He could just make out Danie, Laurana and Ayla sitting there drinking tea and talking:

_Laurana, I know what Ivanolia thinks of my mating, and he can think what he wishes. My mate is good to me, and that is all that matters. Ivanolia will have to get over his problem on his own. I will be patient._

I will help if I can, Ayla.

My problem, he thought with a scowl. This is _her_ problem. I am not the only one that thinks bad of the _Clan_. She will see when we get to the summer meeting. Ivanolia continued to watch the women, but his thoughts turned to his missing mate. They had not been mated long, and she had already moved out. Maybe this _was_his problem too, he thought. As he thought about the situation, and watched, Grov appeared. Ivanolia shrank back slightly, but continued to watch the scene.

Grov awoke, and immediately noticed his missing mate. He too glanced at the sleeping children, and noted that Annaliza was stirring a bit, but was still sleeping. The man rolled out of bed, pulled on his leggings, and left the hearth.

Ayla, who had been vaguely aware that her mate was moving around within the hearth, had started to make another cup of tea. She reached into her medicine bag, pulled out what her mate liked in his morning tea, then added it to the painkilling tea. When the man arrived, she handed him the cup, and he smiled. Danie and Laurana smiled as well. "Good morning Grov," Danie said. "How is your head this morning?"

The man sat down next to his mate, but looked at the woman that had spoken. "It hurts. What is in that bouza that makes you feel so good when you're drinking it, but terrible the next day?"

Danie smiled. "I don't know, but Ayla's tea sure helps."

Ayla smiled at her mate, and kissed his cheek. "Are you okay?"

"I am fine. I guess I didn't listen to Jendoza's warning about drinking too much of that stuff."

"None of us did," Danie giggled. "But then, we never do; it is too much fun to drink. Ayla will have to make her morning after tea every time we drink, so we don't have such bad next days."

Laurana watched them talk, then turned toward Ayla, "Ayla, can I ask you something?" Ayla nodded. "How did you know that Grov was coming?" she asked.

"I could hear that he was awake," Ayla said.

"But it could have been one of the children," she went on. "How did you know that it was Grov, and not one of them?"

"It did not sound like one of the children. I know what my mate sounds like. We have been mated for quite a while," Ayla replied.

Laurana frowned. "Hummm, I'm not sure I would know it was Brulenzia approaching when I didn't see him. I don't understand how you could know."

"Laurana, a good Clan woman is aware of much more than what can be heard, or what the eye can see." She paused for a moment, then continued. "For instance," she said looking at Danie. "Someone else is watching us right now. Someone who misses you very much."

Danie frowned, then spun around to look into the dark passageway. She looked just in time to see a small amount of blond hair disappearing behind the passage wall. Danie looked back at Ayla. "How you know that, Ayla? You never looked down there, did you?"

"No, I did not, but I could feel that he was watching us, couldn't you?"

Danie frowned. "Well, maybe I could."

**Umm...looks like I stopped naming my chapters right here! So sorry!**

"You're right Ayla," Danie said. "I _could_feel eyes watching us, but I not recognize it until you say something. I have not taught myself to be so aware. Why do Clan woman have to be aware of so much?"

Ayla glanced at Grov, who returned her look, then she turned back to Laurana and Danie, both of whom had their eyes focused solely on their female visitor. "Well, Clan women are different than Others women; women like you. I mean us," Ayla said blushing. "In fact, all the Clan people are different than the Others, though not different like most of the Others think. They are people, just like us, but their ways are so ancient. They have been around a lot longer than we have, and they rely on their memories to know what they are supposed to do. For instance, the men do not have memories for cooking, so they need women to cook for them so that they can survive."

Laurana smiled. "Well, that's not much different than our men," she giggled, and Danie smiled too.

"No," Ayla said. "Clan men are _almost_completely incapable of cooking. They would starve without having their woman to cook for them."

Danie frowned. "From what I've heard," she said, as she turned to look at Grov. "Clan men not very nice to their women. Why do women put up with it if they are indispensable?" Danie was afraid she was asking a rude question, and didn't want the man to be angry with her, but she really didn't understand. Grov recognized her confusion and waited to see what Ayla would say.

Ayla thought for a moment. "Well first, I would not say that Clan men are not nice to their women; they just do things differently than Others men do, and Clan women accept their life the way it is. It is all they have ever known. It is the Clan way. Secondly, just as the Clan men could not survive without the Clan women, the Clan women could not live without the men either. Clan woman are incapable of hunting; they would never even think of trying. That is also the Clan way. So, without the men, they too would die. So you see, _both_are indispensable. Neither can survive without the other."

Laurana frowned. "But you hunt Ayla. What did they think of your hunting?"

Ayla smiled, and looked at her mate. "I was not allowed to hunt for many years," she said, turning back to the two women. "They did not understand why I even thought about picking up a sling, but I do not have their memories. For me, it was completely natural to pick up a sling and attempt to use it. The first time I was caught hunting, I was saving the life of the leader's mate's son's mate's son, but it did not matter; I was punished with a death curse for one cycle of the moon. No one thought I'd return, but I did, and our leader allowed me to hunt with only a sling, since that was the weapon I had used to save the boy. For many years that is all I hunted with, but then a day came when I came face to face with a charging bison. I was running from it, and trying to keep a little girl from being trampled, and I did not even think, I just picked up a spear and killed it."

Danie's eyes were wide. "What did your leader do to you then." Laurana was looking at Ayla and nodding with an expression that repeated what Danie had said, but it was Grov that answered the women.

"Ayla was pregnant at the time, and Brun did not want curse her in that condition. He also knew that cursing Ayla would upset the spirits, and he did not want to do that either. Besides, she had just saved another life, and he wanted to discuss the matter with our Mog-ur before he made a decision."

Ayla watched her mate talk to these women, and noted how comfortable he was with discussing things with women other than herself; no other Clan man would have been able to do this, she thought. She smiled, happy that he was not as nervous as he had seemed the day before. "Our leader is a very fair leader. I did expect to be punished, and I was; my hunting privileges were completely taken away for a long time, but now I have them back, _and_ I am now allowed to hunt with my sling and a spear, _and_the leader has given me a knife, which the woman are not allowed to use, unless using it for cutting food." Ayla smiled. It was obvious that she was proud of her accomplishment, and by the look in Grov's eyes, so was he. Ayla was just about to continue speaking, but she stopped. "I need to go get the girls before they wake Durc," she said, and stood up, then left. Grov watched his mate go, then poured himself some more tea.

Laurana watched the man with a confused look. "So, if Clan men cannot cook, then how can you make yourself some tea?"

Grov smiled. "Well, I am not _really_ making the tea; Ayla made it earlier. I am just pouring it, but most Clan men can make themselves a cup of tea. They just don't usually do it, since the women always do it for them," he said. "_But_, you must remember that I am not full Clan; I am not even half Clan, so I am not as incapable of changing my ways, or as rigid about what is woman's work. I am actually capable of cooking some things, but I am perfectly happy to let Ayla cook; she is so good at it, and doesn't seem to mind that I do not help her."

"What do you mean, 'I don't seem to mind that you do not help me,'" Ayla said, as she returned with a daughter under each arm. "You help plenty," she smiled down at her mate and handed him Ora. "I have never been so happy as I am right now with you."

Grov grinned up at her, and accepted the child that put arms around his bare chest. "Grov, I want something to eat," the child said.

"In a minute Ora," Ayla said. "Let me nurse Annaliza first, then I will make you something to eat."

Danie popped up. "I will get her something to eat, Ayla, you nurse your baby."

"I will help you Danie. Everyone will be up soon anyway, we might as well get things started," Laurana got up to help the woman, as Ayla settled in to feed her baby.

Jendoza heard her son becoming restless, and rolled over to look over at him. Then she glanced at Donzolnia and smiled, remembering that he had consumed a lot of bouza the night before. He would sleep late, she was sure.

She carefully scooted off of their bed platform, dressed quickly, then scooped up her son, and left the hearth. Ivanolia's curtain was closed, but it was moving, as if someone had just gone through it, so she scratched on it, and waited.

"Come in," called a quiet voice from the other side.

Jendoza pushed the curtain aside, and stepped in. Ivanolia looked terrible. "Didn't you sleep?" she asked, knowing full well that he did not. He too had consumed a lot of bouza, but he had been drowning his sorrow over Danie leaving the hearth, and not celebrating like everyone else.

Ivanolia looked up at his sister and shook his head, then smiled at her. "Even if Danie had been here, I would not have slept; it is not good having a hearth in between my two little sisters."

Jendoza laughed. "Well, we are not so little anymore, are we?" she said, sitting down. The woman opened her tunic, put her son to her breast, and looked around the hearth. "I see that you have been up for a while, huh?"

Ivanolia looked around, then down at his wet boots. "Yeah, I was outside thinking."

"And spying?" Jendoza said with a smile.

Ivanolia looked at her innocently, then laughed. "I can't fool you, can I?"

Jendoza smiled again at her brother. "So, where's Braydalana?"

"Either at mother's, or with Crisana. I'm not sure," the man said. "I'm hoping that she's with mother."

Jendoza frowned, knowing that Ivanolia's 'hope' was due to the fact that Crisana was Ayla's sister. "Ivan, what is wrong with you? Why can't you just admit that you are wrong? Wrong about Ayla . . . wrong about the Clan . . . just wrong." Jendoza could see the man stiffen up immediately, and she shook her head. He is not ready to admit anything, she realized. She readjusted her son, then stood up. "Well, I hope you will change your mind soon; before you lose Danie. You know those Mamutoi people say and do what they are thinking, and I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't budge on this. After all, she is related to a camp that accepts the Clan as people," she said, and with that, she left her brother's hearth.

Jendoza glanced in Brulenzia's hearth before she left, but seeing that Laurana was not there, and that Brulenzia was still asleep, she left for the Cooking Hearth.

Danie was just handing Ora a plate of food when Jendoza arrived, so the woman slipped in and sat down on Grov's right. Ayla was sitting on his other side, and was still nursing Annaliza, but the child was essentially finished. When Annaliza saw Jendoza sit down with the baby, she immediately pulled away, stood up, then toddled over to the woman and baby.

"Baby, Mamma, baby," she gestured to her mother.

Ayla smiled. "Yes Anna, he's a _new_baby," Ayla gestured back, and spoke out loud.

Annaliza smiled, and said out loud, "New baby?"

"Yes Anna, new baby is right. Teglodia is a new baby; he was born not too long ago," Ayla said.

Annaliza was silent for a moment, and stared at Teglodia, then looked back at her mother, and gestured, "I not a baby anymore Mamma." Ayla smiled. "Me big girl now; like Ora."

Ora shoveled a bite into her mouth, and gestured at the same time, "I am much bigger than you Anna. I am three now," she said holding up three fingers and looking to Grov for confirmation. He nodded.

Laurana sat down, shaking her head. "It is amazing how much can be said with hands alone. I would never have guessed."

"You are right Laurana," Jendoza agreed. "You should see how much Braydalana learned while we were with the Clan, and how unbelievably quiet the Clan is since they do not talk as much as we do. _And_, how much younger their children are when they walk and talk, and do everything else. Even though there is not much Clan in Annaliza, and we can't see it at all, it is obvious that she's part Clan just by how well she walks and talks."

"You know Ayla," Danie said from across the Cooking Hearth, "You should teach Rydag to speak like Clan. He not able to talk. Maybe people think more of him if he could. Maybe they think more of Clan if they see him talk like Clan."

Ayla smiled, but Grov spoke up. "He probably has the Clan memories, and would only need to be reminded of the signs. Most likely it would be easy for him." Grov looked at his mate. "Maybe we should go visit the Mamutoi so we can meet the boy."

"Yes, that sounds like a good idea," Ayla said with a smile. "When does everyone leave for the summer meeting?" Ayla asked Danie.

"I not know actually, this is my first year here," she said.

"We have to wait for the spring rains to come and go first. The way would be very muddy if left too soon," Jendoza filled in. "It's already muddy from the snow melt, but not too bad yet since it's still cold."

Laurana frowned. "So you're going to the Mamutoi summer meeting instead of the Sungaea summer meeting? I was hoping you would be there when my baby is born. Jendoza tells us that you are a healer."

"I don't know Laurana . . . I do want to be there when your baby is born. Maybe we could go see the Mamutoi before the rains come, so that we can go to the Sungaea summer meeting too. That way we get to meet the Mamutoi and help Rydag, _and_visit with the Sungaea too. What do you think of that?"

"Well, _I_think it's a brilliant idea!" boomed a voice in the opening to the Cooking Hearth.

"Vincenzia," Ayla said, when she turned around and saw him standing there. She got up, and went to him. "Do you really think we could do that?"

The man brushed her cheek with his, and smiled down at her. "Yes daughter, I do. That way we can see everyone. I have not been to a Sungaea summer meeting since the summer before last, and I don't want to miss this summer. But, at the same time, I do not want to miss seeing the Mamutoi either." He smiled broadly, then turned around to see Darvie coming up the passageway. "Darvie! Ayla has just come up with a wonderful idea . . . she wants to travel to meet Lion Camp, and Rydag, before the rains come, so that we can still see them even though it's the year we're supposed to summer with the Sungaea. What do you think?"

The dark haired woman grinned. "That would be fantastic Ayla," she said and hugged the young woman. "I'm not sure what my mother will think; she doesn't like the cold, much less traveling in it, but the idea is a very good one indeed."

**New chapter...**

"So let me get this straight," Tagnolia said, "you want to leave now, before the rains come, to visit with Lion Camp, then come to the Sungaea summer meeting later?"

Vincenzia nodded. "Well yes, leave here in the next couple of days. That way Ayla can teach Rydag to speak in the Clan way, and Travie, Darvie and Danie can see their kin, _and_so we can attend the Sungaean summer meeting too. Don't you think it is a perfect solution?" he said looking at his brother.

Vilognia was frowning. "I guess so. It's just that we haven't gotten to know Ayla and her family yet. I'm sure Jendoza and Laurana don't want their cousin to leave already."

"Oh Vil," Serana cut in, "they'll be back. Vincenzia already said they'd come to the Sungaea meeting."

Zarina was looking nervous; her son's promised would be having a baby soon. "But _when_will they be back? Laurana will deliver soon, and we don't have another healer."

"I am not really a healer anyway, Zarina," Travie said. "I can deliver babies, but I am not really a healer. You know that."

"But Ayla is. She should be here for Laurana," Zarina said.

Ayla watched the people and wondered what the fuss was all about. Laurana still had over two moons before she would have her baby, and they wouldn't be gone that long would they? "I know from experience that Brulenzia can deliver a baby too. Why couldn't he do it if we are not back when the baby comes?" Ayla asked.

Brulenzia's head snapped up, but he didn't have time to say anything, because Fraylora was speaking. "Ayla, men don't usually attend the birth of their own mate's child. If something goes wrong, he shouldn't be there; it's too painful," she said looking at Ivanolia, who was sitting off a ways, not joining the conversation.

Ayla nodded. She had heard the story of Braydalana's mother, and knew that Ivanolia had suffered much pain. She also knew that it had helped Jendoza to have her mate there, and that Brulenzia could do the same for Laurana. "Well then, maybe Laurana could come with us then, so she will be with us no matter what."

"NO!" Ivanolia said, suddenly on his feet. It was almost a shout. "I will not have you delivering my sister's baby, no matter where she gives birth, and it won't be at Lion Camp with that flathead child."

For a moment there was silence, then everyone started shouting at once. Ayla's eyes widened at the level of noise that was being generated by these people, and picked up her two daughters, and stepped slightly behind Grov. Grov looked angry, but also shocked by the noise, and picked up Durc.

Laurana stood very near to Grov and Ayla, and was staring at the people that were discussing her situation as if she wasn't even there, and didn't have a choice in the matter. She looked at Brulenzia, who had been sitting with Ivanolia before the man jumped up; he too seemed confused. He wasn't saying anything either, but when he noticed her look, he came over to her, and hugged her. "What do you want to do, Laurana? I will do whatever you want to do," he said to her.

"I . . . don't . . . know. I . . ." she said in gasps.

Ayla suddenly realized that Laurana was having a hard time breathing, and turned to Grov. "Grov, help Laurana," she said, setting the girls down, and going to the woman. Grov set Durc down, gesturing to the boy to stay with his sisters, and caught Laurana just as she fainted.

Everyone else was so busy arguing that they didn't even notice Laurana go down. Ayla looked around at the people, then at Brulenzia. "We need to make her comfortable. Do you mind if we take her to the visitor's hearth?" Brulenzia shook his head, and Grov picked up the unconscious woman that had fallen into his arms, while Ayla and Brulenzia brought the children.

Inside the visitor's hearth Grov laid Laurana down on their bed platform, and Ayla got a piece of leather wet to wipe down the woman's face. Laurana woke immediately at Ayla touch, and saw the three concerned faces looking down at her. "Laurana, are you okay?" Brulenzia asked.

"Yes, I am fine. Everyone yelling just made me feel light headed, but I am fine." She tried to sit up, but felt a little queasy still. Grov helped her, and Ayla handed her a cup of tea.

"This tea should help Laurana," Ayla said. "And, I am sorry to have caused such a problem. I did not mean to upset Ivanolia. I just want to be able to help Rydag, but I want to be here for you too, if you want me to be. It seems that Ivanolia doesn't want us here."

Laurana smiled. "I have plenty of time before I give birth, I don't see how you going to visit Lion Camp as a problem. We will probably be at the summer meeting when I give birth anyway, even though I'd rather give birth here, so I don't see how you going there early will affect me. I am sorry about Ivanolia. He has always been very stubborn, but I didn't expect him to be down right mean." Laurana looked at Grov, and started to cry. "I am so sorry Grov," she said, with tears coming down her cheeks.

"Laurana, it is not your fault that he does not like us. Do not be concerned," Grov replied. Grov was still angry at the prejudiced man, but Laurana's tears were enough to persuade him to calm down. She looked so much like Ayla that he could not help but feel like he wanted to make her happy.

When she was sure Grov was not upset, she looked at Brulenzia, who was holding her hand firmly. "So, do you want to go with Ayla to visit the Mamutoi, or stay here and wait for her to return?" Brulenzia asked.

"I'm not sure. I don't like the idea of not having a healer here; just in case," Laurana whined. "Maybe we should go. Would you mind too much if we go?"

Brulenzia shook his head. "I will go wherever go want to go Laurana; even if we have to fight Ivan to get there," he said with a smile. She smiled back.

Outside the visitor's hearth, the noise level was growing and nothing was being solved. Danie had marched over to her mate, and was yelling at him in his face, but the man understood none of it, because everyone was yelling, _and_because she was speaking Mamutoi. This was the first time she had tried to talk to him since she packed up her belongings and moved out, so he wanted to hear her. It was just too loud. Then, he realized that everyone had stopped yelling and he could only hear Danie, but he still couldn't understand her. When she took a breath, he cut in. "Danie, you have to speak Sungaea; I don't know what you are saying."

Danie took her breath, then she took another, then she looked up at him and calmly said, "I am going to Lion Camp with Ayla. You not have to come if not want to, but you better think hard. Lion Camp and Rydag are my family. Ayla and Durc are your family. Not matter what type of people they are; only important that they are family."

"No, you are not going. You are my mate," Ivanolia said stubbornly.

"Yes, Ivan, I am going," she countered.

"Well, I'm not going," he replied, crossing his arms over his chest, and turning slightly away from her.

"Did you lose your hearing, I said you not have to come if you not want to, but I am going," she said defiantly up into his face. He stood there for a moment, then stalked away. Everyone watched him go, then they started looking around, wondering where Ayla and her family were, and Brulenzia and Laurana for that matter.

After watching her son's hasty retreat, Serana looked around for her daughter with a worried expression. Jendoza came up to her mother, and smiled. "I will find them mother," she said, handing Teglodia to his grandmother. It was not really like her mother to worry, so Jendoza knew her mother was really upset.

Jendoza hadn't seen Laurana faint, but she had seen Ayla and Grov standing off to the side looking worried, and she knew her sister had been with them, so she went to the visitor's hearth, and scratched on the curtain.

"Ayla? Grov?" she called out, and was let in by Durc. The boy looks confused, Jendoza thought. I would be too if my family treated _me_this way. Jendoza smiled down at him, which elicited a smile in return. Durc knew that Jendoza was a friend, as well as family.

Then, seeing Laurana still lying down, Jendoza rushed to her side. "What happened?" she asked, looking at Ayla.

"Laurana fainted, but she is okay. She might have stood up too fast, but it could have been the excitement," Ayla said. "I have given her a calming tea. She will be alright."

Jendoza smiled at her cousin, "Thank you Ayla. I remember how well your calming tea works, and I am so sorry about Ivan," she said, with a look that was pleading for understanding. "I didn't know he would cause so much trouble, but I'm afraid _he_won't be the worst of it. The beliefs he holds are ingrained deeply into our people. This new knowledge will be very difficult for many to accept; much more difficult than I thought it would be."

Ayla nodded. "I think I understand. I did not know it would be this hard with family. I'm sure it will be harder with those that are not family, but as I told Laurana and Danie, I can be patient." Ayla looked at Grov. "If you can, Grov." He smiled, and nodded.

Jendoza nodded as well, then looked back at her sister. "Mother is worried about you, and Ivanolia too I'm sure. Let's get you back out there, so she can see that at least one of you will be alright." Brulenzia helped the pregnant woman up, and they all left the hearth.

Ivanolia had stalked through the long passageway, intent on going to his hearth, but changed his mind and went toward the back entrance of the earthlodge. In the back entry, he pulled on his parka, and stormed out.

What is wrong with them? All of them, he thought. Not one of them seemed to share his feelings. These were the people that had instilled in him the beliefs he held, and they weren't backing him up. Not even Brulenzia, and Laurana was _his_promised. Didn't the man care if his mate gave birth to an abomination. I do, Ivanolia thought. I don't want my sister giving birth to a flathead. What is wrong with these people? What is wrong with Laurana? Doesn't she care?

And Danie, his own mate, was actually going to leave him to go visit the Mamutoi with Ayla and her abomination family, to help teach that mixed up perversion that that crazy Mamutoi woman took in. He couldn't believe it.

Ivanolia hadn't gone very far when he realized he had forgotten his gloves. It _was_spring, but it was still very cold out, and the wind was biting. He shoved his hands up under his parka and shivered. The man stood looking out over the frozen river, which they called Oak River, and tried to sort out his feelings.

**New chapter...**

As the day wore on, and Ivanolia didn't return, Danie began to question her harshness with him. She still believed he was wrong, and she had no intention of backing down, but she didn't like that he was now somewhere outside in the blowing wind, and without his gloves she had noticed.

Darvie was angry with Ivanolia too, but she also felt bad for her sister, and tried to reassure her that Ivanolia would be fine. "He will come back when he's ready Danie. He knows not to stay out too long."

"But he left his hand coverings here," Danie whined in Mamutoi, as she held up the man's gloves. "Maybe I shouldn't have yelled at him."

Darvie sighed. "Danie, Ivanolia is wrong, and he's acting like a child. Don't you dare back down."

"I know Darvie, and I will not back down, but that doesn't make it any easier; I'm scared for him." She didn't mention that she was scared for herself as well; she still loved the man, even if he was being narrow-minded. "What if he's out there somewhere hurt?"

"What if we ask Donzolnia to go look him," Darvie suggested. "There's no one closer to Ivanolia than Donzolnia. I'm sure he'd go if we asked him to." Danie nodded, and followed her sister from the back entrance toward the Cooking Hearth.

In the Cooking Hearth, the people were discussing the trip to the Mamutoi again, and this time it was Serana that was objecting to Laurana's plan to go with them. "But Ayla says she will be back before the baby comes Laurana. There's no need for you to go with them."

"But mother, what if they don't return by the time my baby is born for one reason or another? Or, what if my baby comes early? That is possible too. With Travie _and_Ayla gone, I will have no one to help me. I really think it is best. Besides, I would love to meet the Mamutoi."

Serana frowned, but could not think of anything to say, so she dropped her objection. Technically her daughter still lived in her hearth, which made the young woman still under the control of her mother, but Laurana was now a woman, pregnant, promised, _and_essentially living with Brulenzia. Forcing her to stay would only cause a rift to form between them, and Serana did not want that.

Vincenzia looked from mother to daughter, then back to mother, and finally smiled when he knew the objection was dropped. "Okay, with that settled, when shall we leave?" Vincenzia asked.

"Well, how long will it take to get there?" Grov asked, with a concerned tone.

"Hummm, well that depends on the way we go. I would suggest that we head west this time, then turn north after we cross the Big River, and travel over some of the higher lands; that will keep us away from much of the mud, if it's already getting muddy. It should only take us about nine days to get there if we go that way. I think that would be the easiest way to go," Vincenzia finished.

Grov thought for a moment. "And the rains, when will they start?"

"That could be anytime now. It's already spring, so they should be here any day; not to mention the snow melt, but it will be colder up on the highlands. You could still get some snow, but not likely very much," Tagnolia answered.

"Then we should leave as soon as possible," Ayla suggested. "I do not want to endanger Laurana, or any of the children if it can be helped. What do you think Gredenzia?" Ayla said, turning toward Oak Camp's Shogur, thinking that he must know about such things.

"Yes Ayla, I think that you are right. I would suggest that you leave tomorrow if possible," he said. "I know you haven't been here long, and we haven't had much time to get to know you yet, but it would be best if you could get there before the rivers swell too much."

"Okay then, it's settled, we leave tomorrow," Vincenzia replied happily. "Where's Darvie? I want to tell her when we're leaving."

"I'm right here, and it all sounds good, but I'm hoping someone can go look for Ivanolia. He's been outside too long, and he forgot his hand coverings," Darvie said as she entered the Cooking Hearth, then she looked at Donzolnia. "Donzolnia, would you mind going out to look for him?"

"No, not at all. Brulenzia and Tinozia can come with me," he said with a smile. The other two men nodded and the three of them headed out of the Cooking Hearth to get their warm clothing, then left to go find their sullen friend.

The three men searched for some time before they finally found Ivanolia, and it was close to dusk when they did. He had dug himself a niche in a snow bank facing Oak River, and was just sitting there shivering. Donzolnia saw him first and threw him his gloves. "What in Sumata's name are you trying to do? Kill yourself! Danie's worried sick, and that's exactly what you're going to be if you don't get back to the lodge soon, and with no healer to heal you. And _no_, Danie hasn't changed her mind about go to the Mamutoi, and neither has Laurana."

Ivanolia threw Donzolnia a dirty look, then looked away. Donzolnia didn't miss the look, or Ivanolia's attempt to hide that fact that he was freezing. "What in the Mother's frozen world are you thinking? At least come back and sit by your own fire." Brulenzia and Tinozia came up behind Donzolnia, and Ivanolia glared at them too.

"How can you let my sister go off with . . . with those flatheads, to visit other people with a flathead?" he asked Brulenzia.

Brulenzia sighed. "First of all, _Ayla_ is your cousin, and you should show more respect for her family. They are good people. Yes, Ivan, people! And second, no one _lets_Laurana do anything. You know as well as I do that I can't stop her from doing anything she wants to do. She wants to go, and we'll have no healer here after Travie and Ayla leave, so it's probably for the best anyway."

"Healer, humpf! We have no healer here anyway," Ivanolia interrupted.

"Now wait a minute," Donzolnia interrupted. "I have seen Ayla help many sick and injured people. She is among the best healers I have every seen, and she learned it all from the Clan. Those Clan medicine women are very skilled. _And_, she has delivered many babies, including Jendoza's son. I am not worried about Laurana or her baby, and neither it seems is Bru. Why are you so adamant?"

"Because they are FLATHEADS!" Ivanolia yelled into the wind. "They are going to draw a flathead spirit into my sister and I couldn't stand that!"

"This is ridiculous Ivan! Ayla has only one _Clan_son, and he was birthed when there were no people like us there. Then, when Grov was there, she gave birth to a normal looking baby, and Evenora's daughter is normal too," Brulenzia screamed. "There is no reason to think Laurana's baby will be mixed." Brulenzia paused, as if thinking deeply, then went on. "And so what if the baby is mixed," he said. "If I can handle it, then why can't you? I love Laurana, no matter what kind of child she gives birth to."

"And besides," Donzolnia yelled to be heard above the wind, "Jendoza says that Ayla believes babies are made when a man puts his manhood inside a woman. If that is true, then there is nothing to worry about; Laurana hasn't shared pleasures with anyone but Brulenzia."

Tinozia hadn't said anything, and he hadn't heard about Ayla's beliefs, but he was really interested in talking to the young woman. This was very interesting. This would change everything if it was true, he thought.

The men finally got Ivanolia to go back to the lodge, but he went straight to his hearth, and shut the curtain. Brulenzia informed him that they were leaving in the morning, but Ivanolia didn't even acknowledge the information. Brulenzia left to help Laurana pack up.

"Well, any luck with Ivan," Laurana whispered when Brulenzia entered the hearth. He shook his head, and she frowned. Then, she turned her attention back to packing. "Okay, this is what I want to take," she said, indicating the huge pile on the bed platform.

"Laurana, we can't take all of that," he said, looking at the heap, and shaking his head.

"Sure we can. Did you see how much stuff Grov and Ayla brought with them?"

"Yes, but they only traveled for three days," he said. "This journey is going to take at least nine days, and we will probably have four flowing rivers to cross; cold ones. We have to bring less."

Laurana frowned, and began sorting through her belongings, while Brulenzia chose what he would bring. When they finished, they carried everything to the Cooking Hearth to have it ready for the morning, and set it by everyone else's traveling gear.

As they were eating their evening meal, Ayla was looking at the enormous stack of things to go with them, and wondered how large Lion Camp's lodge was. "Vincenzia, will Lion Camp have room for this many people? There are . . . thirteen of us," Ayla said, counting the people by pressing her fingers to her leg. Could Oak Camp fit thirteen more people in here if people came to visit? They don't even know that we are coming." It was obvious that she was worried.

"I was wondering the same thing," Grov said. "The Clan almost never visits other Clans, except every seven years for Clan gatherings, and they wouldn't be too happy if thirteen people showed up on a non-gathering year."

"You are right, there are a lot of us," Vincenzia said. "But, they are Travie's kin; her cousins I think, and Talut loves visitors. I think they will make room, and it may not be so hard; last summer they had a few people leave their lodge."

"Not to worry Ayla," Darvie replied. "Talut will be thrilled to have us."

As the eating continued, Tinozia came over to sit with Ayla; he wanted to talk to her about her beliefs on the beginnings of life in a woman's body. Grov got up to get himself some more food, and since his mate was busy with the other man, he sat down with Donzolnia and Brulenzia, leaving Ayla alone with Tinozia.

Donzolnia and Brulenzia welcomed the man, and talked about the upcoming trip. Donzolnia was happy that he would be staying behind this time, since he had just recently traveled to the peninsula, and Brulenzia was happy that he would be getting out. All three men occasionally glanced over at Tinozia and Ayla, who were deep in conversation, and each thought the woman was remarkable. "You have a beautiful mate, Grov," Brulenzia said, while they all stared across the hearth at her.

Grov smiled. "I know . . . but what are you talking about, my mate looks nearly identical to Laurana, _and_Jendoza, for that matter. There are some differences, but not many." All three were silent for a moment as they checked out the three women. "She looks almost the same as I remember Evenora to look too," Grov said.

Brulenzia blanched, but only mildly. That pain still wasn't gone, but it was receding. "Really? I imagine Evenora's hair to be a little darker than Ayla's."

"Yes, it was, but not by much, and I would say her height was exactly the same as Ayla's," Grov confirmed.

Brulenzia continued to stare. "It's hard knowing that she's gone."

Grov sighed, he too missed the woman, but he loved Ayla like he had never loved Evenora. He was so glad that Brun had given Ayla to him. "The first time I saw Ayla, I thought I was looking at a spirit. I could not believe when Brun gave her to me. I had heard talk about how defiant she was, but I have never had trouble with her."

Donzolnia and Brulenzia smiled. "If we spoke about our women like that, they'd sever the knot immediately," Donzolnia said. "I'm surprised Ayla could live the way the Clan does."

"It was very hard for her. The leader's mate's son treated her very badly for many years, and no one did anything to stop him from hurting her. That is the Clan way, and they did not understand why she resisted him, just as you cannot understand why Clan women put up with it," Grov said. "I'm sure you can tell that Ayla's son is of his spirit."

"Yes, I could see that while I was there," Brulenzia said. "But . . . was it Broud?" Grov nodded. "Broud was not so bad when we were there. Not bad toward her anyway."

"Broud went through a lot too. A few years ago, Brun passed leadership down to Broud, and Broud used his status as leader to hurt Ayla. He tried to make her leave, but she refused. He hurt people, including his mate, and Ayla had to keep stepping in to assist. Finally, Brun took leadership back, and lowered Broud's status to the bottom. That was just before he gave Ayla to me. Broud has changed significantly since then."

"That's another thing," Donzolnia said. "Our women would never allow someone to _give_them to someone. Women like to choose."

"Ayla didn't know any better; that is also the Clan way, _and_I know she liked me." Grov looked at the two men earnestly. "I have been good to her. I let her hunt when other men would not have allowed it, even when she was pregnant, and I've never cuffed her for arguing with me, or for any other reason. That would have been a huge problem if she had been given to another man."

Brulenzia smiled. "We can tell that you are good to her Grov. You don't have to try to convince us. And, it's clear that Ayla loves you."

"So, if Broud is no longer suitable to be leader, who will Brun give leadership over to next; his mate doesn't have any other sons, does she?" Donzolnia asked.

"No," Grov said. "She doesn't have any other sons. Actually, he's turning the Clan over to me, so that I can train Durc to take over someday. Brun wants to keep his line of leadership unbroken, and since Durc is of Broud's spirit, and Broud is of Brun's spirit, he figures that Durc is the right choice."

"That means that you and Ayla cannot stay here then, doesn't it?" Brulenzia asked, knowing that Laurana would be disappointed.

Grov frowned. "I was not expecting such a good reception here," the man said. "Well, except for Ivanolia." He laughed. "I might not have accepted leadership had I known, but now I have to keep to my promise." He paused. "Ayla could travel back and forth for visits though; our cave really isn't _that_far away. It would be really hard. I would miss the girls, and she would miss her son, but I guess that's what happens when children grow up and move to other caves or lodges, isn't it?"

The other two men nodded. "I suppose so," Donzolnia said.

The three men talked to a short time longer, then they decided to go sit with their women. Not long after that, the older women of the camp decided that they would make a big goodbye morning meal, so everyone turned in early to get a good night's sleep.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp - Day One<strong>(er...guess I started naming again...sheesh!)

Morning dawned early, and the lodge was buzzing with activity. The women wanted the travelers to start off their journey with a good hot meal, so food was cooking away, and the delicious scents were wafting through the earthlodge causing those that were not up, to get up quickly. Even Ivanolia could not resist; throwing on his leggings and a light tunic, he exited his hearth to find sustenance.

In the Cooking Hearth, Vincenzia, Brulenzia and Grov were discussing the load, and what should be carried by whom, which was very interesting to Grov, since these men had no qualms about carrying a load. It made perfect sense to him that the women shouldn't be so heavily laden, but he knew the Clan would find this too difficult to understand. Grov discovered that even the children would carry a load, but not so much, and that Laurana, being pregnant, wouldn't have to carry so much.

Danie, who was sitting with Darvie, Jendoza, Laurana and Ayla, was immediately aware when Ivanolia entered the hearth, but tried her best not to look at him. However, no matter how much she tried, she couldn't prevent the tears that fell unchecked down her cheeks.

Ivanolia walked into the hearth slowly, and looked over at Danie, then went to get himself some food. Travie was stirring a big pot of something, which she ladled into a wooden bowl, and handed to the man as he approached. He looked down at her, and saw her look of frustration, just as she was masking it. "Thank you Travie," he said, then went to go sit down to eat. Everyone was pretty much ignoring him; not because they were angry with him, but because they didn't know what to say to the man. The older adults felt somewhat guilty about the situation for they knew the man's feelings had only come about because of them, and their longstanding beliefs. He would not hold such beliefs if they had not been taught to him. Only now, looking back, did they see how wrong they had been.

Tinozia, Fürlasa, and Tabita had just joined the group of five women when Ivanolia looked up to see Danie crying. He suddenly longed to go hug her and kiss her, and he felt terrible about what he had done, but he couldn't just go talk to her now, could he? She was furious with him, and he really did feel that it was wrong to have flatheads living among them.

When he finished what he was eating, he just sat there staring into his bowl until he realized the people were cleaning up, and milling around their packs. They were leaving; she was really leaving. He couldn't stand it anymore. He had to leave the Cooking Hearth. Danie watched him go, and sighed heavily, then turned to her pack.

"Do you want a map, brother?" Vincenzia asked. "Just in case anyone decides to come after us." Vincenzia had been watching Ivanolia, and didn't miss the young man leave the area. Vilognia watch the son of his hearth leave, then quietly nodded, though he felt it unlikely. Serana squeezed her mate's hand, thinking that she would talk to her son.

Once outside, Ayla's hawk squawked; she had been wondering where he had been, and was glad he was still in the area. Grov and Ayla waited, wondering where they would fit into the camp's line up. They knew nothing about how status worked, as far as the Sungaea were concerned, and neither wanted to make any assumptions, or mistakes. Darvie and her mother were extremely excited, and stood the furthest out in front, which confused the Clan family. Would women truly lead the way, Ayla thought? Grov stood next to Ayla, holding Annaliza, and waited and watched some more.

Laurana had been struggling to get her back frame on, and Brulenzia was telling her he'd carry it, but his woman was determined to carry her weight. When she finally got it on, she bounded up to Grov and Ayla. "Well, let's go," she said, looping her arm through Ayla's and tugging her forward. "I am so excited. I haven't been anywhere since last summer." Ayla grabbed Annaliza from her mate and allowed herself to be pulled along, only glancing around to see where Shriek had gotten off to. He was overhead.

Grov stood and watched his mate walk off with her cousin, then he sighed and readjusted his pack. Brulenzia stood watching him, then came up beside him. "Ready Grov?" he asked. Grov grunted assent, then he shook his head and smiled. "Yep, sure am," he said.

Vincenzia caught up with Darvie and her mother quickly, and Danie brought up the rear. The children fell in somewhere in the middle. Crisana held Ora's hand, and they looked back at a tearful Braydalana one last time, then turned to go, while Brenevia and Durc pretended they were on a manhood hunt, and stalked the people in front of them.

For most of the day, the travelers walked quickly, and happily. It seemed to Ayla that they never really went anywhere, except for away from the lodge. In no time at all, the lodge had disappeared, but nothing ahead seemed to get any closer. Vincenzia said it would take until the next day at dusk to reach the river, and Ayla figured it was the same river she and Grov had crossed on their way to Oak Camp, just a little more north.

After a while, Ayla noticed that Laurana was struggling with her pack, and offered to trade Annaliza for the pack. Laurana smiled at her cousin, then accepted the offer. "Thank you Ayla, I was really getting tired of carrying that."

Ayla smiled at the pregnant woman. "I'm not sure you got the best of the deal; your pack won't pull my hair like Anna does," Ayla said with a grin.

Annaliza stuck her lip out, and glared at her mother. "I not pull your hair Mamma," she gestured. Laurana didn't see the exchange, but Ayla leaned over and kissed her pouting daughter.

Durc and Brenevia went through bouts of running ahead, to falling far behind. Ayla watched carefully, but didn't mind; she was sure her son, and her brother, would not stray too far. Ayla had taken to calling Brenevia and Crisana her brother and sister, since she was positive they were of Vincenzia's spirit, and that she was too. It was not customary for children born of different mothers to consider themselves siblings, but in this case, there was really no doubt. They all looked nearly identical to the man of their hearth, except that the two younger children had their mother's brown hair and gray eyes.

Back a ways from the two youngest women were Brulenzia and Grov, who were working on a friendship with a healthy conversation about hunting. "So, Donzolnia tells me that he and Vincenzia gave your Clan some spears while they wintered with you. Have you been successful with them?" Brulenzia questioned.

"Actually, I'm not sure," Grov said. "We left before the spring hunt. I'm not sure the hunters will use them since we won't be there. Change is extremely hard for them."

"And not for you?" Brulenzia cocked his head and looked at the man beside him. They were close to the same height, but Brulenzia was a little taller.

"Well, I am not full Clan. I am really more Others than Clan, so no, change isn't as difficult for me."

Brulenzia watched the man walk, trying not to make it look like he was watching, and observed his companion carefully. He really didn't look Clan, the man thought. Maybe a little around the brows, sort of brow ridged, but then again not really. The man was tall, taller than any Clan man he had ever seen, and straight legged, and not very hairy. Ayla, and Evenora, had sure been lucky, he thought.

"So, I've heard so much about the Clan hunting with a sling. Donzolnia tells me it's a very difficult weapon to use. Do you have one with you?" Brulenzia asked.

"Yes, but Ayla is actually the best one in the Clan to use it. I do not think the build of the Clan men makes the weapon very easy to use, but Ayla is amazing."

Brulenzia looked up at the woman and smiled. He _really_loves her, he thought. The two men walked in silence for a time, both watching their women. Grov periodically glanced back at Danie, wondering why she stayed so far behind.

When the sun started to drop low in the sky, Vincenzia called for them to stop. Everyone dropped their packs, and began setting up tents. Danie quickly ran up to her mother and assisted in putting up their tent. The older woman had kept up well, but she was tired, and ready to end the day.

Ayla put out a hide, so that Laurana could put Annaliza down, then she went to put up hers and Grov's tent. Grov watched her for a moment, then went to help her. It wasn't long before four tents were erected, there was a fire burning, and a meal was forthcoming. One down, eight to go, Ayla thought. Then, as she looked around for Shriek, he appeared; landing on the crest of their tent.

That night, the people sat by the fire. Vincenzia passed around a container of what appeared to be bouza, which they all sampled. "This is not the same as we drank last night, Vincenzia," Ayla said. "This makes me warm."

He smiled. "Yes, Tiflona thought we might need something to keep us warm," he said, handing it to Danie.

"No thank you," she said. "I going to bed."

Travie watched her younger daughter go, then shrugged and followed her. "Come Brenev," she said to her grandson in Mamutoi. "Come sleep with Grandma tonight."

The boy frowned. "But I want to stay with Durc," he whined.

The woman looked at Ayla son, then shrugged. "Come on Durc, let's go to bed." Durc hardly even glanced at his mother, he just picked up his furs and followed the older woman. Ayla smiled at her son's back, proud that he obeyed properly; she felt like that was a reflection on her.

When Durc was gone, Ayla tucked Ora and Annaliza into their furs, then returned to the fire. Vincenzia and Darvie were just ushering Criana into their tent, and waved goodnight. Brulenzia sipped more of Vincenzia's drink, and handed the cup to Grov. Grov drank, then offered it to Ayla, but she shook her head, preferring tea. After her cup of tea, she told them she was turning in, and they all did the same.

Ayla closed the tent flap behind her, and started undressing. She pulled her tunic over her head, and slipped her leggings off, then quickly slipped a larger, loose fitting tunic, that Jendoza had given her, over her nakedness. It was long, but comfortable, and she smiled.

When Grov entered the tent, she smiled. "What are you wearing?" he asked.

"It is a sleeping tunic," she replied. "Jendoza gave it to me. It is very comfortable. Do you like it?"

He cocked his head, and smiled. "I like it, but I like you without it better."

Ayla smiled in the darkened tent, and giggled. "Well, I can take it off just as easily as I put it on," she said, reaching up to kiss her mate.

Grov grabbed her face in both his hands and kissed her back passionately, then smiled down at her. "Yes, I think you should take it off. This man does not think he can wait much longer." Ayla quickly undressed again, then lay down in their furs, waiting for him to undress as well.

Laurana smiled at Brulenzia. They could hear everything that was going on in the tent next to them. Just for an instant, Brulenzia frowned, then he shrugged it off. It was Ayla's choice, he said to himself, and she loved him. He was still testing the man out, feeling around for a friendship, seeing what kind of man he was. So far, he was impressed. As he thought about Grov and Ayla, Laurana was standing there in front of him, waving her hand in front of his face. "Where are you, silly? Can't you see that I am naked, and waiting for you?" she teased. His attention immediately turned to her, and he leaned over to kiss his promised.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp - Day Two<br>**

The day had been miserable for Ivanolia, who hadn't said goodbye to anyone, and who didn't even go outside when the group left. He had stayed in his hearth until he was sure they were gone, then he went back to the same sitting platform in the Cooking Hearth, and sat there sulking for the entire day.

Jendoza had tried to bring him tea once, but he practically bit her head off, so she didn't attempt to do it again, and Donzolnia and Tinozia decided their friend would have to sit alone if he was going to bark at them for being concerned about him.

Serana wanted to go to her son, and try to undo the damage their people's ignorance had done, but he didn't appear to be receptive in the least. so even she held back. She and Vilognia discussed the problem, and decided they would talk to him as soon as he seemed a little more approachable, but who knew when that would be.

When night came, and the man had not moved, Vilognia frowned at his mate's son, but shook his head and went to bed. Ivanolia never left the spot where he sat, but he finally lay down on the sitting platform, and stared at the ceiling of the lodge. It was very late when he finally fell asleep, and his dreams were filled with Danie.

Ayla woke up to her daughter pulling on her sleeping tunic, "Mamma, hungry," the little girl gestured. Ayla rubbed her eyes, and smiled, then pulled up her tunic so her daughter could nurse.

Ayla lay there with Annaliza in her arms for some time, but when she realized the girl had drifted back off to sleep, she carefully repositioned her, so she could get up.

Outside, Ayla encountered Travie, Darvie, Danie and Laurana, who were all sitting quietly drinking tea. Darvie moved to get some for Ayla, but Ayla waved her off. "I'll get it Darvie. You should sit down and rest," Ayla said in a sort of off hand way. Darvie sat back down and eyed Ayla as she fixed a tea with ingredients that she never would have chosen. Ayla looked around for Shriek, but he was nowhere to be seen.

When Vincenzia appeared Darvie got up again, handed him some traveling food, poured him a cup of tea, the sat back down. "Hummm, you ladies are all up early. Are we ready to start packing up?"

"Well, packing, yes, but traveling, no. We still have some sleeping people," Travie replied. "When will those lazy men get up?" she said with a good-natured smile. Laurana smiled, and shrugged, and Ayla realized it was a joke. She thought about the Clan, and knew they would never have understood such humor. It would have been a grave insult to say a man of the Clan was lazy, but among these people, it didn't seem to matter. She smiled with Laurana.

Vincenzia laughed at Ayla's expression, and then laughed some more when the two sleeping men appeared, hair tousled. "I heard that, Travie," Brulenzia said. Grov did not comment, nor did he look angry, Ayla noted. He must be understanding these people too, she thought.

Travel that day went well; about the same as the day before. Just as they were discussing a halt, Vincenzia pointed ahead of them. "We are making good time," he said with a smile. "There is the river, and it appears to still be frozen. That will make the crossing much easier."

Ayla looked at the river. "This is the same river we crossed downstream, right Grov?"

He nodded. "And the same one we followed on the bison hunt," he confirmed, knowing that that would be her next question.

"So our cave is that way," she said pointing southwest. He nodded again. "Vincenzia, are we stopping here tonight, or are we crossing first?"

"I think we should cross now, so we don't have that obstacle in the morning," he replied. "And, you never know, one more night could defrost the river just enough to make the crossing harder." He knew it wasn't likely, but he thought it would be better to be safe than sorry. The man started pulling out a long rope, which caught Grov and Ayla's interest.

"What is that for?" Grov asked.

Vincenzia looked at him strangely, forgetting for a moment that the man had not been with them long, then explained the purpose of the rope. "I am going to tie each of us together, so that just in case the ice isn't thick enough, and someone breaks through, they will be tied to everyone else, and won't be lost."

Grov nodded. "That is a good idea. I would not have thought of it," he said.

The crossing went without a hitch, and not long after, their camp was set up, and they were eating. They all turned in early, so that the next day could be started at first light.

Ivanolia's day had not been much different than the previous one, except that he did go outside a few times. Jendoza had tried again, but his mood had not changed, so she retreated once again. Maybe he'll be better tomorrow, she thought. She doubted it though. If Donzolnia had left her, for whatever reason, her sadness would go away in a day or so.

Jendoza looked over at Braydalana, and she frowned. The child was looking very sad as well. She would have loved to go with the travelers, and meet new people. She was also missing Danie desperately. In the short time the woman had been with them, she had come to care for her like she would a mother. And then, there was Crisana and Ora. Braydalana missed her best friend, and Ayla's daughter, and was terribly jealous that she couldn't go with them. Periodically she looked over at Ivanolia, and gave him a nasty look. This is all Ivanolia's fault, she thought.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – One and Three<br>**

In the morning, on the third day after the journeyer's departure, Braydalana woke up missing her mother, and her friends, and scowled when she looked around Ivanolia's hearth to find him still gone, and his furs untouched. She quickly dressed, and went to the Cooking Hearth to find him.

"Ivanolia," she said shaking the man of her hearth gently. "Ivanolia," she said again, shaking him a little harder. He still did not respond. "Ivan!" she called louder.

"What!" he snarled.

Braydalana's eyes widened, and she yanked her hand back. Then she looked at him closely, and pulled herself up to her full height, which was quite tall for an eight year old, and tried to appear older than she was. "Ivan, this is ridiculous! Are you going to sit here until Danie and Laurana return?"

He looked at the daughter of his hearth, then looked away. He didn't want to jump down her throat; he just wanted to be left alone. "Bray, just go find something to do." She looked at him with a defeated expression, then turned and ran back to their hearth, tears in her eyes. Ivanolia watched her go, then sighed. He wasn't doing anything right, he thought.

Braydalana ran all the way back to the hearth, threw herself down on the bed platform, then sobbed uncontrollably. Finally, she felt a hand on her shoulder, so she looked up. It was her auntie Jendoza. "What's the matter Bray?" her aunt asked.

"Oh Auntie, Ivanolia's being miserable. What is wrong with him?" she said tearfully.

"He just misses Danie, and he knows he's wrong about the Clan, and he doesn't know how admit it. What did he say to you?" Jendoza asked.

"He just told me to go away," she said between sobs. "I don't know why he won't let me help him."

"Well Bray, a man's mate is just different than the daughter of his hearth. You will understand that someday," Jendoza said, trying to calm her niece. "I will go talk to him, okay?" Braydalana nodded, happy that someone was going to try to get through to him. Jendoza patted the girl's arm, then left the hearth.

In the Cooking Hearth, Jendoza found her brother in the place she had expected him to be, and she stood there staring at him for a moment. "Ivan, you need to snap out of this. Braydalana needs you." He grunted, and turned away from her. Jendoza looked at him slyly, then went over to the cooking area, and poured water into a bowl, then turned back toward her brother. She knew he was going to be furious, but she decided drastic measures were necessary.

She watched his turned back, then stepped a little closer. She didn't want to be close enough for him to grab her; he would most certainly try to do that. She visually measured off his reach, then stepped back just a little more, and smiled, hoping she would be able to get to her hearth, and Donzolnia, before Ivanolia got to her. Holding the bowl steady, she quickly flicked her arms out, and the water splattered all over Ivanolia's head, causing him to jump up off the sitting platform. "What in the Mother's name are you doing, Jendoza?" he yelled as he lurched for her, but he completely missed, as he tripped over the bowl that she had dropped onto the ground as she ran away, laughing. He chased, just as she had suspected.

As she ran down the passageway, she screamed, which woke up several people, including her mate. Donzolnia was coming out of his hearth just in time to see his mate flying around the corner, Ivanolia on her heels. She picked up her now awake baby, and stood behind her mate.

Donzolnia was surprised to see her coming in so quickly, and even more surprised that Ivanolia was chasing. When he looked at Ivanolia closely, he realized the man was soaking wet, and guessed what Jendoza had done to him. He smiled to himself, thinking that the man deserved it.

Ivanolia, however, wasn't in a laughing mood, and scowled. "Sure, hide behind your son and mate. What in the spirits is wrong with you, Jendoza?" he screamed.

"Well, we'd like to ask you the same thing. You're acting like a creep. We all know you miss Danie, but it's not our fault she left; it's yours!" Jendoza yelled back.

"So, what do you think I should do about it Jendoza?" he roared. "She's GONE!"

Jendoza shook her head. "What? Are you too dense to see she wanted you to go with her?"

"I have no interest in going to visit the Mamutoi. She could have stayed here," he retorted.

"Ivan, I'm surprised we come from the same mother. The Mamutoi are her people, of course she wants to visit them. If you didn't want to visit other peoples, then you should have mated someone from our camp, or at least a Sungaea woman. And that's not _really_ the point, is it? That's not why you didn't go with her, is it? You didn't go because of Ayla and her family." Ivanolia frowned, knowing that that part was true. "You should have spent more time with the Clan, while we were there with them. I don't know how you can still feel the way you do, even after the time you _did_spend there. They are not animals. Get that through your mouse-sized brain."

Braydalana had peeked her head out of the curtain, and was watching brother and sister argue, and she hoped Jendoza was yelling loud enough to get through to him. By the look on his face, she thought that maybe, just maybe, Ivanolia was thinking again. Then Braydalana looked beyond the man, and saw her grandmother approaching, and that didn't look good.

"What is this ruckus? You have woken up the entire lodge," Serana hollered at her two oldest children. They both flinched. Well, they're all awake now, Donzolnia thought.

"Your _daughter_poured water on my head while I was sleeping," Ivanolia said to his mother, still glaring at Jendoza accusingly.

"Your _son_ is acting like a complete rhinoceros, and I'm tired of it, _and_, he wasn't sleeping," Jendoza countered, now standing face to face with Ivanolia, since her mother was standing there. Braydalana giggled, which made Ivanolia's face turn red.

"Okay, that's it Ivan!" Serana said sternly. "You need to come to Shogur's hearth, right now!" She took her grown son's shirtsleeve, and pulled him down the passageway.

Jendoza sighed and then winked at Braydalana.

"Okay son, we have to talk," Serana said, motioning for the man to sit down. Ivanolia looked around, and seeing all the adult members of their lodge, minus the young adults, he did as he was bid.

Tagnolia looked at the young man sternly. "As headman of this camp," Tagnolia started. "I want to apologize for the injustice that has been done to you, and the rest of our young people. We will take responsibility for your hatred of the Clan, and we need you to know that we have been wrong, and that we will no longer allow any such hatred within our camp."

Tiflona was nodding. "I have to agree with my brother," she said. "We were raised to consider them flatheads; animals, and we have passed that on to you. However, again, we were wrong, as is plainly obvious after speaking to Grov and Ayla."

"Son," Serana said, taking her son's hands, "Please forgive me for not knowing this sooner," she said. His mother had tears in her eyes, and she was pleading with him. Serana was usually stronger than that, he thought. This must be very important to her.

Vilognia put his arm around Serana, and smiled. "Ivanolia, Ayla is the daughter of my brother's hearth, and I want you to accept her, _and_her family." Ivanolia looked at the man of his hearth, and nodded; he still wasn't completely convinced, but he would definitely work on it.

"But now what do I do?" Ivanolia asked. "They have already left. Danie is already gone," he said sadly.

Fraylora stood up, left the hearth, but returned quickly. "You will follow them, Ivan. You and Braydalana will leave as soon as you can eat a morning meal. We already have you packed," she said with a smile, handing him his pack.

Ivanolia stood up slowly, and took the pack from his first mate's mother, then he leaned over and hugged and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you Fraylora."

After their morning meal Ivanolia and Braydalana gathered their belongings, and prepared to leave. Braydalana was so happy she was bouncing around, and hugging her two age mates, Tena, who was a year younger, and her aunt Serlona, who was only a year older than herself. They were positively jealous that she was getting to go meet the Mamutoi, but happy that she wasn't crying anymore.

Ivanolia was standing with the men, discussing the map that Vincenzia had drawn, when Gredenzia commented. "Even though it has only been two days since they left, it will be at least another four before you will reach the Big River, and it is warming, and we don't know if Beech Camp will still be there. They tend to make trips to Beran Sea in spring. It would be best if you avoid Big River altogether," he said.

Tagnolia frowned. "But the map we have takes him right to the Big River."

"He's not going to be able to use this map," Gredenzia said. " I will make him a new one. You can follow this map until you have crossed Ice River. It should still be frozen, but the Big River will not be by the time you reach it, so you cannot go that way."

Ivanolia nodded. "Okay, then what?"

"After crossing Ice River, you will turn north. Eventually you will come to Big River going that direction too. You need to find where it is joined by another small river, cross the small one; it should still be frozen too. Then, follow Big River north until you reach Pine Camp. Do you remember where Pine Camp is, Ivan? That is where my brother, Zackodia, lives.

"Yes, we summered there three years ago, right?" Ivanolia asked. Gredenzia nodded.

"When you get to Pine Camp, the Big River turns northwest. There is another river that goes northeast; that is Trout River. You will need to cross Trout River to continue following Big River. Now, Big River will split in two very shortly," Gredenzia said drawing on a piece of leather. "And you will see a huge cliff. Pine Camp calls that cliff Hunting Cliff; follow the river north of Hunting Cliff until it turns north, then cross it. That river is the Sevius River. Then, keep walking in a northwest direction, cross another river; I can't seem to remember what it's called, and as soon as you pass some lowland hills, turn north again. If you walk through that valley, you cannot miss Lion Camp, and you should recognize the area from being there last summer."

Ivanolia was looking at the map carefully, thinking that he wished he would have left with the others, then he sighed, and looked at Braydalana.

"It's possible that you could reach your final northward trek before the rest of the group gets there, or at the same time, so keep your eyes open." Ivanolia wondered why the rest had gone the other way, if this way was faster, but he didn't ask.

Ivanolia turned to his mother and hugged her. "Spring can be dangerous son," she warned. "Be very careful." He nodded.

Fraylora was saying the same thing to Braydalana, adjusting the girl's pack. Braydalana rolled her eyes. "Grandma, we will do just fine," she replied. "And we will see you at the summer meeting, if not before . . . promise!"

With one final wave, father and daughter walked off, turning back to wave just as they were going out of sight.

Day three went well for the travelers. They had risen earlier than the two previous days, and had only fed the children. Vincenzia knew that they had to pass through the deep steppe grasses for the next two days, and he wasn't too happy about it. Walking through such deep grass was disconcerting, and he wanted to get it over with. Vincenzia took the lead, and instructed everyone to stay close, and Travie suggested that the children stay in the middle, while the younger adults pulled up the rear. It was a good plan, Grov thought. The Clan could use a woman like her. But, he thought sadly, they would never accept that a woman could make a suggestion.

*****  
>After a while of walking through the grasses, Ayla smiled. "These are the same grasses that we found Jendoza and Braydalana in," Ayla commented to Laurana and Brulenzia, as they walked. "Maybe a little south of here, but still the same."<p>

"Yes, I remember coming back, trying to find her," Brulenzia said. Tinozia is an amazing tracker. He found a rock that had blood on it. Ivanolia was nearly foaming at the mouth; he was so nervous. It took all we had to calm him down."

"Humph," Laurana retorted. "I wish someone could _calm_him down now."

"Don't worry about it Laurana," Grov said. "The Clan would be just as incapable of accepting the Others. In that way, he is very much like the Clan," Grov smiled at the thought of saying that to Ivanolia.

Laurana grinned. "Maybe we should tell him that," she said with a giggle. "He'd be furious."

Brulenzia laughed. "Not a good idea," he said through his laughter. "Hey Ayla, do you want me to carry Annaliza for a while?"

"Sure, my arms feel like they're going to fall off," she said gratefully. "Grov, maybe Ora could walk for a while; you look tired too." He nodded affirmatively, and set the child on the ground. Ora immediately scampered ahead to Crisana and the boys. Crisana took the little girl's hand, and smiled at her.

As it turned out, Vincenzia was trying to get them all the way to Big River that day. He said that they could stay the night with Tagnolia and Tiflona's brother and sister at Beech Camp if they pushed hard, so that is what they did. Brulenzia thought it was a great idea; he would like to see his aunt and uncle, and introduce them to Laurana. They probably already knew who she was, but they didn't know that they were promised, or that she was blessed.

As darkness was falling, Vincenzia was calling out to get their attention, before getting too close. "Hallooooo," he called loudly, and they waited.

Ayla looked at the earthlodge carefully, noticing that it did not look like Oak Camp's earthlodge. There was a large lodge in the center, with several smaller ones arranged in a semi-circle around the larger one.

Only moments after Vincenzia called out, a woman appeared in the entrance of the larger lodge. She recognized Vincenzia right away. "Vincenzia," the woman cried out, and ran to him. "What a nice surprise. What are you doing here?" she said.

"We are taking Ayla to visit Lion Camp of the Mamutoi, so that she may look at Rydag. We are hoping that you can take us across Big River," he said. Brulenzia watched the woman closely.

"Rydag, but isn't that that flathead child that the headman's mate took in," she said with a grimace, not even looking around at the other people. "And who is Ayla?"

Ayla squared her shoulders, and stood stiffly. "Ayla is the daughter of my hearth that was lost years ago, but she has returned," he said, avoiding the woman's first question. "She used to be called Andreyta, but she goes by Ayla now. She was only five when she disappeared, perhaps you do not remember her."

The woman then looked at the rest of the people, "Oh! I do remember her. That is wonderful, Vincenzia. And oh! Brulenzia, it is so good to see you too," she said, hugging the man. "How are my brother and sister?"

Brulenzia smiled. "They are both fine. Do you remember Laurana, Tarana?" he asked. "We are promised now."

She nodded and hugged Laurana tightly. "And blessed already, my dear? That will be wonderful for your mating. Congratulations."

Vincenzia was frowning, still thinking about her 'flathead' comment and grimace, then he decided to get it over with. "You may remember my mate Darvie, and her children, and this is Darvie's mother, Travie, and Darvie's sister, Danie . . . and this is Annalisa's daughter Ayla, and her family." Vincenzia finished up quickly, and waited to see what Tarana would say. Now he wondered if they should have tried to go a different way. He had chosen this way, thinking there may be _less_prejudice, since Beech Camp was closely related to Oak Camp. Maybe this had been a bad idea, he thought.

Tarana looked at each person, smiling and hugging them, until she came to Durc, then she looked up at Vincenzia with a strange look. "I thought you said you were going to visit Rydag at Lion Camp?"

"This is not Rydag," Ayla said, not knowing that the woman had never met the boy they were going to visit, and that she was just assuming her son was the child. "This is _my_son Durc." Ayla stood firm, with her hand on her son's shoulder. Grov stood next to her, and they waited. "And this is my mate, Grov."

Tarana looked at the man, and smiled. He was a very attractive man, but he looked very different. She wondered where he had come from, and then it struck her; the man was part flathead. He couldn't really have much of their blood in him, she considered; he was too attractive. She wondered if her people would even notice.

Then, she turned and looked into the blue gray eyes of the woman, and saw defiance, and what else, strength, perseverance, and more. She is strong, I'll give her that much, she thought. "Well, then . . . let's get in, out of this cold and dark. My brother has just started passing around his bouza, and it turned out very good this time," she said, trying to coax the travelers in. Vincenzia looked at her appreciatively, and Ayla mouthed a thank you, and then they all went inside.

"Tegassia," Tarana called, as they entered the lodge. "You'll never guess who's here to visit." Ayla wondered what his reaction would be, and was a little nervous. She wished Vincenzia had warned her, though she felt she should have known, given her experience with Ivanolia.

Tegassia visibly blanched when they were introduced, but he masked it quickly, and passed around his bouza. The evening was not a long one. They talked about their journey, and why they were going, and Vincenzia told them a little about how Ayla had been found. The people of Beech Camp did not ask many questions, but they listened carefully, thinking that this summer meeting was going to very interesting.

After having a couple cups of bouza, or tea for those that didn't want bouza, the visitors were shown to an empty lodge, where they promptly dropped their packs, and made ready to sleep. Everyone was exhausted.

Ayla felt strange sleeping in the lodge; the people had not made her feel all that welcome. Then she looked at her mate, and wondered how he felt; probably worse, she thought. After all, he was the one that was part Clan. After putting her children to bed, she climbed into her furs, wrapped her arms around her mate, and cuddled close. He did the same, and they fell asleep quickly.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – Four and Two<br>**

It was early when Ayla opened her eyes, but she didn't know it. It was relatively dark in the lodge. She glanced around, and could tell that many were sleeping; all in fact, except Vincenzia and Brulenzia. She sat up, then got up and dressed, then looked at her children before leaving to go pass her water.

The small lodge had only one entrance, so Ayla headed for it. It looked the same as the entrances to Oak Camp she noticed. As she stepped out, she squinted into the bright spring sunlight, and looked around. To her right, she could see the grasses swaying in the wind, straight ahead was the larger main lodge, and to her left were several other smaller lodges, which curved around the main lodge, and off in the distance was the river. She thought hard, trying to remember what river it was; Big River, she finally came up with, and was pleased that she had remembered.

She could also see a couple women near the end of the camp area. They appeared to be taking up baskets and going to the river. She wondered what they were doing, and wanted to go see, but she needed to pass water, and didn't know where to go; there hadn't been any night baskets.

Just as she was about to go to the main lodge, hoping to find Vincenzia or Brulenzia, a woman came out of the lodge just next to hers. "Oh, you must be one of our visitors," the woman said. Then, seeing Ayla's look, trying to put a name to her face, she went on. "I was not in the main lodge last night, so you wouldn't remember me. I am Seriana. What is your name?"

Ayla smiled, glad to meet someone friendly, that would be able to help her. "My name is Ayla," she said with a smile.

"Oh," she said. "You are the one I heard about." The woman looked a little uncomfortable, but did her best to remain open.

"I was wondering," Ayla went on, ignoring the woman's slight discomfiture. "Where may I pass water?"

"Oh, I am going there myself," she said. "Come with me, I'll show you." Ayla nodded, and followed the young woman. The woman had deep chestnut colored hair, and bright green eyes, and Ayla liked her immediately, despite the woman's initial comment and look. Seriana led her toward the river, then made turn when they were almost there.

"This is where we go, since it's the only place that slopes down away from our camp, and most of the time it's down wind," she said with a grin. "I'm going to swim a bit after, do you want to join me?"

Ayla smiled at the nice woman. "I'd love to. Do you have a special place to swim? The river looks a big rough."

"Yes. On the other side of the camp, over there," she said pointing up river, "there's a small pool that has been separated from the river by a sandbar, and grooved into the beach. Actually, there are several areas like that here. That is why we chose the name Beech Camp. It's a tree, and a good name for a camp with many bathing beaches." Ayla nodded her agreement, then went through the grass to pass water.

When they had finished, they met at the top of the slope, and walked to the pool. Both women quickly slipped off their clothing, and stepped into the water. "Oh, it's warmer than I thought it would be. I expected it to be icy," Ayla said, looking at the rising steam.

"Yes, there is a hot spring over there," Seriana replied, pointing off to the side. "It flows underground over to here, then it goes underground again, and into the river. The river never freezes in the areas right by these warm pools. They really shouldn't be called hot springs though, since they're never hot. I have heard of places where they actually have hot springs."

"Hummmm, this is nice," Ayla said with a large smile. "I have never heard of hot springs."

"Really?" Seriana asked, wanting to know more about the woman's background. She had heard her mother talking about the flathead boy, and wondered how a Sungaea woman could have a flathead child. She remember hearing her mother complain about the flathead, and why it was in the lodge next to theirs, but she was too curious to be disgusted. She got that from her mother's mate.

Ayla shook her head. "No, we didn't have anything like this down on the peninsula."

There, the woman had admitted it. Her mother, who was the usually gossip, had not been wrong this time. "The peninsula?" she said with mock ignorance. "But, but . . ."

Ayla knew the woman wanted to know more. "Yes, I lived with the Clan on the peninsula for many years, then we moved to a cave that is just north of the peninsula."

The woman smiled. "What are they like, Ayla? The flatheads, I mean."

Ayla looked at the woman, knowing that there was no malice in her comment, but she didn't like her wording. "Clan, Seriana, we say Clan, and they are just like us," she said. "Well, sort of. They are people, just like us, but there are differences." The woman was thoughtful for a moment, and Ayla changed the subject. "When is your baby due?"

"Oh," she said. "Not until fall. How did you know?"

"I am a medicine woman, a healer; the Clan has them too, and I was trained by the best."

The woman grinned. "Really?" she said, hoping to hear more, but just then, a woman yelled Seriana's name. "I have to go, that is my mother calling. I cannot wait to get mated this summer, so my mother will stop trying to tell me what to do. She doesn't seem to care that I am a woman now." Seriana was drying off, and putting her clothes back on.

"Well, I will come with you. I need to get back to my mate and children," Ayla said, getting out of the water and dressing as well. The two women walked back together, and Seriana turned to go with her mother, then turned back toward Ayla. "I hope we can talk again, Ayla, but if not, I'll see you at the summer meeting." Ayla nodded.

Back inside the visitor's lodge, Ayla noticed that everyone else was awake. Travie, Darvie and her children had left the lodge, but Grov, Danie and Laurana were still there.

"Ayla, where did you go?" Grov asked, a little concerned. "And why is your hair wet?"

Ayla smiled guiltily. "Sorry Grov, I needed to pass water, then got distracted at Beech Camp's hot springs. It is nice to wash in warm water."

"Ooooo," Danie said. "I heard of hot spring before. People far to west of here have hot springs, or so I am told. I not be there before."

"These weren't hot, but warm, and nice," Ayla said. "I was hoping to see Shriek outside, but he's nowhere to be seen."

Grov could tell she was worried. "He will turn up, he always does, right?" She nodded. "Are you hungry Ayla?"

She nodded again. "But I have to feed Annaliza first," she said picking up her daughter, who was sitting there being entertained by Durc.

After she nursed her daughter, the eight remaining people left the lodge went find the others. They went directly to the main lodge, since they didn't know where else to go. Tarana greeted them right away. "Good morning. I trust you slept well?"

They all nodded, and the woman smiled. "Hungry? We have some fresh sturgeon. We just caught one full of roe, which is wonderful, because they don't seem to spawn that often."

Danie smiled. "I not ever have sturgeon before, or eggs. My mother tells me they are very good."

"Well then, come try some," Tarana offered. She led them over to a place to sit, then she brought them each a plate.

"This is very good," Grov commented. "The Clan does not usually eat too much sturgeon."

"Oh? Why not?" Tarana asked, very curious about their strange visitors.

"Well, the Clan is not good at swimming, so we hardly go into the water. Sometimes, but not very much." The woman nodded.

Ayla looked around the main lodge. "Where are Vincenzia and the others?" she asked.

"They are trading. Vincenzia wants to get some salt to bring to Lion Camp, and we have so much of it," she answered. "I'm not sure why he didn't bring some from Oak Camp though; Oak Camp is much closer to the sea than we are. He must not have thought of it. That is lucky for us, since we are in need of a few things ourselves." The woman smiled, then looked up at the entrance when she heard someone come in. "Balana, come in. Meet our guests."

The woman in the entrance frowned, shook her head, then excused herself. Tarana blushed at the woman's rudeness, then apologized.

Just then, several children ran into the lodge, demanding food. Tarana grinned at the visitors. "They're always hungry," she said.

Travie and Darvie came in not long afterward, and her children went to go play with Beech Camp's children. Soon, Durc and Ora were invited to play, and they went off to join in. Beech Camp's children seemed not to notice that Durc was of mixed spirits, though many of the adults grimaced. Ayla did not miss their looks. It made her sad, but strengthened her resolve. Strange, Ayla thought, how children can just accept someone for who they are without reservation. She watched the children run around, until they decided to go outside to play. Children were children, wherever you go, she thought.

Vincenzia finally made an appearance, with Brulenzia in tow. Tegassia was with them, and his mate as well. Ayla couldn't remember her name, but remembered that she seemed nice. "They have agreed to take us across the river, and we have traded for some salt. Lion Camp will be happy to get a fresh supply of salt," he said. "What is wrong, Ayla?" he asked.

Ayla looked up at him, and blushed. "I was just thinking about how well children accept things," she replied. She did not like to be caught thinking such thoughts, and couldn't see how she could get out of answering a direct question.

Tegassia's mate blushed as well, and shook her head. "I am sorry Ayla. Most people feel . . . strangely about having mixed people among them." She frowned, was about to say something else, then changed her mind and kept silent.

The day ended with Vincenzia deciding they would spend another night, and Tegassia suggesting another feast. Only two lodges didn't attend, the rest were too curious about their visitors to reject a feast. Ayla was sad that Seriana did not come, but she figured the young woman's mother had stopped her, since she didn't show up either. Seriana's mother's mate was there, and seemed nice enough.

Overall, it had been a good day, and Ayla enjoyed the feast despite the absence of some people, and their reasons for their absences.

Ivanolia and Braydalana walked quickly on their second day. Braydalana was so excited to be on their way that she was practically dancing along. Ivanolia watched her as she ran ahead. "Save some energy, Bray. This is a very long trek."

"I know it is, and I will rest tonight. I am just so happy that you decided to travel," she said, as she leaned up and kissed the man of her hearth on the cheek.

He had leaned down to receive the kiss, and smiled. "I am glad you are happy child, but slow down anyway. I don't want you to get hurt in the process."

She grinned at him. "You are too careful, Ivan," she said. She skipped along for a while, then slowed down for him to catch up. "So, what is Lion Camp like?"

"They are like everyone else. They are good people," he replied.

Braydalana frowned. "Then . . . why didn't you want to go visit them?" she asked.

It was his turn to frown. He knew that she knew why. Why did she want him to say it, he wondered? "I . . . well . . . I don't . . . didn't like the idea of . . . being around the flathead," he finally finished.

"Clan!" she stated firmly. "They are Clan, Ivan."

He looked at her, and nodded. "Yes, Clan. I will try to remember that."

"You have to do better than try. It will be terrible embarrassing if you called . . . what is his name?"

"Rydag. Danie said Rydag," he retorted.

"Yes, that's it, if you call Rydag a flathead," she said shaking her head. "I think I will die of embarrassment." Ivanolia laughed at the eight-year-old's conviction. "I will Ivan. Please don't call them flatheads," she said with a begging voice, and he nodded.

They walked for a while before she spoke again. She ran up ahead, and he marveled at her stamina. He wasn't having trouble either; he was a healthy man in his prime, and she was running on adrenaline.

After a time, she slowed down again, and he saw another conversation coming. "So, are we stopping at Pine Camp?" she asked.

"We might if we see them. It's been a long time since we have been to Pine Camp; I'm not sure I will recognize their caves. They are high on a steep cliff. Besides, they're a little out of our way, because we need to cross Trout River and continue to follow Big River, but if we see them, then we'll stop. Gredenzia's brother is the headwoman's mate; Bidena, I think. He says they'd probably take us upriver if they're around, so we'll see."

Braydalana smiled happily. "Oh look Ivan, Ice River is coming up," she screamed, and ran ahead again. Ivanolia had to laugh. Ice River was clearly still a good distance from them, but she had so much enthusiasm that he couldn't calm the girl down. He hadn't felt this good in a long time, and he hoped Danie would be happy to see him. He had a small nagging feeling that she wouldn't; he would be glad to catch up and find out once and for all.

As night fell, they reached Ice River, and Braydalana had a fire started by the time the man arrived. "Girl, you are too quick. Won't you let this man do some work?"

Braydalana giggled. "You can set up the tent," she replied. "I will heat water for tea." Ivanolia grinned at the girl, and was glad they were traveling together. He hadn't spent very much time with her since Danie had moved to their lodge, and he missed the daughter of his hearth. She had also missed the man, and was truly glad for his seeming change of heart. She only hoped it would last.

After eating a meal, and drinking several cups of tea, the two retired for the night. "North," he said as they crawled into bed. "Tomorrow we cross Ice River and head north. Are you ready?"

"Of course I am," she replied. "I am so glad we are traveling." It was true too, she was glad to be traveling, glad to be doing it with Ivanolia, and glad he was being a more reasonable man. He leaned over and kissed her forehead, then rolled over in his sleeping furs and went to sleep. Braydalana was awake a little longer. She couldn't get the enormous smile off her face. She never did succeed; falling asleep with it plastered to her face.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – Day Three and a Day of Rest<br>**

Braydalana woke the next morning in the same mood she had been in for the last two days, and tried to keep silent. She quietly left the tent, stoked their fire, made the two of them something simple to snack on, prepared tea, then packed everything up. She waited for what seemed like forever to her before she went back into the tent to check on the man. She left the tent flap open for light, but also to let in the cold morning air, hoping it would wake the man.

The girl sat down next to the sleeping man of her hearth, then took her index finger and poked him gently, then again. "Ivan," she whispered. "Ivan, wake up. I want to get going. Ivan." The man groaned and rolled over, so she poked him again.

Ivanolia had been dreaming about being reunited with Danie, and frowned when he opened his eyes to the tent. This was not where he had hoped he was. Oh well, time to get up, he thought.

He rolled back over to see Braydalana's smiling face, and he had to grin up at her. "What are you doing, child? Is it time to go already?"

"Hummm, eating, packing," she replied. "Get up! Let's go!" she said excitedly.

The man sat up, and laughed. "For the sake of the Mother, Bray, calm down. We have days ahead of us, and you're going to tire yourself out." And me, he thought.

"But this is so fun, and I can't help myself. I will slow down when my heart stops pounding so hard," she said, a huge smile on her face.

Ivanolia looked at the daughter of his hearth, and laughed again. "Okay, okay, you can be happy all you want, but be careful," he said. "We have to cross Ice River as soon as we get going, and I want to get across safely."

She waved her hand at him dismissively, and turned to sip her tea. He knew he'd been acting like a creep lately, and he wasn't sure she understood his meaning. "Bray, I don't know what I'd do if I lost you," he said, his voice cracking. After all, she was everything he had left of his lovely Nemlora, and he had put his entire life into her since her mother's death. She looked at him tenderly, then reached out, and hugged him tightly. She had never known her mother, and this man had been the one to raise her. He really had been good to her. Not many men cared to raise children on their own, but he had insisted on it. Despite his shortcomings, she loved him with all of her heart.

The night before, Ivanolia had opted to cross Ice River in the morning because he didn't want to do it in the dark, but now he was nervous about the crossing. The two of them stood there silently for a moment, looking at the majestic beauty of the land, and the river. They could hear the river water trickling under the thick layer of ice. Ivanolia was fairly sure that they wouldn't break through the ice, but not so sure they wouldn't fall down on it, and crack open a head. That made him nervous, as neither one of them knew much about healing. He began to take out his rope to tie the child to himself.

"I have an idea, Ivan," Braydalana said. "Ice River isn't really a river . . . more of a wide creak, really. We could throw sand down on it, to give our foot coverings a better grip. What do you think?"

Ivanolia frowned, and looked at the bank of sand that the girl was pointing at, then smiled. "That sounds like a great idea Bray."

They used her idea, and Ivanolia marveled at how great it was. Ice River was wider than he had thought, but the sand certainly did the trick, and they crossed without so much as a minor slip.

As the day came to a close for father and daughter, they halted at yet another frozen river, but did not know its name. To their left, they could see that Big River was not frozen completely, and that it came down from the north, then it curved off to the west, and the frozen river joined it precisely at its westward bend. The edges of Big River were still covered with sheets of ice, and the waters weren't yet tumultuous, but it was still flowing rather swiftly downstream.

Ivanolia decided that they would cross this second frozen river before nightfall, so that their morning would be unfettered. Braydalana had agreed that it would be better to make the crossing that evening, and so it was done. There was nothing extraordinary about the crossing, except that they could tell that the ice was thinning, and the sound of the water of Big River was loud in comparison to the mild trickling sound from Ice River.

At Beech Camp on the very same day, it was Laurana that woke up early this time. Her pregnancy was starting to make it hard to sleep, and she wanted to get up, but she didn't relish going out alone, so she waited for a bit.

It turned out that her wait wasn't long, because Ayla woke up, and saw her sitting up. "Good morning, Laurana. Did you sleep okay?"

"Ah-hah," she said with a nod. "But I need to get up to relieve myself. Do you want to come with me," she whispered.

Ayla nodded, then decided to tell Grov where they were going, so that she wouldn't worry him like she had the day before. He smiled at her, and waved them off. "Do women always have to relieve themselves together?" he asked.

Ayla smiled at him. It did seem like they did that, she thought. "Will you bring the children to me when they wake up? I'd like to bathe them." He nodded. She watched him roll back over, and she pulled his furs up higher, and tucked them around his shoulders, and kissed his head.

Once outside, the two Oak Camp women walked in the direction of the river, toward _the slope_, as they had heard it called. They were just about to go out of sight, when Seriana stepped out of her mother's lodge, and saw where they were going. Her mother had warned her to stay away from the woman whose spirit had mingled with the flatheads, but she was drawn to her for some reason, and ran to catch up.

"Ayla, hallo," she said. "I do not believe I have met your friend. Great Mother, you two look alike!" she exclaimed when she got near enough. She could tell they were not two born at the same time, but they were sure close to identical.

The two Oak Camp women smiled, but it was Ayla that spoke. "This is my cousin, Laurana. She is to be mated to Brulenzia at our summer meeting," Ayla said, giving her new friend some background, and then she turned to her cousin. "And this is my new friend, Seriana. She is the woman that showed me the hot spring yesterday. Do you think we could take Laurana over to it too?" Ayla asked.

Seriana grinned. "The pools are open to anyone that wants to use them. They are a gift from the Mother. I was just going over there myself, and I would love to have company." She could tell the women had to make a detour first. "I will meet you over there," she said and scampered off.

Ayla and Laurana went to the slope, then made their way over to the hot springs. This time, there were several other people there as well; all women and children, and some looked at them curiously. Seriana was talking to two other young women, and waved Ayla and Laurana over when they appeared. The two women recognized one of them, but not the other. "This is my sister, Kristana, and our brother's mate, Mirra. Mirra is Tegassia's daughter, so she is related to Brulenzia." Both young women smiled, but didn't say anything.

Seriana encouraged the two women to take off their clothes and get in, but Ayla hardly needed the encouragement, she remembered all too well how good she had felt after the dip she had taken the day before. Soon, the five young women were enjoying the warmth, and good conversation.

"So, Seriana tells me you have three children Ayla," Kristana said. She had not come to the main lodge the night before because her son had not been feeling well.

"Yes . . . well no, I have two children, but my mate brought a daughter to our mating, so I have been her mother as well," Ayla said.

"Oh," she said. She was dying to see this woman's children, and wondered where they were. "Are your children still at the Visitor's Hearth?"

Ayla nodded. "But Grov said he would bring them out when they wake."

Mirra had already heard the stories, mostly from Seriana, but she had to ask anyway. "So, what kind of name is _Grov_anyway?"

Ayla looked at the woman sharply, not sure what the woman really wanted. "It is a Clan name. He is part Clan, and part Others."

Mirra couldn't believe the woman said it openly, but she also couldn't help but like this strange woman. And, she wondered what her mate would think of this woman. He had been raised by a mother that hated flatheads; and usually had no qualms about commenting about them wherever she could. Mirra's mate usually took his mother's hatred with a grain of salt, but the woman sometimes wondered if he had experienced enough of her rantings to actually believe some of it; many people did, and they came from a camp that was rampant with flathead-fear.

Mirra had always wondered why her father had accepted her mate's family into their camp. She knew that the only reason could be because he knew how much she had loved Mikolavia, and the headman wanted to make his daughter happy. Mikolavia's camp did not have much status, but their mating had brought his status up. He had always been grateful to her father for accepting him, and taking them in. He was a good man, despite his mother's prejudice.

Just as the women were talking about the Clan, Grov showed up with the three children. Ayla stood up to take Annaliza from him, and smiled up into his blue eyes. "Hallo, are you coming in too?"

Grov glanced at the bathing women, and hesitated a moment, not sure if it was appropriate, or what people would think. He had learned that Others men interacted with the women a lot more often than did Clan men and women, but he still wasn't sure.

"Oh come on, Grov. Come in, we won't bite," Laurana said, overhearing Ayla, and seeing his expression of uncertainty.

Grov looked at the other three women, then nodded. Seeing that the women were naked, he took off his clothing, as did Durc. Ayla handed Annaliza to Laurana and stripped Ora. The three Beech Camp women curiously watched the man take his clothes off, trying to see differences in him that could be used to discount his humanity, but none could be found. He looked nearly the same as any other man; a little stockier, maybe, but tall, dark, and rather handsome, Mirra thought.

"Oooo," Ora verbalized. "This is nice and warm," she signed, then splashed into the water

Laurana, who was trying desperately to learn the Clan's sign language, answered the child. "Yes, Ora. It is warm, isn't it?" The child nodded, and smiled.

Seriana gave the woman a strange look. The child had not said anything except for 'Oooo.' How had the woman known what she was thinking? She wanted to ask, but felt strange about it, so didn't.

Grov lowered himself into the water slowly, and sat between Ayla and Laurana. So far, he had not spoken a word yet, and the two that had not met him yet wondered if he could speak; they had always heard that flatheads couldn't talk. Then, when Ora started to get a little rambunctious, he took the child's hands, and scolded her. "Ora, you must sit still, and not splash," he said. Seriana noticed that he had a nice voice, not as deep as she thought it might be, though still deep in comparison to the men she knew. Kristana smiled at Seriana, knowing that they had been thinking nearly the same thing.

Mirra quietly studied at Ayla's son, wondering why he looked so flathead, and realized that the Mother must have chosen a different man's spirit to create this child, for the man of his hearth was hardly flathead at all, and though Ayla had said Ora was not her daughter, the little girl looked remarkably like the tall blond woman, and her baby. Mirra liked them, and hoped her mate would not be upset that she was bathing with them.

The nine of them relaxed for sometime, before they were interrupted. Balana came storming up to the pool. "Seriana! I told you to come right back to the hearth," she said agitatedly.

"Yes, mother, but Ayla wanted to show Laurana the pools, and I have to bathe, you know. I will be back soon enough."

"Daughter, do you forget that you are blessed?" she said hotly, trying not to look at the visitors. "And that you shouldn't . . . " her voice trailed off, suddenly curious herself, she looked at the visitors then.

"Mother," Kristana began. "We all know that Seriana is blessed, and we are taking care of her. Don't worry."

"But . . . but . . . " she said, then closed her mouth. She looked at the mixed man and child carefully. They seem civilized, she thought, then she humphed and left the young people alone.

Seriana, Kristana and Mirra exchanged looks, and they went back to their conversation.

Later in the day, when the people finally loaded up into Beech Camp boats, the sun was at its highest point. Tarana was trying to convince them to stay another night, but Vincenzia insisted that they get back to their journey. He was worried about the coming rains.

As it turned out, a light drizzle began to fall as they began to cross Big River, and he was thankful they left when they did. He now began to fear crossing the Big River upstream, and wished they had gone the other way. They may have to travel a great distance upriver to find a crossable point on Big River, and he didn't like the idea of adding more time to their journey. Oh well, he thought, if they hurried, it may still be frozen upstream; he hoped anyway.

Once on the other side, Beech Camp helped to unload them, and waved goodbye. "We will see you at the summer meeting," Tegassia said. "And don't worry, we won't leave here until after the rest of Oak Camp gets here."

Vincenzia smiled and waved a farewell, and they watched the boats go back across the river. When they had, their journey started again. Everyone was happy that they had gotten to rest, and knew that they were about half way to Lion Camp, or so Vincenzia told them.

Vincenzia drove them hard that day, but they didn't really get that far. They had gotten a late start, and were tired early, and the wet weather made travel uncomfortable. Probably too much bouza, he considered. Or too much hot springs, or too much wetness, he thought, wiping water off his forehead. He smiled and called a halt just before the sun sunk behind the western mountains. Everyone was glad to get in out of the showers.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – Day Six and a Stop at Pine Camp<br>**

After their night of camping out again, everyone missed Beech Camp even more. It didn't help that it had rained steadily all night long, and everything outside was soaking wet. The people packed up quickly, and trudged through the grassy valley in a northward direction. No one really talked; they just tried to keep dry as they walked.

When it was time for the afternoon meal, they all sat down dejectedly, even Vincenzia, who had been cheery for all of the trip. He was now seriously worried about their second crossing of Big River. He supposed they could travel up Big River until they got to the next Mamutoi camp, and ask them to give them a ride across the river in a bowl boat, but he didn't like the delay. This was supposed to be a rather simple trek.

Darvie tried to cheer him up, but she was having more trouble with Danie. Danie was becoming more and more morose as time went on, and it pained Darvie to see her sister so sad. It didn't help that the younger woman was currently separated from Ivanolia, by hurt feelings _and_distance, but now the weather was making the young woman feel hopeless.

Ayla watched the sisters closely, and suspected that Danie was harboring something else as well. The medicine woman in her could just see these things. Ayla approached the two women. "Uhh, Darvie? Do you mind if I talk to Danie for a moment?" Ayla asked. Darvie hesitated for a moment, then seeing that the healer was concerned, she stepped aside, and went to assist the others.

"Um, Danie?" Ayla said, waiting for the woman to look up at her. When she did, Ayla went on. "I think it is best if you drink this tea," she said, handing the woman a cup of tea.

Danie reached out and took the proffered cup. "What is this for?"

"Well, a pregnant woman should drink certain teas when traveling; to keep both mother and baby strong. The exercise is good, but this will make you not get so sick in the mornings."

Danie smiled at her. "How did you know, Ayla? I have not told anyone yet."

Ayla shrugged. Everyone acted like she was having premonitions or something; like she could really see things when no one else could. "It is not difficult. I am a healer. I am trained to see what others refused to look at. Besides, I heard you getting sick this morning, and you seem different."

Danie laughed. "Yeah, like a woman about to no longer be mated. That's how I look different," she said sadly.

"Oh Danie, he will come around," Ayla reassured her. "Don't give up on Ivanolia yet."

"How can you be so nice, after all that he has said and done?" the woman asked Ayla. "I heard that he hit you when he was with your Clan."

Ayla frowned at the memory. "Well, yes he did, but it was an accident. He wasn't trying to hit me; he was just afraid for Jendoza and Braydalana. And," Ayla went on, "he is not so bad. He just doesn't understand, but he will. I can feel it." Ayla smiled at her, and encouraged her to drink her tea. Danie drank up, and was very thoughtful after her talk with Ayla. How could someone so young, know so much, she thought?

When their meals had been eaten, Vincenzia pushed them on. Around evening, they came to the area that began the ascent to the highlands. Vincenzia and Brulenzia decided that it would be best to start that in the morning. There was no way they'd make it to the top before darkness, and no one wanted to camp on uneven ground. They set up quickly, each going to their own tents early, to get out of the rain.

Ayla sat down in the tent and nursed her daughter, while Grov lay on their furs. When the little girl was finished, the woman put her down, and went to get the others something to eat. She handed Durc and Ora a traveling cake, then turned toward Grov. "Are you hungry too? You haven't eaten much today," she commented.

"Hummm, yes, but I want you," he said.

Ayla giggled, wishing they had another tent for the children, or even just more space to spread out. "Well, you can have me soon. Eat your food first," she said, shoving a traveling cake at him.

Laurana and Brulenzia were inside their tent sharing pleasures, and laughing about how much more difficult it had gotten as Laurana's pregnancy progressed. Brulenzia was laughing heartily about the situation, and Laurana was trying to get him to be quiet. "Shush Bru," she said, giggling herself. "We don't want to disturb the entire camp."

Still on top of her, he pushed the tent flat aside, and looked out. The rain was coming down rather hard, and the raindrops were plunking loudly onto the puddled grass. "I don't think anyone can hear anything with that rain falling," he said. She giggled again, and shivered at the cold draft coming in. Brulenzia let the flat drop again, and went back to his woman.

After getting her children to sleep, Ayla sat down next to her mate, waiting for him to make his advances. She sometimes missed the cave of the Clan, and how sure she was of things back there, and she wished he would just make the signal, so that she would know what to do.

Grov lay there on the furs, watching her, and wondered what she was thinking. He was amazed at how different things were with the Others, and that they had adapted so easily. He was actually enjoying himself greatly. He wondered how difficult it would be for them to return to the Clan; how difficult it would be for Ayla to go back to accepting a man's dominance over her. In some ways it was easier with the Clan; easy to know what to expect, what was expected, but harder too, because they couldn't just be themselves. Yes, he thought, he was enjoying being himself.

He looked at her closely, then realized she was trying to encourage him, and he hid his smile, just as he was accustomed to doing with the Clan. He hadn't really had time to read her Clan signals, and he was feeling immeasurable desire for his mate at her suggestive look. He started to get up to go to her, then changed his mind, and signaled her.

Ayla, seeing the gesture, got up immediately, and went down on all fours in front of him, presenting as was customary. Grov had not seen her in that position in quite sometime, and was more turned on than he thought possible. He caressed her backside gently, leaning over her and kissing her back tenderly, then he entered her with one forceful thrust. Ayla groaned loudly, enjoying the feeling, so different than the way they usually honored the Mother now. She had missed what she was accustomed to as well.

When they were finished, Ayla cleaned herself off, then crawled into their furs, and snuggled up against her mate. Grov held her in the crook of his arm tightly, and she drifted off to sleep feeling safe and contented.

On this day, Ivanolia woke first. He was listening to the rain, which had increased since the day before. It made him slightly nervous to hear so much water so near to their tent, so he got up.

Outside, he noticed that the river's volume had increased greatly overnight, and that the ground was considerably more soggy than it had been. It made him extremely nervous for the daughter of his hearth; he immediately went in and woke the girl.

Her attitude was nearly the same as it had been, but she seemed tired. He handed her a warm broth to drink while he packed everything up. "Ummm, did Fraylora make this?" she asked.

He nodded. "I have had it in a water-tight basket since we left. I knew the rains would come, and wanted you to have something decent to eat when they did."

Braydalana smiled at the man of her hearth, knowing that he truly loved her. She had always known that, even when he acted like a creep.

As it turned out, the rains had caused Big River to swell significantly, making their journey much more treacherous. In many places, where they thought the ground was solid, they stepped upon it to discover that the sand or mud just sank away. They had to travel right up against the steep hills of the valley, just to get through, and even then, sometimes they had to squeeze themselves through, back up against the hills, just to pass. Ivanolia found himself seriously worried about his daughter. It was not until later that he realized he was thinking about the girl as if he himself had birthed her, but he was.

Around midday, Braydalana was calling for a break. This was the first time she was even asking for rest so he complied immediately. The girl collapsed to catch her breath. When she had, she decided to go over to the river to fill their water bags, and Ivanolia sat a moment longer.

When finally he had caught his breath to go help her, she was nearly finished, but welcomed his help. "Do you think we'll get to Pine Camp today?" she asked.

"Well, I'd like to, but I'm not even sure we'll find them," he replied. "I mean, they live up on a cliff. They could be above us right now, but I'm not sure. I think they held their summer meeting high above their caves, up on the highlands."

Braydalana smiled. "Caves? I wish I could have been there."

"You will daughter. Don't worry about it, you will. In fact, you might get to experience your first rites there," he went on. "If you become a woman that year . . . which is likely."

The girl blushed crimson at the man's mention of her menses. She considered that long off, but when she counted the years, she nodded, thinking, yes, that could be possible, even probable. Then her curiosity got the better of her. "What is it like, Ivan?" she asked.

It was his turn to blush. She should be talking to women about this, not him. "Uhhh, I don't really know Bray, I am a man."

"I know that, but . . . you have done first rites . . . right?" she persisted.

Ivanolia felt extremely awkward. "Well, yes, Bray. I have opened many young woman," he admitted.

"Well then, tell me," she said.

"But you are too young, and I am not the right person," he continued.

"Oh come on. I want to know before it's time," she begged of the man of her hearth. "Did you open my mother?"

Ivanolia smiled. "No, it is an older man's duty to open a young woman. You mother and I were about the same age." He looked at her sadly.

Braydalana quickly steered him away from her mother; she was more interested in why he had opened so many women. "How many women have you opened?"

Ivanolia blushed again, wishing he had a woman here to talk to her, but then, she seemed to want to know about his experiences, not just the experience. "I'm not sure. I used to count, but . . . I have counted in years."

"Why do you do it," she asked next.

"Well, I don't do it anymore, but it's amazing to see a new woman turn into a full woman, and to be the one to do it," he said, a far away look on his face. "But that is all I will tell you . . . you must wait," he said with a firmness that she would not push.

The eight-year old smiled, thinking that she had to talk to some women about this; she was just too curious. The girl filled up her last water bag, then turned to return to where they had built a temporary fire.

Just as she turned to go, the sandbar she stood upon seemed to melt away, and she sunk into the river. It seemed to happen in slow motion, and Ivanolia ran to help her, but he too was running in slow motion, and could not arrive in time; she fell in, and got caught up in the pull of the water.

Braydalana screamed her fear, but immediately focused on her problem. Stay above the water, she told herself, stay _above_the water. She continued to think about her dilemma, and suddenly noticed hold cold the water was. What she didn't noticed was how fast she was being carried down stream, or that Ivanolia was screaming along with her, and splashing into the water himself. Soon, he too was caught up in the current, and was being pulled down the swiftly flowing waterway.

A woman was sitting on the ledge of Mammoth Cave, looking down at Big River. Someone was always posted to watch the changes in the river, usually one of the children, but on this day it was the headwoman, Bidena, since she had clothing to mend, and wanted to see how much the night and day's rain had increased the size of the river. The woman sat perched in a comfortable seat, and was studying the smoke that she saw. The headwoman was becoming increasingly worried when she realized that someone was down there, and that the river was likely to wash them away.

"Zackodia," she called, as he walked by with her brother. "Someone must get down to the dock, and go downriver. There are people down there that are going to be needing our help." Her mate had learned to trust her instructions, and went with his best boatmen to help those in need of assistances.

Down on the dock, the men chose two medium-sized boats, one of which, they had just repaired, loaded them up, then embarked on a trip downriver.

As they approached the area which Bidena said contained people, they saw the smoke of fire, but since they were at the river's level, they did not see where the people might be.

Suddenly, they heard a desperate cry for help, and they increased their speed. Sure enough, they found a man in the river that was sputtering, and calling out. They immediately pulled him into their boat, but he continued to rant and rave. When they were finally able to communicate with him, all that he said was, "daughter, river, help," then he passed out. They continued downriver, in search of a drowning girl.

It was not long after that they pulled Braydalana out of the river, but she was in better shape than the man. She had put all of her concentration into swimming and surviving, and was essentially unharmed. As soon as she was in the boat, she smiled. "Well, you must be people from Pine Camp. I have heard about your wonderful boats," the drippy girl said, then she looked at Ivanolia. "Will he be okay?"

A big, burly man smiled at the girl. "Yes, yes, he will be fine," he said. "He is just exhausted. Not to worry."

Braydalana smiled as well, then looked at the man closely. "You must be related to Gredenzia; you look just like him," she said, as she peered at him carefully.

"Well yes, I am. I came from Oak Camp, but who are you?"

"I am of that one's hearth," she answered. "But Gredenzia is the mate of my mother's mother . . . so, we must be related, but I'm not sure what you would be to me."

Zackodia laughed. "Yes, so you are. I would be your great uncle, I think. And now, I do remember you, vaguely, but I do. I am glad we found you. What are you doing up here?"

"We are traveling to Lion Camp, of the Mamutoi. They have a mixed child among them, and a woman of our camp is going there to help him; he is very sick. This man," she said, indicating the unconscious man in the boat, "is mated to one of the women on that journey. We are hoping to meet them along the way."

"No one else passed through here," he said, a little worry in his voice.

"They went a different way, and they are a couple days ahead of us. Like I said, we are hoping to find them, but I'm afraid we are too slow," she informed the man.

"Well then, it's good that we have met you. We can take you upriver . . . as soon as we wake this man up, and have a talk. Zackodia smiled at the girl, and maneuvered the boat upriver.

The boats arrived at Pine Camp's docks, and the unconscious man was carried up the steep trail to the area where their caves were. They had to pass several caves, and many came out to see who was going by. Zackodia told the girl where they were going, naming each cave in turn. "That is Lion Cave, Hunting Cave, Horse Cave, Bison Cave, Tool Cave, and this is Mammoth Cave," he rambled on. "Bidena, I have brought some of our kinsman," he said, presenting his charges.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – Day Seven and More Rest at Pine Camp<br>**

It was morning before Ivanolia awakened, and he sat up in a panic, looking wildly around for his daughter. Then he grabbed his head as a sharp pain radiated through it. He realized that he had been injured, though obviously not terribly, and felt his bandaged forehead.

The man frowned and looked around at his surroundings, then noticed a plate of food and a drink sitting next to him. He smiled and picked up what had obviously been put there for him.

After gobbling down the food, he got up to look for Braydalana, and fervently hoped she was okay as well. Why aren't there any people here?" he thought, as he wandered around. Then he went to the cave's entrance.

Outside, he could see that he was high up on a cliff, and he looked around again. "This must be Pine Camp," he said to himself. He did not realize he had spoken aloud.

"Well, yes it is," a woman answered him. "I am glad to see that you are awake, Ivanolia. I am Solenta, mate of the headman of Pine Camp. Do you need anything?"

Ivanolia smiled. "I am glad to be awake too, and wondering where my daughter is. I assume that she is okay, since you seem to know my name."

"Yes, yes, she is fine, but of course I know your name. I have traveled to Oak Camp before, but you were much younger at the time, you must not remember." She paused. "Now, how is it possible that the child we found is _your_daughter? You are a man. How could you have given birth to her?"

Ivanolia frowned. He had not realized he had said it that way, but he supposed that he had meant it. "Braydalana's mother died in childbirth, and I have raised her almost by myself. Of course, I could not nurse her. My own mother, and our headwoman did that part, but she has always lived at my hearth, and she is my daughter, in my heart. And, I am sure that it was my spirit that started her."

Solenta had an odd look on her face. "Hummmm, interesting. I wish that our Spirit Shogur was here, but he is on a journey with his brother at this time. I am certain he'd like to discuss . . . things, with you." The woman got up. "Let me take you to _your_daughter," she said with a smile. As they walked out, she said, "This is Mammoth Cave. Zackodia brought you here last night, since our Healing Shogur is away."

Ivanolia nodded and followed the woman, constantly looking out over the cliff. He could see the river below, and was glad he had gotten a chance to see it from this vantage point; it was spectacular. "Your view is remarkable," he said to the headman's mate.

"We like to think so. No other camp can look out over Big River like we can," she said proudly. "But, the climb can be very treacherous in winter. We have people that maintain the trail for us, but it is still difficult."

"I can imagine," Ivanolia was nodding. "I seem to recall coming here for a summer meeting several years back, but I didn't get to see your caves." They had just stopped at another cave along the path.

"No, most people do not come to the caves during summer meetings. We hold them above," she said, pointing up the steep cliff. "Up on the highlands." Solenta smiled at the man, she was pleased that he was enjoying the view, and that he had commented on it. "Braydalana is in here. This is Tool Cave, and she is working an outfit for her two cousins. Teglodia, I think, and I don't remember what she said about the other one."

"The second one has not been born yet. My other sister is pregnant, and will likely give birth at the summer meeting," he informed her.

"Oh yes, that is what she said. I just did not remember. Anyway, I need to get back to my mending, so I'll let you find her on your own." She smiled at him again, then walked back the way they had come.

Ivanolia entered the cave, and stood for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the semi darkness, then he walked in further.

"IVAN!" came the scream of his daughter, and he grinned at her. "I am so glad you are awake. Look at what I've made," she exclaimed, holding up the garment for him to see.

"That is very nice. I'm sure Jendoza will like that very much." He smiled at her new friends.

"I am making one for Laurana's baby too, see?" she said, and held up a second outfit.

Ivanolia smiled at her. "Well, I'm sure Laurana will like that too," he said. "So, where are all the adults? Bidena led me here, but then she left."

Braydalana dropped what she was doing. "They have gone fishing up Trout River. It's not far. Do you need me to show you how to get down from here?" she asked.

The man smiled and nodded, and then Braydalana excused herself. "I will be back," she said to the other girls.

Once outside again, Braydalana turned to the right, and headed down the narrow path, which eventually went by four more caves. They passed several people on their way. The girl smiled at some, and said hello to others. Ivanolia followed her down the winding path, looking around with interest. He noticed that the river seemed to fork in two different directions, and Braydalana stopped there.

"This is Bison Cave," she said. "It is the largest cave here, with the widest opening, and it's directly above where Trout River joins Big River. See?" Ivanolia looked out and nodded. "Their Shogurs live in there," Braydalana went on, "but they are not here right now. We'll probably eat in there tonight." The girl then continued to walk down the path.

They passed two more caves, as they followed along, high above Trout River, then stopped again at a third. "This is Lion Cave. Zackodia lives in here with his mate Bidena. She is their headwoman. Bidena was the one to see our fire smoke, and sent Zackodia to see who was down there. It's a good thing too," she said with a smile. The man blushed, thinking that they should have figured out a better way to go. He figured he could give Gredenzia heck later.

When the two finally got down to the bottom, Braydalana brought Ivanolia over to the people that were fishing, just a ways up Trout River. Zackodia was happy to see the man awake, just as was everyone else. Ivanolia thanked him for his hospitality, and told the man that they should be leaving.

"No, no, don't be silly," the man said to him. "You must stay tonight, we'll have a feast, and tomorrow we'll take you upriver. It won't be much faster than walking, but since it's been rain free, but cold today, we will at least be able to go upriver."

Ivanolia smiled. "That would be most helpful. We are trying," he started to say.

"Yes, Braydalana told us . . . you're going meet family, then go to Lion Camp. We'll be able to help them across Big River too, if we get there in time. But tonight," he said, "tonight we feast."

Ivanolia nodded, and smiled. "Okay, what can I do to help?"

The travelers woke early, as usual, and began their journey up the incline. For the most part everyone had to walk up the hill, children included. It was just too steep to carry even the children, except for Annaliza, and she and Grov took turns holding her.

Ora held Crisana's hand, and Ayla was grateful that the girl was such a help. Crisanie now, Ayla reminded herself, the Mamutoi called her Crisanie. Ayla smiled at the thought, would she be Aylie if she were Mamutoi? She looked at Annaliza . . . Annalizie. The woman smiled to herself.

Travie complained about the hike a little, but not so much that others became annoyed, and Vincenzia helped his mate's mother whenever she needed it. The woman wasn't really that old by the standards of the Sungaea, only forty-four. That was ancient to the Clan, Ayla thought. In fact, she'd probably be close to death, if not dead, if she were Clan.

Ayla glanced back at Laurana. The pregnant woman was having trouble with the climb, but she wasn't saying a word about it. Brulenzia was walking with her, one hand on the small of her back, but they were starting to fall behind. Ayla frowned, then looked at her mate. "Grov, Laurana is having trouble," she complained. She had only just given him Annaliza, and she was shaking out her arms to get the blood flowing again.

He looked back at the woman. "I have an idea," he said, with a grin. "Will you take Anna back?" Ayla nodded, reaching for her daughter, and wondering what he would do.

Grov hiked back down the hill toward the struggling woman, and asked Brulenzia to take the things he had in his arms. There weren't too many of them, but he would need help anyway. Brulenzia looked at him strangely and wondered why Grov wanted help, then did as he was asked, and watched as the Clan man scooped up his woman and carried her as if she were a child. Grov, though much thinner, taller and straighter than his Clan brethren, was just as strong as they were, and Laurana's weight was nothing to him.

Laurana let out a little scream, as she had not been warned about was going to happen, then smiled at him gratefully. Brulenzia watched the man carry her for only a moment before he smiled too, and followed along. Brulenzia was a big, strong man himself, but even he would have had trouble carrying Laurana up this hill, for any distance. The man got a sudden insight into the strength of the Clan.

Once upon the highland, the trek became easier again, and Grov set Laurana down. She thanked him profusely, as did Brulenzia, and they marveled at his stamina; Grov did not even seem winded. He turned back to Ayla, and tried to take Annaliza back, but she refused. "You have done enough for a while," she said.

"Here," Brulenzia said. "Let me take Annaliza. I don't think you should have to carry her either."

"Well, I am her mother," Ayla said. She was going to tell him no, but he insisted. She was greatly relieved when he took her though; her arms were trembling.

As evening approached, Durc came running back to his mother. "Mama, we can see Big River from the edge of the cliff over there. It's not as big as before, but still huge. How will we cross?" he asked.

"I am not sure, Durc, but I'm sure Vincenzia has a plan. Don't worry," she said, though she was worried herself. When she finally got to the cliff edge, she was even more worried. If it looked so big from up here, it was likely to actually be much larger once they were standing next to it.

Vincenzia saw her look. "Don't panic Ayla. If we can't cross where we want to, then we can go upriver to where we can. Maple Camp usually leaves boats across the river from their camp, for just such occasions, and if they're not there, well then we can go further upriver to get help from Mammoth Camp. The Mamutoi are always very helpful, especially when there are Mamutoi women among us. We will not have to swim, if that's what you're worried about." Ayla visibly relaxed, and looked out over Big River. It _was_an amazing sight.

That night, Vincenzia suggested that they drink bouza, and have some fun. It was a good rest for all of them. The night was full of laughter, and Danie actually produced a smile that showed Ayla she had taken her words to heart, and was even coaxed to go to Brulenzia's tent at the end of the evening.

Ayla smiled at Grov, wondering what he thought of all the pleasure sharing that was done among the Sungaea. She knew that she would not go to someone else's furs, unless Grov was occupied himself. Then she thought about how she could decline, as she had been told was her right . . . could she be so bold, she contemplated; she didn't know. She really didn't think about Grov being with another woman; that was a man's right in her mind. Ayla had shared him with Oga plenty of times. Oga even had a child that was his, and that didn't bother Ayla in the least. Ayla was just an accepting woman.

Grov was likewise considering Ayla, and whether or not she _wanted_to share someone else's furs. Women of the Clan didn't usually have the choice, but among her people, it was her right to do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. He was unsure whether she'd be capable of refusing a direct request from another man. In the case of this night, there was only Brulenzia that could ask her, and he'd already gotten Danie to join him, so it wasn't likely that Ayla's company would be needed that night. Grov thought about spending time with the Mamutoi, and whether they had the same customs. Probably so, or Danie wouldn't have agreed so easily to go with the Sungaean man. And, what about the Sungaean summer meeting? Would there be offers there? Would it bother him, he questioned himself in his own head? He knew Broud hadn't liked sharing Oga. Then, no, he didn't think it would bother him, just so long as she came back to him.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp - Day Eight and A Long Day Traveling Upriver<br>**

Ayla woke up to Annaliza's whimpering, and quickly picked up the child, and offered her a breast before she woke anyone else. The baby suckled, briefly, then nestled against her mother, and fell asleep again; that was all she really wanted, Ayla thought smiling.

Ayla sat holding her for a little while, then decided to go outside. She tucked her child into her sleeping tunic, and put a strap around the child to hold her in place, then slipped on her leggings and went outside.

Outside, she went to the fire, and sat down. Brulenzia was sitting there with Vincenzia, and the two men were talking about Lion Camp. Darvie had been intent that everyone learn enough Mamutoi to communicate, so Brulenzia was attempting to use his Mamutoi with the older man. Ayla noticed that it wasn't really that different from Sungaean.

Vincenzia finished his conversation with the younger man, then stood up, kissed Ayla on the top of the head, then headed back to his tent. Ayla smiled up at him, and watched him walk away.

"Good morning Brulenzia," she finally said. She was extremely curious about his night with Laurana _and_Danie, but wouldn't dream of asking him about it. He could tell she was interested, but he too didn't know what to say.

Brulenzia was an exceptionally attractive man, and had brought many women to his furs, but Danie was the first one that he had bedded since he and Laurana had gotten together permanently. Part of that was because they were in their camp almost constantly, and there weren't many other young women. Part was also that he was just so happy with his woman, and didn't want to be with anyone else. And it was partly that Laurana was pregnant, and sometimes pregnant women didn't like it if their men went off with other women. The night before, Laurana had told him she was tired, and wanted to sleep. He had gone to bed with her, but when he couldn't sleep, she sent him back out so that he could seek out Danie. Danie had been feeling lonely, since she and Ivanolia had been having trouble, and Brulenzia's interest made her feel somewhat better.

The next person up was Laurana, who came out sleepy eyed, and sat down next to her man. "Hi," she said, and kissed him tenderly. "I am so tired. This one has been kicking me constantly," she tapped her belly, and sighed.

Brulenzia kissed her, then leaned down, putting his face next to her stomach. "You need to calm down, and let your mama rest," he said to her expanding middle in a sort of baby voice. That made her laugh, and Ayla smiled. She had never seen anyone talk to the baby like that before.

"I could make a calming tea for you to drink before bed," Ayla suggested. "It could really help you rest."

Laurana nodded. "Yes, I think I would like that Ayla."

"Me too," Danie added from the tent entrance. She had a look on her face that Ayla had not seen there before. What was it, she thought? Peace?

"Danie," Laurana exclaimed. "Are you blessed too?" Danie nodded at the woman, and flushed. "I just hope Ivan will shape up, so that I can be happy about this. It is difficult to imagine that my mating won't work out, especially after how nice it was in the beginning."

"I already told you that he will 'shape up,' Danie," Ayla prophesized. "So don't you worry." Ayla could see that Brulenzia was frowning, but decided to ask him about it later.

Shortly after Danie, Grov appeared, looking tousled, and sleepy just like the others had. Ayla immediately jumped up to fix his tea, just the way he liked it. The man accepted his woman's attention, and noticed that the other woman didn't just jump up every time their men wanted something, and that the men often got what they wanted on their own. He wondered if he should encourage her to be more like that while they were with her people. He really liked the personal service, but wondered what everyone else thought about it.

Then, it occurred to him that he could do the same for her. There was no reason why a man could not assist a woman in such things, or have tea waiting for her, if he woke up first. In the Clan's cave, it would be disturbing to see a man doing such things, but here, it would feel normal.

Finally, Vincenzia came back out of his tent again, and the five young adults turned to look at him. "So, are we off soon?" Brulenzia asked.

"Yes," the older man replied. "I want to at least get to the path that descends the other side of this highland. It is steep over there, but not as bad as the way up was." He looked at Laurana, and smiled. "Are you okay?" She nodded. "Well, okay then, let's pack up, and get started. With any luck, we can get there in three days. That is, if everything goes as planned, and we can cross the river right at the bottom of this highland."

As the journeyers traveled along the cliff of the highland, they could look down into the valley below and see a herd of Megaceros roaming the area. Ayla smiled, thinking that she hadn't hunted in quite a while, and hadn't even thought about it. There had been a time in her life where that was all she thought about, but not now. She was too busy with her mate, three children, and her people.

As they walked, Ayla's mind turned toward the Clan, and she wondered what Uba was doing at the moment, and thought about her two small sons. They must be getting big by now, Ayla thought. Then she thought about Oga and her children, and wondered if the woman was doing okay with Broud. They seemed to be doing much better when Ayla left, but she couldn't be sure that the man hadn't reverted back to his previous self. And Ebra, she considered the difficult delivery the woman had had, and the many sleepless night afterward. Ayla hoped they were doing okay as well.

As Ayla walked, thinking about her Clan family, tears came to her eyes. She blinked them back quickly, and shook her head, trying to banish her thoughts. It was not like she wouldn't see them all again. She would be back at the Clan's cave when the summer was over.

Ayla was so deep in thought, that she did not hear the loud squawking that resonated off the hills that they were walking along. When Grov touched her shoulder, and pointed, she grinned. "Shriek!" she said. Grov indicated that he would take the baby, and Ayla took out her leather glove that she had created. The hawk circled around several times, then swooped down, and landed gracefully on her leather-covered forearm. Ayla reached up and stroked his feathers, and pulled the bird in closer so she could put her cheek against his wing. Shriek ruffled his feathers, as he always did, and squawked in her face.

Annaliza, in Grov's arms, reached a chubby hand toward the meat-eater, causing him so cock his head at the small creature, and squawk again. Ayla and Grov laughed at the girl's startled expression.

"He is just amazing Ayla," Laurana said, standing to Ayla right, but just far enough that the hawk could not reach over and nip her. She was still afraid of the animal, especially since they had not had much contact with him; he was always off somewhere.

Ayla smiled. "Yes, he is."

"Who would have ever thought a hawk could be tamed," Brulenzia said. "You have a gift Ayla."

"Hummmm, I didn't do it on purpose. I just healed him, and took care of him, and he grew to trust me. It was not due to a gift, Brulenzia," Ayla said.

"But Ayla, no one else has ever done this before," Laurana argued. "You must have some sort of gift. Maybe you're a Caller."

Ayla frowned. "I don't know what a Caller is, Laurana, I really don't think this is a gift." Ayla paused. "Though it makes me wonder what other animals I could make my friends."

"I'm sure you could Call any animal you wanted, Ayla," Laurana went on with a smile. Ayla was still frowning, but wondered if she could, and thought about what other animals she would like to have as her friends.

When night fell on them, they were at another steep cliff area, and Vincenzia had said this would be a good place to camp. Ayla was happy that Shriek was hovering above, and when their tents were set up, he came down and perched himself on the top of their tent. It would make her sleep more peacefully, she thought, having him so near.

That night, Ivanolia and Braydalana had slept in Lion Cave instead of Mammoth Cave, as they would be heading out at first light, and wanted to be at the lowest point of Pine Camp. Zackodia, and few other men, would be taking the two travelers upriver in one of their boats, and had packed up enough supplies to be gone five or so days.

Bidena stood on the dock with her son, Dozentia, waving goodbye to the people in the boats. "We will see you at the summer meeting," she called out.

"Goodbye," Braydalana yelled. "Bye Dozentia." She was standing and waving energetically. Ivanolia finally told the girl to sit down.

Their upriver travel was going along fine. Big River's flow had slowed considerably again since the rains had ceased for the moment, and because they had experienced another freezing night. Still, they had to work extremely hard to maneuver the craft upriver. Braydalana just sat there, working on the baby outfit she was making for Laurana's baby, but Ivanolia struggled right along with everyone else. He was, however, thrilled to see that they appeared to be making good time. Zackodia reassured him that upriver travel was possible if the conditions were right. Ivanolia had not believed him, but now he did.

As the sun began to set over the western hills, Pine Camp called a halt to the traveling. "Well, I'd say we've gone half the distance to where we need to go," Zackodia stated.

"Really?" Ivanolia asked. "That is wonderful. I am still afraid they have already passed us. Could they have crossed Big River by now?"

"How many people are traveling?" a younger man asked him.

Ivanolia thought a moment. "Thirteen, but there are four children, one baby and a pregnant woman," he said with a frown.

"Well then, they are likely to be a day or so behind us, and no, they wouldn't be able to cross Big River. Not without a boat," Zackodia said. "But, they probably plan to go upriver a bit to where Maple Camp keeps boats. Maple Camp always leaves boats on the south side of the river so that people can get across."

Ivanolia nodded. That piece of information made him relax. He had started worrying about Danie and Laurana again, but now he know they were likely to be just fine. Braydalana was watching him, and rolled her eyes. "Ivan," she said. "I'm sure Vincenzia would not do anything to put them all in danger. Besides, Ayla is there to help them. They will get there safely, just as we will." She smiled at her father, then went back to her sewing.

"See Ivanolia, no need to worry," the Pine Camp second said to him. Ivanolia smiled back at the burly man, thinking again about how much this man looked like his brother.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – Day Seven and Nine<br>**

Ivanolia was awoken by Zackodia before the sun even came up. "Let's go," the Pine Camp man called, rapping on the tent. "We're likely to miss them if we don't get moving."

"Be right out," Ivanolia said, then turned to shake Braydalana. Her eyes were already open, and she was rubbing sleep from them. "Let's hurry up," he said to her. She nodded and put her clothing on.

Their camp had been set up early the night before, since Zackodia wanted to set out early as well. Though he said it was not likely that the other travelers could have passed them, there was no way to know if they had. He decided it would be a shame to have to chase them upriver if they could catch them in the exact place they wanted to.

Ivanolia thought it unlikely they would find them exactly where they wanted to, but Zackodia explained that given the information Ivanolia had relayed to him, it was most probable that they had stopped for at least a day at Beech Camp, and that then they would travel straight through, following the well worn path, then turn northwest at Big River. Zackodia said that the distance they had to travel up the river was much greater, perhaps double that of the others over land, but their speed would get them there quickly. Not to mention their early departure.

Once packed up, and in their boat, Braydalana went back to sleep. Ivanolia had tucked her in, and said he would wake her for a meal later. The girl was looking a little sick, and Ivanolia was worried about her unexpected swim a couple days before, and wondered about her yellow face. She told him that she was just feeling a little nauseated from spending so much time in the boats. "I'm just not used to it, Ivanolia," she said. "Don't worry, just one more day of it."

When the sun was up enough to see, Ivanolia woke her and handed her some traveling meat and a drink of water. She took what he offered, drank deeply, then chewed slowly. She was a little dizzy, but the food seemed to help. When she was done eating, she decided to do a little more sewing.

The men, all sweaty in the cold morning air, were rowing steadily, and they were making significant progress. Ivanolia was amazed that they could travel so quickly on a river flowing in the opposite direction, but indeed they were. One man told him they would never be able to do this after the heavy rains began. Ivanolia nodded, remembering that they had told him that before, but then, he hadn't thought it possible to do it now.

Vincenzia was up before everyone else again, and waited for the sun to peek over the eastern mountains before he began to wake people. Of course he started with Darvie and her children, then Darvie woke Travie and Danie, and soon their noise of cleaning up the camp woke the rest.

When Ayla came out, she looked around for Shriek, but to her sadness, he had flown off again. She was not happy about that, but there was nothing she could do. With a frown, she went to rouse her children.

Durc didn't need to be woken up. The boy was already dressed when she entered the tent. "I want to play with Brenev, Mama," he said.

"Okay, just until we're ready to go, but don't get in anyone's way while they're packing up," Ayla called after him as he ran out to find his friend. Ayla smiled. She was so happy that her brother was the perfect age to play with her son. Well almost, she thought. Durc is a little more mature since he's part clan, but it was still perfect in her eyes.

Ayla turned to Ora, who had removed her sleeping clothes, and was giggling. "I don't want to put those clothes on Mamma," she said. "Where's my wrap?"

"Ora, you can't wear a Clan wrap out here," Ayla said, holding out the girl's leggings. "Come put this on."

Ora shook her head, causing Ayla to gasp. No Clan child would think of refusing to do what his or her mother had said to do. Ayla's shock made it possible for the girl to shoot out of the tent stark naked. Ayla ran after her.

As the girl shot outside, and around the fire, Laurana looked up and laughed. Then seeing Ayla's face, the younger woman stifled her laughter, and gave Brulenzia a look. The man, who was standing in the perfect position, grabbed the child by the arm and swung her up so that she could not escape. "And where are you going, my dear?" he asked. Ora struggled to get down, but gave up quickly.

Ayla walked up to the dangling child, and gave her a stern look. "That is unacceptable, Ora," she scolded. "I do not want you to do that again." As Ayla walked back to the tent, she cast a thankful look back at Brulenzia, then entered the tent.

Inside, Annaliza had removed her own swaddling, and wanted to play just like her big sister, but one look from Ayla told the child that there would be no playing this morning; Ayla told Annaliza to sit still, and she dressed Ora. Then, when she had finished with Ora, she took the child outside. "Crisanie," she said. "Would you mind watching Ora while I dress Anna?"

The eight year old smiled. "Oh, of course I wouldn't mind, Ayla. You know I love to play with her. I wish Bray was here to play with us." Ayla noticed her sister looked sad, but only until she placed Ora's hand in hers.

Ayla watched the two run off, dolls in hand, then turned back to her tent, and the naked child within. Annaliza seemed to have an easier temperament than her big sister. Then, Ayla was suddenly brought back to a time when she and Evenora were playing together…

_"Evenora, you're older than Andreyta. You must not go running off like that. You know she will follow you wherever you go," Ayla's mother said._

Evenora frowned. "So, she can follow me," she said in her most defiant voice.

"Okay then, I won't let you two play together if you don't understand why we are concerned," Vinoza replied, completely exasperated with her daughter. "And don't talk to Aunt Annalisa like that." Evenora was glaring at her mother, but tears were welling all the same.

Ayla smiled at the memory, and was glad that they were coming back to her slowly. She still could not see her mother in most of them, though she could picture others quite clearly, but she figured that it was only a matter of time. Ayla's thoughts turned back to Ora and Anna, and she almost giggled. Ora is just like her mother, whereas Anna was definitely her child.

When it was time for a noon meal, the travelers had made it to the crest of the highlands. Vincenzia said they could stop at the top to eat, then they would descend from the highlands afterward. Ayla was glad for that, she was staving, and from the looks of them, so was everyone else. Laurana and Danie downed their food quickly, and the children did the same. Of course, the only reason the children ate so quickly was because they wanted to play before the hike began.

When the meal had ended, the people picked up their gear and continued on. Their downward trek was slow, but it wasn't difficult. "This is just beautiful," Laurana exclaimed. "Look at this view!" Ayla smiled at the woman, as she helped her down. Grov had offered to carry her again, but Laurana had said she would be fine. Instead, Grov and Brulenzia walked just in front of the women, just in case.

As the cousins walked, Laurana was giggling at something Ayla said, and the two men in front of them looked back. Ayla smiled at them, then looked over their shoulders at the river, which had just come into her view. "Oooo, look, there's Big River," Ayla yelled. Everyone turned around, and smiled. They could see the midday sun glinting off the slowly flowing water, and the lush land of the river valley surrounding them.

Grov looked at the sight, then turned to look back at his mate, and her expression full of delight. He was suddenly glad he had decided to take her to visit her people; he would not have seen any of this otherwise, nor would he have had the spectacular view of his mate in such a delighted state.

As everyone stared at the valley before them for a moment, he took his mate into his arms and kissed her gently. "What was that for, Grov?" she asked.

"I just wanted you to know how happy I am here with you, and your people," he replied.

Ayla flashed a smile at him, then put her arms around his neck and kissed him back. "Well, I am happy that you are here with me. Now I am wishing it was night, and we were in our tent," she said. Grov laughed at her, then was startled out of her arms by Laurana's voice.

"Look!" she screamed. "Look at the river! There is a boat down there. Can everyone see it?"

Everyone immediately turned and squinted down at the river, and sure enough, there was a boat traveling against the current. It was just a speck from their vantage point, but it was definitely a boat, and it was coming toward where they wanted to go.

When the time came for the boater's midday meal, Zackodia steered the boat for shore, and they all unloaded. Ivanolia scrutinized Braydalana's every move, wondering if she was feeling alright, then sat down to eat. The girl was feeling better, but was glad that they had stopped to eat.

The noon meal, like the morning meal, consisted of traveling meat and water. Braydalana wrinkled her nose at it, but ate it quickly. "Can I at least make some tea?" she asked the men.

Ivanolia smiled at her. He knew she was tired of traveling, and the food that went along with it, but he also knew that she had wanted to go on this journey with him, and would gladly have eaten this food for an entire cycle of a moon, if she had needed to. "I'll make it, Bray," he said.

The girl smiled widely at the man. She was so glad the man was back to himself. The only worry she now had was whether or not Danie would take him back. It was, after all, a new mating for them, and they hadn't really gotten to know each other very well before they had mated. Braydalana hadn't really thought she would ever have to share the man with anyone, and was put off by Danie in the beginning. _But_, knowing that Danie was Darvie's sister, and seeing her positive affect on Ivanolia, _and_experiencing a relationship with a motherly woman, other than a grandmothers, had brought the girl around; Braydalana had fallen in love with this woman, and didn't want to lose her.

When their tea was finished, everyone packed it in again, and pushed off. Ivanolia was noticing a difference in the rate of flow of the river. Their upriver pushed seemed to be slightly easier; Zackodia said that this part of Big River was always easier to maneuver, but that they still needed to push on, if they were to make it to Lyev River by nightfall.

Ivanolia didn't need to be told twice. In fact, the man pushed on even harder. He wanted to get there before Danie did. He didn't know why he wanted to be there before her, but he did. I need to think about what I want to say to her, he thought. I need to be ready to tell her I'm sorry. He shook his head to himself; I'm already ready to do that. What I need to do, is be able to face Ayla and Grov, and to show Danie that I can accept them.

Braydalana was watching the man of her hearth in between stitches, and smiled at him while he was not watching. His shoulders, though working extremely hard, had somehow relaxed. And the tension, which had creased his brow, was now smoothed out. Everything about his body language spoke to her. He's done it, she thought. He's made a conscious effort to change. She knew it was going to be okay at that very moment. There may still be bumpy days ahead, but she knew he had truly decided to accept the Clan. She was so happy.

"I see people," Zackodia called back over his shoulder. Ivanolia almost stopped his work in his excitement, but then recalled that everyone was needed. They were, after all, still a good distance away, and the people could be others.

Braydalana, however, could not contain her excitement, and jumped up and screamed at them. There was no doubt in her mind who the people were. Zackodia grinned at the girl. "Calm down, girl," he said. "You'll be hoarse before we get there if you keep that up." Braydalana blushed deeply, knowing that the man was right, but didn't sit down.

Vincenzia was thrilled at the sight of boat, and tried to get everyone to hurry up. "If we get down there in time, then we won't have to travel upriver at all," he said.

"You could go on ahead, Vin," Darvie suggested. "That way we don't all have to hurry, and then we're sure to catch them."

Vincenzia smiled at his mate. "Well, why didn't I think of that," he said with a glint in his eye.

"I'm sure you did think of that," she said playfully. "I just said it before _you_could." Darvie gave him the smile that had attracted him to her nine years before, when he had been distraught over the loss of his mate and her daughter, bringing him out of his stupor, and back to life. He kissed her quickly, and quickened his step.

As the Pine Camp boat came ashore, there was only one man standing there. They could see others off in the distance, coming up quickly, but too far away to call out to. The people disembarked, and Braydalana jumped up and ran to the man. "Vincenzia!" she screamed. "We found you!" She was so happy that she threw her arms around the man, causing him to laugh loudly, then he turned to the others.

"Well, Ivanolia, I see you have decided to join us," Vincenzia said. "And you have enlisted the help of . . . Pine Camp, I see. How are you Zackodia?" The men shared a customary hug, and Zackodia introduced the other boatmen. "It is most propitious that we find you here," Vincenzia said to the Pine Camp second. "Would you fine people mind transporting us across this river."

"We thought you might want us to do that," the man said with a laugh. "Ivanolia here, has been extremely worried about several of your people crossing this wonderful river." The man had just finished his sentence when the rest of Oak Camp's party walked into earshot.

"And who might he have been worried about," Danie asked, in her best Sungaea. She was not smiling, and Ivanolia's happiness faded when he looked at her. He stared at her, as her light gray eyes flashed with anger, he immediately lost hope that she would take him back.

Zackodia didn't know this woman, and her accent told him she was Mamutoi. He knew of the Mamutoi's directness, but she was being just a little more than direct, he thought. There is more that this woman wants. "He spoke of his mate, a pregnant woman, small children, and a baby, but he was worried about all," the man replied, realizing that this was Ivanolia's mate, and that they had had some difficulties.

Danie studied the Pine Camp man who had spoken, then nodded and looked at Ivanolia. Ivanolia now stood there looking extremely vulnerable. "_Really_ Ivan?" she said, tears sprang into her eyes without notice. She tried to blink them back, but to no avail. "You really worry about _all_of us?" Her best Sungaean suddenly became her broken Sungaean, as tears coursed down her cheeks.

Ivanolia didn't like to be the center of attention . . . well, not in this way, and he stood there dumbly, nodding at her. Braydalana rolled her eyes, and gave the man a shove. "Oh for the love of the Mother, Ivan," she said.

Ivanolia stumbled toward his woman, and embraced her. "I have missed you Danie, and I am so sorry."

"I have missed you too Ivan, but can you accept . . . everything. I mean, can you really accept that . . . that the Clan, as Ayla says, are people too, because it is going to be hard to convince others, and I need to know I can count on you."

Ivanolia looked deeply into her light eyes, and stroked her short, nearly black hair, and nodded, then he looked over her shoulder at the rest of their people. He looked at his sister, who seemed to have grown huge in the nine days since he had seen her. Her hands rested on Brulenzia's, whose arms were wrapped around her, hands on her belly. Then his eyes shifted to Travie. She was rounding up the three oldest children, and scolding them for lagging behind. Then he looked to Laurana's other side, and saw Ayla standing there, holding her daughter, and Grov right next to her, one hand on the woman's back, the other holding Evenora's daughter. The man did not know what to say to them, but when Danie stepped back, he went to them. First to Ayla.

"Ayla," he began. "I am so sorry. I do not know what else to say, except that I am so sorry." He looked at Grov. "I do not know what is wrong with me."

Grov looked at him sharply; he also did not know what to say. He decided that he would reserve judgment for when the man was tested.

Ayla, on the other hand, smiled. "Ivanolia, there is nothing to forgive. We all make mistakes." She gave the man her most winning smile, and hugged him tightly. "And besides, we are family. I could not be angry with you for too long, especially since I like your mate so much." Ivanolia accepted her hug, and pulled back only when Annaliza squirmed to get out of their embrace.

When that was over, and Ivanolia knew he had his woman back, Braydalana finally come forward. "Mother, I have missed you so much," she said.

Danie smiled, and hugged the child. "And I you," she replied.

Zackodia was watching the people, and suddenly realized that there were two people of mixed spirits among them. He did not remember them from when he lived there. "I see you have some . . . interesting new members," he said, eyeing the flatheads cautiously.

"Yes, yes," Vincenzia said. "You probably remember how I lost my first mate, Annalisa, and her daughter Andreyta, right?"

"Well, of course I do," Zackodia said. "I hadn't yet met or mated Bidena, so I was still with Oak Camp."

Vincenzia grinned. "Well this," he said, taking Ayla's hand, "Is my lost daughter Andreyta, but she goes by Ayla now."

"Really?" Zackodia said. He had been more interested in the flatheads, but this news was worth celebration. "That is fantastic!"

"She was adopted by the Clan, and this is her mate, Grov, her son, Durc, and her daughter, Annaliza." Vincenzia picked up Durc, and put an arm around Grov, smiling broadly.

Zackodia continued to smile, but he was taken aback by the man's news. Surely no decent Sungaean woman, and a stunningly gorgeous one at that, would accept a flathead for a mate, but it was obvious that she had, and that she had birthed one of those abominations of mixed spirits. He suddenly realized what he had been thinking, and blushed. Vincenzia was making introductions, and he did not seem the least bit upset by the facts at all. Zackodia wished he could speak to Pine Camp's Spirit Shogur, but knew that he wouldn't be able to do that until the summer meeting. He decided to find out as much as he could, so that he could bring back all vital information to his camp.

The first order of business was getting everyone safely across Big River. After crossing, they were right next to Lyev River, which flowed right in front of Lion Camp, but it was nearly frozen, so they would just walk the rest of the way, as planned.

But, before they could go anywhere, the sun had dropped so low that the people decided to camp out one more night. Zackodia was happy that they would be able to stay with them, so that he could learn more about these _Clan_people. He was very interested, especially after he was formally introduced to Grov, and learned that this man would soon become the leader of the Clan that Ayla lived with. Then, he was further amazed to discover that the man could talk. He hadn't thought the flatheads could talk. This is amazing, he said to himself.

As the people of Pine Camp came to know these members of Oak Camp better, they realized they liked them all, even their interesting guests. Zackodia watched Ayla's son Durc play with Darvie's son Brenevia, and smiled at their play; just like any other two boys of that age, he thought.

Then he watched the interaction of the young couples, and smiled. "You should have seen him Ivan," Brulenzia said. "He just picked her up, as if she were a feather, and carried her up the hill. It was amazing." Grov was blushing, he was used to Clan men boasting about their own feats of strength in hunt dances, but never about someone else's.

Ivanolia looked at the man in a different light, as if he had _saved_the life of Laurana. "Thank you Grov," he said, with more feeling in his voice than he would have liked to have been there. "I don't know how I can repay you."

Grov of course, was shaking his head. "No, no, it was nothing. I just didn't think Laurana was going to make it up the hill, but I would not have noticed if Ayla had not pointed out her struggle." It was Ayla's turn to blush. She also didn't want any attention, but Ivanolia turned toward her at that moment, so she would have to deal with it.

"Thank you, Ayla. I am so glad that you were on this journey with my mate and my sister. I am so grateful that you have kept them safe." Ayla just nodded. She really hadn't done anything, but she knew this was a big step for the man, and she would not take it away from him.

Zackodia listened to them for a little while longer. This Grov seems to fit in just fine. Then he turned back to the older adults.

**************************************************  
><strong>Journey to Lion Camp – The Final Day<br>**

The next morning began with a light drizzle, making all the people glad they had reunited the day before. Zackodia and the other Pine Camp people ate one last meal with them, then departed quickly. If the drizzle turned to rain, then Big River would surge to unbelievable levels in no time, and they would want to be back at their camp before that happened.

Everyone joined them on the riverbank, giving final hugs and good wishes. Ivanolia thanked Pine Camp profusely for their assistance, and Braydalana planted a big kiss on Zackodia's cheek. The man smiled at her, and turned toward Vincenzia. "You have given us much to think about Vincenzia. I'm not sure we would ever have understood had it not been for you, and your guests," he said. "I think you still have some trouble ahead of you, but you can count on our support."

"Thank you, Zackodia," Vincenzia replied. "Your support will not be forgotten, and I know there will still be trouble, but with hope, people will change their views."

Zackodia was nodding. "I think that . . . in small doses, people are more likely to change. You said Beech Camp was receptive, right?"

"Yes, yes, but not all of them," Vincenzia said.

Ayla came up to the men, and put her arms around the man of her hearth, and looked up at the man. "Not all, Vincenzia, but even Balana seemed . . . shall I say . . . less reluctant by the time we left." Ayla turned to look at Zackodia, and he suddenly noticed her strange accent. She had a guttural quality to her voice. So had her children and her mate, he thought. Was that the accent of the Clan, he wondered?

"Well Ayla, I am pleased to have met you and your family," Zackodia said. Ayla had seen his shock at her family's introduction the day before, but now she could only see that he was truly pleased to have met them.

"I thank you. I too am pleased to have met some members of Pine Camp," she returned. "I look forward to seeing you at the summer meeting, and meeting the rest of Pine Camp."

The young woman smiled at the man, causing him to become mesmerized by her. She truly is a beauty, he thought. Zackodia finally realized he was staring, and smiled back, then departed with his men.

After the boats had drifted out of view, Vincenzia turned to the assembled group. "Well, I'm sure that we can be there by nightfall, if we get going, that is. What do you all say?"

Everyone cheered, all wanting the travel to end, but most of all, they wanted out of this dreary rain.

It was nearly time for their afternoon meal, and the sun, which had been obscured by thick, gray clouds all day, was making a momentary appearance. Ayla glanced up as it peeked out from behind its veil, and then looked at the soaking people around her. Braydalana had just sneezed, and Ayla wondered if the girl was sick. Ivanolia had told them about their scary trip down Big River, and the girl had seemed fine, but now Ayla wasn't so sure. "I am fine, Ayla," she said. "It is just this cold, wet weather. I really hate to get wet." Ayla eyed her, then decided she'd just keep a close eye on the girl. She didn't _look_sick, only wet, just as she said.

Then, while still looking at Braydalana, Ayla heard the sound of someone retching behind her, and she turned to see Danie on her hands and knees in the soggy grass. Ivanolia was kneeling beside his mate, with a worried expression on his face. "Danie, are you sick?" he asked, concern etched in his crystal blue eyes.

"Well, _that's_obvious," she said with a smirk, then retched again. He rubbed her back, while she finished, then helped her to her feet. "I don't know if I can do this," she said to Ayla, when the woman got to her side. "I didn't know this would feel so awful."

Ayla looked at the woman, then up toward Vincenzia. "Vincenzia," she called. "We need to break. Danie needs my tea." The man nodded, and started a fire for tea.

Ivanolia looked extremely worried. "What can't you do, Danie?" he asked. "And what didn't you know would be so awful?"

Danie suddenly realized that her mate was the only one, besides Braydalana, that didn't know she was blessed. In her initial anger at seeing him, and then her pleasure to have him back, she had completely forgotten her condition. She put her hand on his cheek, smiled up at him gently, then waited for a moment, letting another wave of nausea pass, then grinned widely. "I am going to have a baby, Ivan," she said with a pained smile. "I will be okay, but I am feeling _awful_right now." Then she turned around threw up again.

Ivanolia stood there for a moment, looking at her dumbly, then he began to frown. "What?" he said. "How did this happen?" He had not wanted Danie to become pregnant. There was, of course, no way he knew of to prevent it, and didn't know how conception really took place, but he was terrified of losing his new mate, as he had lost Braydalana's mother.

Several people looked at the man, most knew the pain he had suffered eight years before, and knew that he could not take the same thing again. Danie, however, didn't realize he felt so strongly about it. She finished emptying the contents of her stomach, which she couldn't believe still contained a thing, then looked up at the man. "Ivan, there is nothing we can do about this now, so try to be happy," she said, putting her arms around the shocked man. "I am very happy about this. It's just that the first three moons can be difficult."

Ivanolia put his arms around her reluctantly, and sighed, kissing the top of her head. "I . . . I am happy about it Danie . . . I'm just . . . scared," he finished lamely. "I can't lose you," he whispered, more to himself than to her. "I just can't."

Danie hugged him tightly. "I'm sure I will be fine, Ivan. Women have babies all the time. I am not the first one you know."

Yes, they did, he thought, but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't know what it was, but it bothered him. He swallowed and pushed it away, then kissed her again.

"Danie, here is your tea," Ayla said, coming up behind the woman. "I have made it a little stronger. It will slow you down considerably, but you won't feel so sick." Danie took the cup, and drank slowly. Ivanolia had her sit down to rest, and he sat next to her frowning.

A baby, he thought. "When Danie?" he asked. "When will you have the baby?"

She smiled. "I think I have been pregnant for about two moons, so . . . just before winter," she said.

After eating, and seeing that Danie was feeling somewhat better; as good could be expected at least, Vincenzia urged the group on. The people trudged along in the squelchy grass, following Lyev River, but everyone was miserable.

Danie, who was not vomiting anymore, was still having trouble. Her problem now was that Ayla's tea, which had a calming affect on her stomach, was also putting her to sleep. Ivanolia was beside himself. He picked the woman up, and carried her.

Grov, who was trying his hardest to be aware of _all_people in the group, noticed the woman's difficulty, and the man's despair at not knowing how to help her. His recent experience with Laurana told him that this woman also required relief from walking, and when Ivanolia picked her up, he was glad the woman's mate had seen it too.

Then, not long afterward, he saw the man struggling to hold her. Grov realized that he was the only one capable of carrying her for a long distance, so went back to help the man. "May I," Grov asked, holding his arms out to take the woman. Ivanolia stared at the man, a momentary flicker of possessiveness seizing him, then, arms shaking, he relinquished his woman to the Clan man.

Grov took Danie from him, and Ivanolia helped to lower her head gently to Grov's shoulder. Ivanolia pushed a short, black tendril of Danie's hair off of her face, then covered her up with a waterproofed hide. The woman hardly stirred, causing a worried frown to crease the man's brow.

"She will be fine, Ivanolia," Ayla said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Many women experience this sickness while pregnant. It doesn't help that the day is so awful either. I'm sure that dry clothing, a warm bed, and a good hot meal will help her." Ayla paused. "Tonight she will have those things, right?"

Ivanolia looked at his cousin, and nodded. "Yes, Ayla, and thank you." Ayla smiled at him, then looped her arm through his, and pulled him on.

As evening came on, Travie seemed to get a burst of energy. They were very near Lion Camp, and she was looking forward to seeing family. She had become very close to those at Oak Camp, but they were Sungaea, and that was just not the same as Mamutoi.

When they came around a corner to find a huge man standing with his back to them, Travie knew immediately that it must be Talut; there was no one that could match his size. "TALUT!" she yelled. "What are you doing outside in this dreadful weather, you old bear?"

The huge man spun around, and grinned at the drenched woman. "TRAVIE," he boomed, taking the woman into his arms. "I could ask you the same thing. And _why_are you here at Lion Camp, instead of snug inside Oak Camp's earthlodge?"

"Hummmm, well, we have brought someone that would like to meet the youngest son of your hearth," Travie explained. "But are you going to make us stand out here all night, or can we all come in?"

Talut roared with laughter, looking over the woman's shoulder at the large group of travelers. "Of course you can come in," he said, suddenly realizing that there were many of them, and that they were all soaked to the bone. "Nezzie," he called into the lodge. "We have visitors!"

**************************************************  
><strong>Getting Settled<br>**

"Let's make introductions inside," the huge man said. "You people need to change out of those wet clothes." Travie smiled at the man and pushed aside the heavy curtain of mammoth hide, which covered the entrance and walked through it. Talut followed the woman with a laugh, holding the hide aside for those that followed. Vincenzia went through after the big man.

Darvie herded the children through the entrance, then indicated to Grov that he should follow, since he was still carrying a sleeping Danie. Grov stepped through the entrance, glancing briefly up at the lion skull that decorated the symmetrical mammoth tusk archway. "Ayla," he said over his shoulder. "Look."

Ayla looked up where he had thrown his eyes, and gasped. Lion Camp, she thought with a smile. She sent Laurana on ahead of her so that she could briefly inspect the skull, then followed quickly when she noticed she was the only one left outside. Talut was holding the hide for her, and she smiled up at him gratefully.

_The arch led to a roomy entrance area, with another symmetrical arch of mammoth tusks hung with leather directly across. They stepped down into a circular foyer whose thick walls curved up to a shallow domed ceiling._

As they walked through, Ayla noticed the side walls, which seemed to be a mosaic of mammoth bones, were lined with outer clothes hung on pegs and racks with storage containers and implements. Talut pulled back the inner drape, went on through and held it back for the guests.

As the people stepped down into the spacious room, a large woman walked up to them, looking up at the red-haired giant. "Yes Talut, you sure have brought visitors," she said with a smile. Then she looked at the people closely. "Travie, it is good to see you, but you are drenched. You must take off those clothes. All of you. Off! Off! Off!" she said clapping her hands. "Latie!" she called to a young blond girl that was sitting off to the side with two boys. "Could you help me hang up all their wet outerwear?"

The girl, who was about eleven, jumped up and started taking the traveler's parkas. She hung up several, then turned to take more, and suddenly noticed Durc. She just stood there staring for a moment, letting the water pool in the dirt at her feet. Then, when she noticed her feet were getting wet, she realized she was being rude and blushed, then looked away. Ayla smiled at her. "This is son, Durc," Ayla said, in broken Mamutoi. No, Ayla thought, that is not right. Ayla looked at over at Darvie, then tried again. "This is _my_son, Durc," she said, this time giving them no doubts about who had birthed the child.

Latie smiled back at the woman, then down at the boy. "He looks just like my brother, Rydag."

"That is why we came, Latie," Ayla said. "I want . . . wanted to see Rydag."

Latie hung up the last of the outerwear, and then she noticed the man standing next to Ayla, and gasped. "Mother," she said worriedly. "Talut."

Talut and Nezzie turned around to look at the girl, and followed her eyes to the man who was carrying a sleeping woman. Nezzie looked at the man closely, and realized he was mixed, just like Rydag, but she also noticed that he couldn't be full mixture. He almost looked like one of them; almost, but not completely. "Oh, you must put that woman down," she said. "Oh, it is Danie. Is she okay?"

"Yes, she is fine Nezzie," Darvie answered. "She felt sick from pregnancy, and Ayla gave her something to relax her stomach, but it put her to sleep."

The large woman nodded. "Hummm, I think Tronie could use some of that too."

"Let me make some introductions," Vincenzia said, grinning at the people of Lion Camp. "This is Ayla. She is the first daughter of my hearth, born to Annalisa of Oak Camp of the Sungaea, found and raised by the first healer of the Clan of the Cave Bear, protected by the spirit of the cave lion, trained to serve as a healer of the Clan, mated to Grov, mother of Durc, Ora and Annaliza, and friend to the meat-eater Shriek, which is probably somewhere nearby," he said with a grin. "She was lost to us for so long, but she was finally returned to us."

The people in the large open spaced stared at Ayla, making her suddenly self-conscious, but she smiled. Vincenzia went on, giving only names for the rest of the people.

"This is Grov, Ayla's mate, and Durc, Ora and Annaliza," he said picking up Ayla's middle child, then he turned to others. "Of course you know Travie and Danie. Do you remember Ivanolia, Danie's mate," he asked. Most people nodded. "And this is Ivanolia's sister, Laurana, and her promised, Brulenzia. I hope you will have room for all of us."

"Well, of course we do, Vincenzia. There is nothing I like better than a few visitors," Talut said. "Well, almost nothing," he said, nuzzling the woman next to him.

Nezzie rolled her eyes, and slapped the man's arm. "Oh Talut!" she cried. "What are we going to do with you? Come in everyone . . . ." The woman was about to say something else, when she felt a tug on her tunic sleeve. Looking down, she saw her youngest child standing there. He wanted to be introduced to the people too. "This is my son, Rydag," she said.

Ayla looked up at the sound of the boy's name. This was the child she had come to see. Ayla stepped forward, and kneeled in front of the boy, making a gesture of hello as well as speaking out loud. The woman saw a slight glimmer of . . . something . . . the struggle to understand, maybe. The boy lifted his hands to try, then dropped them back down, not sure he understood.

"Yes Rydag," she signed. "That's it. Access your memories. I know you have them." The boy strained to understand her, and looked over at the woman that took care of him. She had a worried expression on her face, but watched closely. Ayla looked at the boy closely, seeing that he was ill, that he could not do everything that other children could do, and she smiled at him sadly. Then, a little girl approached, and slipped her hand into his. "I am Rugie," she said. "Rydag is my brother, but he can't talk." Rugie looked at Ayla, then looked at Grov and Durc. "Can they talk?" she asked.

Ayla looked over at her mate and son, then signaled Durc to come to her. Ayla saw another flicker of understanding cross Rydag's face. "Yes, they can talk," she said in signs and words. "Rydag, Rugie, this is my son Durc." The three children smiled at each other.

"Durc," Rydag said, in a guttural voice that was all too familiar to Ayla; it was what her son was called by the people of the Clan. His name, though still the same, was virtually unpronounceable to these Others, so it had been altered to make things easier.

Nezzie watched with tears in her eyes as the woman held one of Durc's hands and one of Rydag's hands, as she talked to the three children. Then, when Rydag spoke Durc's name, Nezzie gasped; he rarely made any audible sounds. She had heard him vocalize once in a while, but not too often, and usually only when he needed her help. She had never understood what he was saying before, but she could tell at that moment that Ayla understood him perfectly. She suddenly knew why these people had come.

Talut was interested in what was going on as well. Rydag was, after all, a son of his hearth too. The big man watched, silently taking in the scene, and could see the tender love on this stranger's face. And, she had a mixed son as well, he thought. Then it struck him . . . Clan? Vincenzia had said 'Clan.' Talut looked over at the man, who was also watching Ayla and the children. Did he mean that the daughter of his hearth was raised by flatheads, the people on the peninsula. Talut then looked back at Ayla, and then her mate. That would explain her interesting mate, and her mixed child. He had never doubted Rydag's humanity, and had always wanted the boy to be accepted. Maybe this Ayla could help them with that.

As introductions were made, others filed into the room, wanting to meet the visitors as well. Ayla looked around, wondering if Lion Camp was made up of mostly children, fore nearly every person standing around the room was younger than her. She could tell that everyone liked visitors, especially after such a long winter, but Nezzie finally shooed almost everyone away, trying to appease them with the promise of a feast. "Okay, okay," she said. "Let's allow them to get settled in before we crush them with questions."

Latie smiled, then went back to sitting with the two boys, though she could hardly take her eyes away from the new visitors. The two boys seemed extremely curious as well, but knew they'd have to wait until later to learn more.

After most of the people had slipped away, Ayla looked around the room carefully. Talut was talking to a man, the only man that was in the room besides their own men, she thought. Tornec, Ayla remembered. This gave her time to see what there was to see in the room.

_The space they were in had a large fireplace near the center. A massive haunch of meat was cooking over it, spitted on a long pole._ Bison, she thought. _Each end was resting in a groove cut in the knee joint of an upright leg bone of a mammoth calf, sunk into the ground. A fork from a large branching antler of a deer had been fashioned into a crank._Ayla smiled at the construction, and its ability to hold such a huge piece of meat, then her eyes looked beyond the food.

_The fireplace was only the first of a row of hearths extending down the middle of the longhouse._Ayla looked down the passageway, and counted six fires in addition to the main fire. She could see the fires, and some benches along the wall. She could even see a few people down there, but she couldn't really see much else.

She suddenly remembered that Vincenzia had told her Oak Camp was fashioned after the Mamutoi's Earthlodges, but this was decidedly different. Oak Camp put the hearth fires within their hearths, while Lion Camp placed them in the common space walkway. Lion Camp's passageway was lit up much better.

When Talut finished with the man, he then ushered the people out of the large space, and into the lit up area that contained the hearths. Ivanolia, following last, glanced back at Danie, who was sleeping peacefully on one of the benches in the first hearth.

_As they were led along a well-trodden passageway that ran down the middle of the longhouse next to several hearths,_ Ayla _noticed wide benches with furs piled on them, extending out from the walls. Some people were sitting on them, relaxing or talking._ So, she thought, this is where the adults were. _She felt them looking at her as she walked past. She saw more of the mammoth tusk archways along the sides, and wondered where they led._

"Visitors usually stay at the Mammoth Hearth," Talut explained, "if Mamut doesn't object. I will ask."

"Of course they may stay, Talut."

The voice had come from one of the long benches within the hearth. Most of the visitors thought that the benches within contained only a pile of furs, but that was not the case. Ayla looked closely, as the pile moved. _Two eyes gleamed out of a face marked, high on the right cheek, with tattooed chevrons that fell into the seams and stitched across the wrinkles of incredible age._The man, as they could now see him, stretched out his thin legs, and stood to greet the visitors.

Ayla stared at the man, and his crinkled old face, and tears sprang to her eyes. Grov laid a hand on her shoulder, looking at the old man before him. He had not known Creb personally; his Clan had never been to her Clan's summer meetings, but he knew what his mate was thinking, for he did have memories that told him of Mog-ur one-eye.

Ayla blinked back her tears, and stepped forward, then dropped to the ground at the old man's feet, crossing her legs and bowing her head.

The three Sungaean men and Grov had seen her in that position before, but the women looked confused. "Why is she doing that?" Laurana whispered to Brulenzia with a frown.

"That is the way a Clan woman requests permission to speak," he explained to her quietly, then looked back at the scene, wondering what the old man would do.

Mamut looked at the kneeling woman, then he glanced around at the group, and smiled. His eyes took in everything, including the mixed child standing beside the woman, and the mixed man, holding a blond baby, standing directly behind the woman. The old man's eyes searched the face of the mixed man for just a moment, and seemed to ask a question. Though neither man moved, indicating that the question had been answered, it was obvious that it had been. Mamut suddenly reached out and tapped the woman's shoulder.

_Ayla looked up and saw wise, gentle eyes in a face striated with fine creases and soft puckers. The tattoo under his right eye gave her a fleeting impression of a darkened eye socket and missing eye, and for a heartbeat she thought it was Creb. But the old holy man of the Clan who, with Iza, had raised her and cared for her, was dead, and so was Iza. Then who was this man that had evoked such strong feelings in her? Why was she sitting at his feet like a woman of the Clan? And how had he known the proper Clan response?_

"Get up, my dear. We will talk later," the Mamut said. "You need time to rest and eat

; you all do," he said, looking at everyone else again. "There is plenty of space here for the adults. Maybe the children can sleep on the benches that are in the passageway. There are a lot of extra ones." The old man smiled, then looked up at Talut.

"Yes, yes, put your things here, and rest. Then, come to the cooking area, if you're hungry," the headman said. "I will leave you be for now." With that, the huge man left the Mammoth Hearth.

**************************************************  
><strong>Rest for the Weary<br>**

Ayla and Grov took the middle sleeping platform on the far right side of the Mammoth Hearth, and put down what they were carrying. Ayla sat down, and then lay back exhaustedly. Grov set Annaliza down next to her mother, then helped Ora up onto the bed, and sat down himself. Durc stood there watching them. "Where will I be sleeping, Mama?" he asked.

Ayla sat up, and looked at her son. "Let's go see, Durc," she said, getting up and taking her son's hand. "We'll find a place where you and Ora can sleep together." Ayla led them out of the hearth, and noticed Crisanie and Braydalana sitting on a bench just outside the hearth and giggling loudly.

"Oh Ayla, can Ora sleep with us?" Crisanie pleaded.

Ayla smiled at her little sister, and nodded. "If it's okay with Ivanolia, of course she may," Ayla said, not wanting to do anything to upset her cousin, now that he didn't seem to be angry about her presence. "Where is Ivanolia anyway?"

"I'm right here," the man called from behind her. Ayla turned around to see him helping a very drowsy Danie down the passageway. "And yes, it's okay for the girls to sleep together."

Ayla smiled at him. "How are you feeling Danie?"

"I'm okay, just tired. I'm glad to be in out of that rain though," she said with a smile. "And I'm _starving_. Ayla giggled at the woman's sudden enthusiasm for food, and turned back toward Durc.

"I think you can sleep here, Durc," she said. Darvie then led Brenev out of Mammoth Hearth.

"Yes Ayla, that is perfect," Darvie said. "The boys can sleep there." The two boys climbed up onto the bench, and began playing. As Ayla returned to the Mammoth Hearth, she noticed that other children were arriving. She saw Rugie and Rydag come up and sit down, and then another little girl who appeared to be the same age, walked up and sat down. Ayla couldn't recall her name, but she was pleased to see the children getting along. She briefly looked over at Braydalana and Crisanie, and saw that two girls had joined them as well.

Back inside Mammoth Hearth, Ayla plopped down on the sleeping platform again, and sighed deeply. "I am _so_tired."

Grov laughed. "Well, I wonder why, Ayla." He watched her yawn. "Why don't you nap for a while. I won't let you sleep through the meal."

"Really?" she asked, yawning again. He nodded. "But I need to change and feed Anna first."

"I already changed her, Ayla," he said. "You can feed her when she wakes up." Ayla looked down at her daughter; she hadn't even realized the child was asleep.

"Let me just check on Danie first." She sat up and looked at the bed to her right. "Danie, are you sleeping?"

"Ah-hah," the woman replied with a smirk on her face. "It is so nice to be able to rest out of the rain. I think I would have died if I had to sleep in that tent again."

Ayla giggled. "I guess you're feeling fine then."

"I feel great, actually. Still tired, but good all the same. "Where's my mother?" she asked.

Darvie was across the hearth, lying down on her sleeping platform. She and Vincenzia had drawn their curtain closed, but she had heard her sister. "We are at Lion Camp, Danie. Where do you think she is?" Darvie giggled.

Laurana sat up, and looked at Ayla. The two women had mirroring expressions of confusion. "What does that mean?" they said in unison.

"My mother is with Wymez," Danie replied, rolling her eyes. "I should have known that. We'll be lucky if we even see her tonight." Danie giggled, and Ayla realized the two sisters sounded nearly identical.

Mamut watched and listened to the visitors, and smiled. It would be good to have some new faces to get to know, he thought. And people of the Clan, he mused. This is going to be very interesting. The old man smiled to himself. Very interesting indeed.

**The Lion Camp Earthlodge**

**ENTRY area –**storage of fuel, implements, outer clothes

**FIRST hearth –**cooking hearth and space for gathering

**SECOND –** _Lion Hearth_

Talut—headman  
>Nezzie<br>Danug (13)  
>Latie (11)<br>Rugie (6)  
>Rydag (5) - mixed child<p>

**THIRD –** _Fox Hearth_

Wymez – Nezzie's older brother  
>Travie (44) – sharing Wymez's bed, Darvie and Danie's mother<br>Ranec – **away** with Tulie's group

**FOURTH —** _Mammoth Hearth_—space for ceremonies, gathering, projects, visitors

Mamut —shaman, Tulie, Talut and Travie's great grandfather (pardon the modern term)  
>Darvie (26)<br>Vincenzia (37)  
>Laurana (15) - very pregnant<br>Brulenzia (20)  
>Ayla (16)<br>Grov (18)  
>Danie (21) - newly pregnant<br>Ivanolia (22)

**Visiting Children of Mammoth Hearth** – sleeping on benches in passageway

Crisanie (8) – Darvie's daughter  
>Brenev (5) – Darvie's son<br>Durc (5) - mixed  
>Ora (3)<br>Annaliza (11 months)

**FIFTH —** _Reindeer Hearth_

Manuv – son of one of Mamut's cousins, man of Tornec's hearth  
>Tronie - pregnant<br>Tornec  
>Nuvie (2)<p>

**SIXTH —** _Antelope Hearth_

Travec - mated to Dreenie and Tralie  
>Dreenie – Darnev's sister, Travec's co-mate<br>Tralie – Tronie's sister, Travec's co-mate  
>Caylie (9) – Dreenie's daughter<br>Corlie (9) – Tralie's daughter  
>Danen (7) – Dreenie's son<p>

**SEVENTH —** _Aurochs Hearth_

Tulie – headwoman, **away**, taking Tarneg's belongings to mate's mother's camp  
>Darnev – Tulie's co-mate, <strong>away<strong> with Tulie  
>Barzec – Tulie's co-mate, <strong>away<strong> with Tulie  
>Tarneg – <strong>gone<strong> to live at mate's mother's camp  
>Deegie (16)<br>Druwez (12)  
>Brinan (7)<br>Tusie (5)

**************************************************  
><strong>Back to no chapter names, I guess.<strong>

After resting for a good amount of time, Talut could be heard outside the Mammoth Hearth talking to the children. Ayla listened for a moment, then looked over at her mate. Grov had fallen asleep, and seemed to be resting peacefully. Ayla then looked at Annaliza, who lay between them. She appeared to be stirring, but she too was sleeping well.

Ayla finally decided to sit up and look around. They hadn't closed their curtain, and neither had either of the couples that slept on either side of them. On her left, Brulenzia lay on his back, his longish dark brown hair fanned out on the cushion where his head lay, and his tunic carelessly lying on the edge of the bed. Laurana was curled up next to him, her head in the crook of his bare shoulder, and her left hand on her own belly.

Ayla looked over to her left, and saw the other couple sleeping as well. Ivanolia's usually creased forehead was relaxed, and he was holding Danie tightly. They were the opposite vision than the other two; he was blond, and beautiful, Ayla added as an afterthought, and Danie was the one with the dark hair. Ayla studied Danie for a moment, and for the first time noticed that she looked somewhat different than the other women of Oak Camp, and realized that it was because she was Mamutoi, and not Sungaean. Ayla smiled.

Then, hearing a gurgle, Ayla looked down at Annaliza, and grinned at the girl. At eleven months old, her little girl was an adorably chubby thing. Her thick, blond hair was growing in quickly, and her blue eyes sparkled with delight. In her short lifetime she had become quite able to communicate in Clan signs, and had learned much of the Sungaean that they had taught her. She had even learned some Mamutoi while they were traveling. Ayla thought that her Clan background, though minimal, was making it possible for her to progress faster than other babies of the Others would have. She had been walking for sometime now, and sat up, wanting to get up at that moment.

"Aren't you hungry?" Ayla asked her with gestures, so as not to disturb the others.

Annaliza signed no. "I want up to play," she gestured. Ayla held up one finger, telling the girl to wait, then she looked around, not sure what to do. Ayla noticed that the old man, Mamut, was awake, and watching her intently. She smiled at him, and got up.

Annaliza reached up toward her mother, and wrapped her arms around her mother's neck. Ayla turned to look at the old man again, but he had somehow faded back into his bed platform; she could no longer see him. She frowned at his disappearance, but was immediately distracted.

"Ayla," came a whisper behind her. Ayla turned around and saw that Laurana was awake. "I need to get up," she said. The young, pregnant woman carefully, pulled herself off the sleeping man, and quietly walked over to the woman. "Are you going out there?"

Ayla nodded. "Anna wants to play," she said. "And do you smell that food. I'm starving!" The two women giggled quietly, then started for the entrance.

"Hey!" came another whisper. "Are you guys leaving me behind?" Ayla and Laurana turned around to see Danie trying to disentangle herself from Ivanolia without waking the man. When Danie finally was able to do so, her short hair was rumpled a bit, causing the other two to giggle again. Laurana reached out and pushed her brother's mate's hair back, then the three women left the hearth.

Outside the Mammoth Hearth, there were children everywhere. They had brought six children of their own, but there were easily at least thirteen children in the passageway space. The three women smiled, each wondering how any of them could have slept with all the noise that was going on out there. It did not take long for Annaliza to start her struggle to get down.

The big man, Talut, whom she had heard not too long ago, was sitting down at the end of the passageway, with two other men, and beckoned them over when he saw them. Ayla put Annaliza down, and watched her toddle off before they joined the headman.

"Well, you finally woke up," he said. "I was starting to think we'd have to eat without you tonight."

Ayla blushed. "I am sorry, Talut. We are just so tired, but we _are_hungry now. Maybe we should go wake the men."

Talut shook his head. "No, no, just go get something to eat. We'll eat more later," he said. "There is _always_a lot of food around here."

"Humpf!" came a voice from behind them. "I wonder why." It was the woman Nezzie. The three women smiled. "Has this beast introduced these other men yet," she asked knowingly. The two men smiled. She shook her head. "Always thinking about food, he is. This is Tornec, of the Reindeer Hearth, mated to Tronie." She paused. "Tronie is the woman sitting down there," Nezzie said pointing down the passageway, "with the little girl, and those two women; the one on the end. And this is Travec, of the Antelope Hearth, mated to Dreenie and Tralie. Tralie is Tronie's sister. They are the other two women sitting down there."

Laurana frowned. "I am not going to remember all these names."

Nezzie smiled. "Sure you will dear, and we'll help you. Now come, let's get you something to snack on while we wait for those men to wake up."

"Is my mother still with Wymez?" Danie asked.

Nezzie cast her a look over her shoulder. "Um-hum. I've never understood why those two didn't mate. They get along so well, and always seem to get together." Nezzie was shaking her head. "I don't get it." Danie smiled, remembering that at summer meetings, all she needed to do was find Cattail Camp, and she'd find her mother.

In the cooking area, the same three young people were sitting on the benches. They appeared to be playing some sort of game. Ayla remembered that during the winter, Jendoza showed her some Sungaean games, but they had all seemed a bit complicated to her. She had resolved to learn later, but never had. Nezzie beckoned the children over. "This is my son Danug, my daughter Latie; I'm sure you remember her, and Druwez. Druwez is Talut's sister's son. You will meet his mother later. She should be back within a few days." The three children smiled at the two women they didn't know, and Latie hugged Danie. "Latie, help me get them some food."

While they were snacking, a young woman about the age of Ayla and Laurana, approached the group, and smiled. "Hi, my name is Deegie," she said. "I am our headwoman's daughter." She had been in the back of the earthlodge when the travelers had arrived, and hadn't known they were there until they had already gone off to sleep, but she wanted to greet them properly, now that they were awake again. She was a bit stockier than the two blond Sungaean women, with deep chestnut colored hair, and a smile that would make anyone feel welcome.

Ayla and Laurana smiled back. "I am happy to meet you too, Deegie," Laurana said. "I am Laurana, and this is my cousin, Ayla."

Deegie looked at the two of them, as if testing the ground for a future friendship, then turned toward Danie and hugged her. "Hi Danie. It is good to have you back here," the woman said. "Where is your mate?"

Danie rolled her eyes. "He is still sleeping," she said.

"_No_ . . . he is not," came a man's voice, making all the women turn around and smile. "_Some_of us didn't get to sleep during the journey," he went on. He was accompanied by Brulenzia and Grov.

"That's not really fair," Danie said, with a pouty sound in her voice. "It's not like I had a choice." Ivanolia grinned at her. When her reached her, he put his arms around his woman, and kissed her.

"Are you guys eating?" Brulenzia asked. "What about waiting for the evening meal."

"You men sleep too much," Laurana teased, causing everyone to laugh.

"Okay, let's _all_eat then," Talut insisted. Nezzie rolled her eyes, which made the man laugh. Talut turned to the older children in the hearth. "Go get everyone, so we can eat . . . and tell stories."

Ayla watched the three older children, Danug, Latie, and Druwez, jump up and go racing down the passageway. It was not long before the younger children flooded into the Cooking Hearth, followed by Mamut and the adults, and finally, Wymez and Travie, who were bringing up the rear.

**A Night of Storytelling** (Wait...naming is still happening...I guess I was being fickle!)

When the Cooking Hearth filled with people, Nezzie began to set food out. The women of Lion Camp rushed to assist her, while everyone else sat down.

Food was offered to the visitors first, starting with Travie, since she was the oldest female visitor, and ending with Durc, since he was the youngest male visitor. After all visitors had their food, everyone else dug in, then seated themselves back down with their feasting visitors.

"Oh Nezzie, you have outdone yourself this time," Talut said loudly, licking each finger. "Is there any more?"

Nezzie gave the man an exasperated look, but Ayla could see amusement and pleasure in the round woman's eyes. "Talut, you always tell me that I've 'outdone' myself. I am beginning to think you don't know the difference between one meal and another," she said. "And of course there is more. When have I ever _not_made enough for you to eat at least three or four full plates of food?" Talut grinned at her, then got up to fill his plate a third time.

Along with the people of Lion Camp, the visitors were smiling at the headman's exchange with his mate. They could all see the love between the two people. Brulenzia noted their differences from his own mother and her mate. Tagnolia was a much quieter headman, not as big, and much more reserved. Still, a very good leader; a good _Sungaean_leader. Zarina, his mother, was also quieter than the woman Nezzie, and much less likely to tease Tagnolia. She too was a lot smaller than this woman.

When the meal was finished, and the plates had been cleared, Talut brought out his bouza. Ayla wrinkled her nose at the sight of the bouza-filled container, but accepted some into her cup. It was not the same as Oak Camp's bouza, stronger in fact, but Ayla drank it anyway. When everyone's cups had been filled, they all turned toward the headman expectantly.

Talut waited a moment for dramatic effect, then smiled. "So, what brings the people of Oak Camp of the Sungaea to Lion Camp of the Mamutoi?"

Vincenzia laughed. He had already told the headman in brief why they were there, but no one else had been privy. "Well, this story is not short," the man started off. He looked around at the nodding and smiling people, and knew that that was what they all wanted to hear. "My story starts off, perhaps, eleven and a half years ago, when my first mate, and her daughter and I went down to the peninsula on a journey. It wasn't really a journey though," he said with a frown. "We went down there in search of a specific plant, which was rumored to be growing in that area. We hadn't planned to stay very long, but our 'journey' through the land was wonderful, and we were enjoying the scenery, as well as the time alone. My mate, Annalisa, was a gifted healer." He paused and looked over at Ayla, for she did not know that about her mother. "Annalisa was certain we could find the plant, but we were not looking for it as diligently as we should have been." He paused again, and everyone could see how difficult it was for him to tell this story.

"We had been gone for . . . well, it was about two moon cycles, and we started to get worried, so we began to search in earnest. Early one morning, while Andreyta . . . I mean . . . while Ayla was sleeping, her mother and I talked about the fact that the season was changing, and that we needed to get back. We decided to change directions, and head home. It was two days later that Annalisa found the plant she was looking for. We thought we were so lucky . . . ," he said sadly, his voice trailing off. "That night we set up our lean to, and went to bed early. The next morning we ate casually, and Ayla wanted to swim, so we let her go." Vincenzia turned toward the daughter of his hearth again. "You were always a good swimmer, Ayla. You even learned to swim before you could walk." Ayla smiled at the man, remembering none of what he was telling them, except for the fact that she loved to swim.

Vincenzia took a deep breath. "It was early, and Anna wanted to relax, 'for just one more day,' she had said to me, so I decided to do a little hunting. I wasn't gone very long when the ground started to shake, and I was thrown down. I must have hit my head, for when I awoke, it was nearly dark. I can remember groping around in the twilight, looking for my weapons, and trying to remember what had happened. Then, I when I had gathered my things, I stumbled to my feet and tried to make my way back in the darkness. I called out a few times, but all I heard was my own voice echoing back to me off the valley we were in, and the small river running through it." Vincenzia took another deep breath, and looked at Ayla's tear filled eyes. Her look reflected his own.

"When I got back to our campsite, I wasn't even sure I was in the right place. Our lean to was gone. Our fire had gone out. My mate was nowhere to be found, and Ayla . . . well, I saw no signs that she had even been there." Vincenzia heaved a sob, and looked down. Darvie grabbed her mate's hand, and squeezed it tight. The man looked up at her, and gave her a small smile. "I stayed there for a few days, searching the area, but there were no footprints to indicate a place to search further. I did find a large, soil-filled crack, where it appeared our lean to had been sucked under, and I dug a bit, but I never found anything. It was just _too_large, and there were no tools with which to dig. I had no choice but to return home. I always wondered if it was possible that Anna and Ayla had been buried alive in there, but," he said looking at Ayla again, "at least now I know Ayla wasn't."

"What happened then, Vincenzia," Darvie asked in a quiet voice. She had never heard that story before, and was glad that he had finally told it. He had always been a quiet man, but always extremely protective. Now she knew the whole story.

"Well, like I said, I stayed there for a few days, then I returned to Oak Camp. And that's pretty much it."

"But that doesn't explain why you have come here," Deegie said with a frown.

Vincenzia smiled. "Well, no, it doesn't, does it? I guess I was just giving you background. Do you want more background, or do you want me to just get to it?" He looked around at the people, who couldn't seem to decide. They wanted to hear it all, even the background, so that they would really know these people, but they also wanted their question answered.

"How about some more background," Nezzie replied, knowing that they would eventually get to why they were there.

"Okay," Vincenzia said, giving them another smile, and looking around. "But the next part is not mine to tell, for I was not there. It is Ayla's story, so she should tell it."

Ayla's eyes opened wide, and she gasped. "Me?" she said "Why me?"

"Because I do not know what happened to you after the earthquake, only you do," Vincenzia said, and Ayla knew it was true.

"Well . . . I . . . I was only five years when this happened . . . right?" she looked at Vincenzia questioningly. He nodded. "And I don't really remember much. I was attacked by a cave lion, but I somehow managed to escape. I do not remember how I did that either." At the word 'cave lion,' some people gasped, and many were commenting. "I guess I wandered alone for a few days, but I don't remember any of that either. Finally, I was found by the Clan. I was unconscious and their medicine woman . . . their _healer_picked me up and carried me with them."

Talut looked at the young woman closely, realizing that she had used that word again. He was fairly certain he knew who she meant, but the confused looks on the people around him, told him that they didn't. "Ayla," he said. "Can you tell us who the Clan is?"

Ayla swallowed, and took a sip of her bouza. "Yes," she replied. "The Clan are the people that live on the peninsula. The ones that look like Durc and Rydag. The ones that you call flatheads. They are the ones that raised me." She looked around, waiting for a reaction, but there seemed not to be one. Some were looking at Durc, others at Rydag, and still others at Grov, but no one wore the look of disgust that she had so often heard about, and seen in her own camp. But, she told herself, these people had taken one of them in, so maybe they were a little different.

Nezzie was smiling at the woman, and Ayla's eyes fell to the boy sitting in her lap, suddenly completely aware of what the boy's life had been like. Living with people that didn't understand him; people he couldn't really communicate with, due to his difference and weakness, but loved all the same. She thought about Iza and Creb, and how hard they had tried to understand her; they never really seemed to. We communicated, that was true, she thought, but they didn't understand _me_, just as these people don't truly understand Rydag. They love him though, she thought with a smile, and then she made a decision; I will help them to understand him and his people. It will be repayment to the Clan for saving me, she finalized in her mind. Ayla went on.

"I vaguely remember waking up, and being terrified of the people I saw." The people of Lion Camp were nodding, and vocalizing their thoughts. 'I can imagine that,' some people said. Others said, 'I would be so scared.' They were all talking at once, and Ayla smiled again, continuing when her audience quieted. "Iza said she'd had to heal my wounds, and get me eating again. Creb had to teach me to talk properly, so we could communicate."

"What do you mean 'talk' Ayla?" Tralie asked. "Flatheads don't talk." Then the woman looked at Grov and blushed. "I . . . I'm sorry . . . I did not mean . . . ." Grov smiled, and waited for Ayla to continue. He did not know this story either, so he was very eager to hear more, and he had already heard all this 'flathead' stuff before; it was not new, and he no longer cared.

"Clan, Tralie," Ayla said patiently. "They call themselves Clan, and yes, they do talk, just not the way the Others do. That is what they call us; the Others." Ayla looked at Rydag, then glanced at her son. "Durc, come here," she gestured. No one even noticed the hand movements, but Durc got up and went to his mother. Ayla had never taken her eyes off the crowd of people. "The Clan talks to one another with their hands. They do not say many words, because they can't, but they do communicate just as well as you do. "Go to my sleeping platform, and get my medicine bag," she gestured to her son, and watched the boy walk away.

During the exchange with her son, she had actually only vocalized the child's name. Everyone watched the boy leave, but no one knew where he was going. When he was out of earshot, Ayla went on. "In the way that the Clan would speak, I have asked Durc to go get my medicine bag. That is where I keep what I need to make Danie's tea." Ayla turned to look at Rydag. "Did you understand what I said?" she asked in both words and signs.

Rydag sat for only a moment, accessing his Clan memories, then he nodded. "I understand little," he gestured, then smiled.

"Some," Ayla corrected him. "You understand some of what I said," she gestured silently, then grinned at the boy that was smiling at her. Rydag thought for a moment, then nodded.

Nezzie watched her son, and knew that something was going on between the boy and the woman, but wasn't sure what. "What did he say, Ayla?" Nezzie asked with concern in her eyes.

"Rydag said that he understands some of the signs."

"But how is that possible," Tralie's co-mate, Dreenie asked? "You just got here, and you have not taught him any of your Clan's language.

Ayla smiled again. "That is one difference about the Clan that I am not sure I can explain. They are born with . . . memories, memories of everything they need to know, from their ancient past all the way up until the present. They just have to be reminded of what they already know. They do not have to learn things like we do. That part was very difficult for me, because I was expected to know things after only one hearing. I had to say things over and over in my head to memorize them, but I could never recall everything. They thought me to be very stupid." This made many people think, for their people had always considered the Clan to be stupid animals, and it now seemed that they could possibly be smarter than they had been given credit for.

Grov was watching her, and realized that she really did understand what she was explaining to these people, and that _they_probably never would. It would take growing up with the Clan it understand it, and that was something that none of them would ever do, unlike Ayla. Grov was taken out of his musings when Durc reappeared, and handed his mother her medicine bag, then went to sit down again.

"So, where was I?" Ayla said with a frown, as she silently made Danie a calming tea to help her rest that night. "Oh yes, I was telling you about being picked up by the woman of the Clan. Iza, the woman that cared for me, became my mother, and her sibling, Creb, whom you would call her brother, was the man of my hearth, and they both took care of me as if I were their own." Ayla rambled on about her childhood, and the trouble she got into for being different, but she didn't talk about the pain she had gone through due to Broud. She had decided to put that behind her. It had taken a long time, but both she and Broud had somehow managed to do it. There was no need to bring it up, and cause pain and anger, nor did Durc need to hear any of that stuff again.

When finally Ayla got to the part about finding Jendoza and Braydalana, the girl looked eager to tell the story, so Ayla turned it over to her. "I was so scared," the girl said. "My auntie and I were out gathering, while Ivanolia, Brulenzia, Donzolnia and Tinozia were hunting. I'm not sure how it happened, but Jendoza fell and bumped her head. She seemed to be fine at first, but soon she was not making much sense, and I got scared. We wandered around, until she collapsed. I just sat there with her crying." The girl had tears in her eyes at the memory, and sniffled.

"Then," she went on, "can you imagine my fright when a woman came out of nowhere to help, and she had two _Clan_men with her?" Everyone was nodding. Braydalana then went on to describe her first meeting with the Clan's leader, and their trip back to the cave, and Jendoza's waking. "It is very funny to think about now, but Jendoza was terrified at the time." Braydalana had a delighted look on her face as she went on. "I could hear her scream all the way across the cave." She finally talked about the commotion that occurred when the four searching men found them, and about how Brulenzia helped to deliver Ayla's baby.

Ivanolia listened to his daughter tell her story. He _had_heard it all before, but not from Braydalana's point of view, and it seemed different somehow. He heard the fear in her voice, but he could also hear the girl's intrigue, and the accepting nature of a child. He wondered why he had not asked her about it before. Danie sat next to him, and squeezed his hand; she was clearly following his line of thought.

"So then, of course we took Jendoza and Braydalana back to Oak Camp," Brulenzia said, taking up the next thread of the story. "And we intended to tell Vincenzia about what we had found, but he was gone."

"That is when Vilognia and I traveled to the Mamutoi summer meeting to tell his brother about Ayla," Ivanolia said, finishing up for his friend.

Talut grinned. "Well, it's nice to know more of what happened last summer," he said, clapping Vincenzia on the back. "This man did not tell us anything. Vilognia just swept in, stayed for a few days, helped to steal two valuable Mamutoi women, then took off. It is good to know what happened and why."

"Yes, I would say that I wasn't too happy about Travie leaving before the summer meeting had ended either," Wymez commented. "But it is very nice to know what was happening that made her new camp need to leave."

The people of Lion Camp were all commenting now, and it was hard to hear who was saying what. Ayla realized again, that the Others were very loud, and that they sometimes made it hard to concentrate, but she watched them intently. No one seemed upset. Then someone cleared her throat. It was Deegie.

"All of this is very interesting, but it _still_doesn't explain why you have come here at this time," Deegie said again.

Ayla waited until everyone was looking at her, then she looked Deegie full in the face. "I wanted to come, because I am a medicine woman, a healer as you say, and I wanted to see if I could help Rydag. Travie and Darvie have told me how sick he is, and that he cannot talk to anyone. I know many Clan medicines that might help him, and I would like to try, and if I cannot help, I want to go back and ask our Clan's other medicine woman. She has the memories, and may be able to recall something better than what I know." Ayla looked over at Nezzie, who still held the boy. "And if nothing else, I want to teach Rydag how to speak in the way that the Clan does, so that he can tell you what he wants, and I want to teach you their language, so that you can understand him," Ayla said. "Would you like that Rydag?" she asked him. The boy nodded emphatically.

Everyone talked late into the night. Nezzie told them Rydag's story, and several people added their opinions on the topic, but somehow, many of the people were now looking at the boy and his mother's people in a different way. Nezzie knew that it was all because of Ayla, and she would never forget it. Several other stories were told, but none so interesting at Ayla's talk about he Clan.

The old man, Mamut, did not comment the entire evening, but sat silently off to the side instead, watching everything and listening intently.

Ayla had been extremely busy listening to stories, and telling her own, but always kept the old man in her thoughts. He reminded her _so much_of the man that had raised her, and she was drawn to him. She wanted to get to know this very old man, but feared that it was not right to ask.

As the night drew to a close, everyone went off with his or her mate to their hearths, happy with the night's storytelling. Ivanolia helped a drowsy Danie back to the Mammoth Hearth, and Brulenzia, Laurana, Grov and Ayla followed behind them happily. After putting Danie to bed, Ivanolia, Ayla and Darvie tucked their children into their beds, then returned to their mates.

When Ayla climbed onto the bed platform, she smiled at Grov. Grov was holding Annaliza, who wanted to nurse. Ayla took her daughter, and fed her. Grov drew their curtain closed, and lay back watching the woman he loved as she nursed her daughter. Annaliza fell asleep quickly, releasing her mother's nipple, and snuggling up. Ayla looked at her baby's face and smiled, then looked up at Grov. His face held such desire that she was inexplicably drawn to him. She almost forgot that she held her child.

Slowly, she pushed the curtain aside, and got up, carrying her little girl with her. Ayla brought the child to the empty bed platform, and lay her down. She looked around, wondering where the extra bedding was kept, then realized the old man was standing there, with furs in his arms.

"Oh, thank you Mamut," Ayla said, taking the bedding and giving him a big smile. The man smiled back at her.

"You are very welcome, Ayla," he replied. "Sleep well."

"I will Mamut. You too." Ayla just stood there for a moment, then turned to go. "I am going now," she said.

Back within the curtain of her bed, Ayla removed her tunic and leggings. She didn't bother to put on the sleeping tunic that she had been wearing lately, but crawled into the furs naked, and embraced Grov. "I am so tired," she said to him with a sigh.

"Me too. It has been a long day." Grov had also removed his clothes, and held her tightly, stroking her hair with his free hand.

"These are nice people," Ayla whispered. "I was afraid to meet them, but I am glad we came." She squeezed him, then pulled away so that she could look into his eyes.

"Yes, they are good people, Ayla," Grov agreed. "I am glad we have come too." He looked deeply into her eyes, then he rolled her over so that he lay upon her and kissed her hungrily. Ayla closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his lips on hers, and his naked body against hers. She could feel his need; a need that matched her own. She was tired, but not too tired to share pleasures with her mate. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she held him tightly, and ran her fingers through his hair, then down his back. The action caused the man to groan, and kiss her back with even more desire. It was not long before Ayla was lost in her mate, and he in her.

**************************************************  
><strong>The Travelers Return<br>**

Ayla woke early again, just as she usually did, and lay there letting her eyes become accustomed to the dim lighting. She could see the flickering of the fire through their privacy curtain. She could hear light snoring coming from somewhere in the lodge, and smiled at the sound. Closer to her, she could hear Grov's breathing, and its sound told her he would wake soon. With a smile to herself, she decided to help him along.

The man was on his back, with his head turned away from her, and for a moment, she just stared at him. To her, he was an attractive man. Ayla smiled, and ran her fingertip along his slightly pronounced brow ridges. In his sleep, he turned his head so that he was facing her, but he did not wake up. She watched him, then her put her hand on his chest, caressed him gently, then leaned down and kissed him. He groaned, and almost kissed back. Almost, but not quite. Ayla smiled again, and got up, so that she could lie down on top of him, then kissed him again. This time, the man opened his eyes, and kissed her back. When the kiss was finished he grinned at her in the low light. "What are you doing?" he whispered.

"I am waking you up," she said plainly.

"I can see that, but what do you want?" he asked, pretending not to know.

"Hummmm," she replied. "Well nothing, I guess." Ayla rolled off of him, and started to get up.

"No, no! I don't think so," he said, grabbing her by the waist, and pulling her back onto the bed next to him, and holding her there. "I will ask you again. What do you want?"

Ayla giggled, then tried to stifle it. "I want . . . I want _you_before everyone wakes up."

Grov smiled down at her, then leaned to kiss _her_. "That's what I thought."

Ayla had fallen back to sleep after she and her mate had shared pleasures, but now she was awake again, and hungry. She looked at Grov, and noted that he had fallen asleep again too, and that he was sleeping soundly this time. I won't wake him again, she thought, as she pushed the furs off of herself and gathered her clothing, then pushed aside their curtain and got up.

Standing at the end of their sleeping platform, Ayla dressed hurriedly, then checked on Annaliza. Her daughter was lying there wide-awake, and cuddling her doll. When the little girl saw her mother look in on her, she sat up. "Mamma, I'm hungry," she gestured, knowing that it was a time to be quiet.

"Me too, Anna. Should we go to the Cooking Hearth to see what there is to eat?" Anna nodded, and Ayla scooped her up.

Brulenzia had been awake for some time, but by the sounds of things, no one else was. Then, he heard noises in the next hearth, and knew that Grov and Ayla were sharing pleasures again. He smiled, thinking that they shared each other more often than most, and he looked over at Laurana, who was sound asleep. He'd love to wake her, but decided against it, and just lay there listening. He could tell when they had finished, and it was obvious that they had gone back to sleep.

Not long afterward, he heard movement again, and soon he heard Ayla's quiet voice talking to Annaliza, and then silence again. They had left the hearth.

In the Cooking Hearth, Ayla looked around, and noticing that no one else was there, she started making her morning tea, and set aside the ingredients for Danie's morning tea. Annaliza sat near her mother, jabbering to her doll while her mother made tea.

After Ayla's tea was finished, she decided to go outside. It had been a few days since she had seen Shriek, so she wanted to see if there were any signs that he was near.

"Let's go get warm clothes on, and see if Shriek's anywhere to be found," Ayla said to Annaliza.

"Outside?" Annaliza asked excitedly. Ayla nodded, and the little girl clapped her hands, and stood up, dropping her doll. Ayla smiled at her daughter, then picked her up, and they headed for the entry area to don a few more layers of warmth. After dressing warmly, they pushed aside the mammoth hide and went out.

Ayla breathed deeply in the crisp, cool spring air. It was clear at the moment, but Ayla could see clouds on the horizon. "Cold." Annaliza said.

Ayla looked at her daughter. "It's not cold, Anna. Just cool," Ayla said. "Smell the air. Do you smell the rain coming?" Annaliza took a deep breath with her mouth, and shook her head. "No, Anna," Ayla said with a giggle. "With your nose." Ayla explained, showing her daughter.

"I smell the rain," Annaliza squealed. Just then they heard the unmistakable shriek from the hawk above. Ayla grinned at her daughter, then dashed inside to get her leather arm wrapping. When she had it in her hand, she ran back out, put Annaliza down, then wrapped up her arm and held it up.

Shriek circled around, obviously waiting for her to finish, then swooped down and landed gracefully. "Where have you been?" Ayla said, as she stroked his head and back.

"Shreeee," Anna said, trying to grab him. Shriek shifted, managing to stay out of her grasp, and eyeing her suspiciously.

"Now, _that_is the oddest sight I have ever seen in my life," came a voice from somewhere behind the woman and child. Ayla spun around, and was confronted the biggest woman she had ever seen, and two men, one tall and dark haired, the other of average height and features. They were not too far off, but they did not move in. It was one of the men that had spoken.

For a moment, Ayla stood there, shocked. She had only briefly looked at the men, but it was the woman that held her attention. She had never seen a woman so big. Deegie was the first woman that she had ever seen that was actually taller than herself, but not by much. _This_ woman was huge; both tall _and_stocky. Then Ayla noticed that the woman before her had a similar look to the chestnut haired young woman she had met the day before. These are people from Lion Camp, she realized suddenly.

Slowly, but with purpose, the large woman approached the stranger, eyeing the hawk cautiously. Ayla watched the woman approach, and was shocked further when the woman came to stand in front of her. The woman was not just a _big_woman, she actually towered over Ayla, and probably all others in the camp, with the exception of Talut, Ayla thought. Ayla suddenly remembered that he headman had a sister.

Then, from the direction of the earthlodge, "I would like you to meet my sister, Tulie of the Aurochs Hearth, headwoman of Lion Camp," the headman said. Ayla looked back to see Talut standing there grinning, and was thankful he was there. She had to admit to herself that she was a little nervous under the scrutiny of the formidable headwoman. Ayla looked back at Tulie, then gave her arm the motion that told Shriek to take off.

The woman, Tulie, watched the meat eater lift off, and hover overhead, then she eyed the stranger shrewdly. It was her duty to make sure visitors were acceptable, and she obviously didn't take her responsibilities lightly. She glanced down at the small child, standing at the blond woman's feet, with her arms wrapped around her mother's leg. Ayla suddenly became aware of the child, and picked her up, then smiled at the woman and two men.

"Greetings," the headwoman said simply. Then, with one look at her brother she knew the woman had already been invited in, so she said, "In Mut's name, I welcome you to Lion Camp, but it seems that you have already been welcomed."

"In the name of Sumata, I thank you for your welcome," Ayla replied. "And yes, we arrived yesterday."

Tulie noticed her strange accent first, then realized the woman had said Sumata. "You are Sungaea?" the headwoman asked, assuming that the 'we' was the woman and her child.

"Yes," Ayla said, then frowned. "Well, sort of . . . I am Clan too."

Tulie frowned. "Clan? What is . . . ?" she started to ask, but Talut cut her off.

"Well, let's get you all inside. I see that it will rain very soon, and we don't want to get wet if we don't have to. Barzec, Darnev . . . Tulie, where's Ranec?"

The men started for the earthlodge, glad to be home, and Tulie looked at her brother strangely. "You change the subject brother," she said, then answered him. "Ranec decided to meet us at the summer meeting. He sends his apologies for not being here to assist us on the journey. I told him not to worry; we have the shortest trek ever, since we summer at Mammoth Camp this year."

Ayla stepped through the entrance first, and went directly into the Cooking Hearth. Once inside, Ayla noticed that many were awake, including Grov. She went to him immediately, and leaned on him for support; the headwoman had made her nervous.

"Oh Ayla, I was worried," Nezzie said, coming up to her side. "I knew that you were awake, because I saw your . . . what did you call it? Medicine bag?" Ayla nodded. "I saw it by the fire, and figured you went outside. Sometimes we have bad floods at this time in the season, so I asked Talut to look for you."

"I am sorry to worry you Nezzie. I just needed some fresh air," Ayla said. "And I met Tulie."

Just then, Barzec, Darnev, Tulie and Talut entered the Cooking Hearth as well. "Look who has returned," boomed the huge red-haired man. He had an arm around both men, and Ayla noticed that although he was a tall man, Darnev was nowhere near the height of the headman, and Barzec was much shorter.

"Where is Ranec," Nezzie asked, looking around for her adopted son.

"He has decided to meet us at the summer meeting," Tulie answered. "The young man is finally interested in someone." Tulie gave Nezzie an uncharacteristic smile. "She doesn't seem that interested in him, but you never know." Tulie looked around, and noticed several people she did not know. "I did not know the lodge would be so full when I returned."

"We have visitors," Talut said with a grin.

Tulie gave him an exasperated smirk. "Yes, I can see that, Talut, but when are you going to introduce us?"

The headman laughed. "As soon as we are all gathered for a meal. Nezzie?"

"It's coming, Talut. Have some patience." Nezzie rolled her eyes. "Just start introducing them while I cook." Then she took Ayla's arm. "Let's go fix a meal, Ayla." Ayla handed Annaliza to Grov, who was already holding Ora, then followed the woman. Several other women followed.

"Well, since he's standing right here, this is Grov, Ayla's mate, and her daughters, Ora and Annaliza." Tulie looked at the man strangely. First, because he was weighted down with the two blond children, and could not take her proffered hands. But also, when he set the children down, Tulie looked at him closely, and noticed his extremely foreign look. Though she could not decided from where he came, she could tell right from the off that he was not of any people she knew; Mamutoi, Sungaea or other.

When Grov set the children down, he took the big woman's hands, as he had learned was customary among the Others. "In the name of the Great Cave Bear, I am happy to meet the headwoman of Lion Camp," he said, thinking that this woman was clearly capable of leading a camp full of people.

Tulie gave him a reserved smile. She noticed that this man had the same odd accent that the woman had, but that he greeted her in a different way. She wondered about this, and decided to ask later. "It is good to meet you," she said, then looked at her brother, waiting for further introductions.

Talut grinned, but seeing his sisters look, he went on. "They arrived yesterday, Tulie, around dusk. I went out to check the weather, and adjust the bowl boats, and was stunned to see Travie approaching with all these people." Talut introduced all the adults, as the children were already off playing.

Tulie looked around at the full Cooking Hearth. "Well Talut, you must be thrilled to have such a full lodge," she said, smiling at her brother. "And I supposed Travie is at Fox Hearth, since she is not here?"

Just then, Travie walked into the hearth, with Wymez at her hip. "And why would you think that, cousin?" Travie grinned, then hugged the huge woman.

The reserved headwoman hugged her favorite cousin back. "Where else would you be?" she asked, not expecting an answer.

The morning meal was filled with more storytelling, but the visitors did more listening this time, as Talut retold most of the stories. Then the conversation turned to the travels of the headwoman and her mates. "And how did it go?"

"It went well," Darnev replied. "Tarneg's mate's mother's earthlodge needed to be expanded, so we helped them. That is what took us so long; they wanted to get it done _before_the rains came, and I can't say I blame them." Then, the man suddenly looked sad. "It turned out good, but I will miss the son of our hearth."

Barzec was nodding, he too would miss Tarneg. "And Deegie, Tarneg wanted us to ask you when you were going to take a mate, so the two of you could start your own camp?" Barzec said, stealing the light from his co-mate.

Deegie smiled at her mother's two mates. "I have not even met anyone yet. Why does my brother want to rush me?" She hugged them both, then looked at Ayla. "If you have not already guessed, these two are trying to get rid of me."

Ayla grinned at the young woman. She was understanding the humor of the Others more and more everyday, and she could tell that neither man want to get rid of the pretty daughter of their hearth. At first learning, Ayla was shocked to find that the headwoman had two mates. In the Clan, a man could take a second woman, or even a third, but that was rare. A Clan man only did that if there was an unmated woman that needed to be cared for, and the leader ordered it, and only if he was capable of providing for two or more women, and any potential children. But as far as she could recall, there had never been a _woman_in the Clan that had two mates. Ayla was very interested in how the situation worked for them, but decided that this was not the time to ask.

Grov too was interested. He also had not heard of such a thing, and his memories told him that it had _never_happened within the Clan. True, a Clan woman relieved the needs of any man that signaled her, but she only had one mate. Grov looked at the two men, and the children of their hearth. It was obvious that Deegie was of Darnev's spirit, and that Druwez and Tusie were of Barzec's spirit, but he could not see any resemblance of either man in the boy, Brinan, who was somewhere else in the lodge with Dreenie's son Danen.

As Grov listened to the group converse, his mind went to Oga, and her daughter Agra. That child was definitely of his spirit. In a sense, he too had two mates; three mates, if he included Broud. Technically, he was only mated to Ayla, but Oga lived within his hearth, and he signaled her often. Even Broud seemed to have gotten used to it. And, despite the early tension, the former leader had accepted Oga's newest baby, when she could not, and everyone could tell the man loved his mate's child, even though the baby was mixed.

Grov looked at the people around him, and could see that the way their hearths were arranged worked well for them, just as the hearths of the Clan worked for them. Within the Clan, his was the only hearth that had two men and two women, but everyone had gotten used to it that way. Grov thought about the way it had started, and suddenly wondered what Ayla thought about the situation now. She hadn't liked it in the beginning, but she seemed to really enjoy Oga's company, and it appeared as if she more than just tolerated Broud now. Granted, he had been ordered against signaling her, or cuffing her, but she somehow didn't seem agitated with his presence anymore. Grov was happy that the two of them had gotten over their discontent.

Then Grov's mind turned back to the sharing of pleasures. He thought about his signaling Oga, and wondered what Ayla thought of it. Then he remembered that it had been Ayla's idea in the beginning. Again, he considered how he would feel if another man signaled Ayla, or _asked_ her to share his bed, as a person would do here. He'd never had to think about it in the Clan, because they all considered her to be a big, ugly woman, and no one wanted her, but here, among her own people, they thought she was beautiful. He shook his head, deciding, as he had the first time he had considered this, that it would _not_bother him.

Grov came out of his musings when he heard his name being called, and realized that he hadn't been listening to the people. "Are you going to eat, or are you going to just sit there?" Grov smiled at Brulenzia, then finished what was on his plate.

After the meal, Ayla went back to Lion Hearth with Nezzie and Mamut to examine Rydag; after all, that was why they had come. Ayla asked the boy to lie down, then she placed her hand on his chest, and felt his breathing. It felt labored. Then she put her ear to his chest, and noticed the shallow, raspy sound that came from the boy. Ayla then felt around the boy's neck, and looked into his eyes, and smelled his breath. It was hard to know what was wrong with the boy, when he wasn't really exhibiting any problems other than being weak. He was having trouble breathing, and the muscle in his chest sounded wrong. Ayla looked him over, from head to toe. She noticed that his skin color was a little off too, and that he was somewhat swollen. When she was finished, Nezzie allowed the boy to go back to his friends.

"I think it is his . . . ummm . . . I think you say heart. I can make a tea that he should drink, but I do not know much about the heart, Nezzie." Ayla frowned. "No one in my Clan had heart problems. I remember that there were a few people at the Clan gathering that had trouble with their hearts, but I would have to talk to Uba. Uba is my sister, like Rydag is to Rugie. But I cannot talk to Uba until after the Sungaea summer meeting, and I return to the Clan." Ayla's frown deepened. "That will be quite a while."

"Is it really that serious, Ayla?" Nezzie asked. "I mean, I've always know that he's had trouble, but . . . I've always hoped . . . " her voice trailed off, tears in her eyes. Mamut did not say anything, he just watched and listened. The two women almost forgot he was there.

"Yes Nezzie, this is very serious," the young medicine woman said. "I wish that I could go see Uba right now, but all I can do it help you make the tea for him." Ayla gave the woman a pained look, then hugged her. "But, I will do all that I can, and I promise to talk to my sister when I return to the Clan." Nezzie nodded, then wiped the tears from her face. She did not want anyone to know how serious it was just yet.

As they walked out of the hearth, Ayla suddenly became aware of Mamut again. She wondered how the man was able to disappear when he wanted to. She knew that he had been there all along, but that he had managed to stay out of their vision, until he wanted them to see him. They were walking toward the Cooking Hearth, but they hadn't yet entered it when he gently took Ayla's arm. "Ayla, may I ask you something?"

"You can always ask me something Mamut," she replied.

He smiled, of course he could. "Is the name Uba a common name?"

For a moment, Ayla was confused. She had not expected that question. "No, I don't think so, Mamut; Uba was named by Creb. Iza's mother's mother had the same name, and Creb and Iza had the same mother."

_"Creb! Tell me, Ayla, this Creb, did he have a bad arm and walk with a limp?"_

"Yes," Ayla replied, puzzled. How could Mamut know?

"And was there another brother? Younger, but strong and healthy?"

Ayla frowned in the face of Mamut's eager questions. "Yes. Brun. He

is _leader."_

"Great Mother! I can't believe it! Now I understand."

Ayla looked at the old man, and frowned. "But _I_do not understand Mamut. What are you talking about?"

"Come Ayla, let's go back to the Mammoth Hearth. I have a story to tell you." Ayla's brow creased, confused by the old man, but followed him back to the hearth.

In the hearth, Mamut sat down on his bed platform in a cross-legged position, and indicated that Ayla should sit in front of him by patting the bed with his old hand. Once they were both seated, the old man launched into a story about when he was young. He told her about his relationship with Manuv, and the journey they had planned one summer when they were young, but that he had actually made the journey alone, due to Manuv's illness that year. He told Ayla about his trip into Clan country, which he hadn't told anyone he was going to do, and about his fall that had produced a badly bruised head, and a broken and dislocated arm. And he told her about waking up in the midst of the Clan.

"Can you imagine _how shocked I was to discover I was in the camp of a Clan?"_he asked.

Ayla sat there staring at him. She was utterly shocked herself. _You! You are man with broken arm? You know Creb and Brun?" Ayla said in stunned disbelief. A rush of feeling overwhelmed her…._

"You have heard of me?"

"My mother, Iza, told me that before she was born, her mother's mother healed man with a broken arm. A man of the Others. Creb told me the story too. He said Brun allowed me to stay with the Clan, because he had learned from that man . . . from you, Mamut . . . that the Others are people too." Ayla had tears in her eyes, as she recalled the stories she had been told. Then Ayla thought for a moment, and _stared at the white hair, the wrinkled old face, of the venerable old man._"Iza walks in the world of the spirits now, Mamut. She was not even born when you stayed with our Clan . . . and Creb . . . our greatest Mog-ur . . . he was just a boy back then, not yet chosen by Ursus. Creb was an old man when he died . . . how is it that you can still be alive?"

_"I have wondered myself why the Mother chose to grant me so many seasons. I think She has just given me an answer."_

Ayla smiled at the old Mamut, and having the urge to hug him, she reached out and did so. She was a little nervous to be expressing feelings for someone she hardly knew, but it felt to her as if she had always known this man.

**************************************************  
><strong>More Stories<br>**

Ayla and Mamut were just breaking up their hug, and coming out of the hearth arm in arm, when Grov came upon them. "I was just coming to look for you Ayla," he said, looking from her to the old man. "When Nezzie came back, and you didn't, I . . . well, I was wondering about Rydag."

Ayla shook her head, and looked sad. "He is not well, Grov, and I'm afraid I can't really do very much. When we go back to the Clan, I would like to have Uba search her memories; maybe she will know something better than what I can give him. I'm hoping, anyway, but that is so long from now."

Grov could see her pain, and wished there was something he could do. If only he had a woman's memories, or if Ora was older. "I'm sure that having _your_medicine will be helpful, Ayla, even if you don't have Uba's memories."

Ayla smiled, and nodded. He was right, Rydag was going to be better off with her medicine, but for how long, she wondered. Then she looked at Mamut, who had managed to disappear and reappear again, and her smile widened. "Grov, you'll never believe what Mamut has told me," she said.

Grov looked at her strangely. "Why wouldn't I believe you Ayla?" he said with a frown. She was no more capable of telling an untruth than he was, but her wording made him think.

Ayla pulled the two men over to a bench in the passageway, and sat down. "What I mean is, I was talking to Mamut, and he just told me that he has met our Clan before," she said excitedly. "He knew Creb and Brun when they were just boys. You do not know the story of the delirious Others man that wandered into our Clan's midst long before they found me, but Mamut is that man. He is the reason that Brun allowed Iza to pick me up when I was alone and hungry and lost." She was so happy at the discovery that she had begun gesturing.

Mamut watched her for a moment, trying to recall all that he had learned over three generations ago, but it just wouldn't come back. It had been too long, and there had been no one to use it with. "I think you will have to teach me to speak properly again," the old man said with a grin. He did not remember the Clan's language, but he did remember that the Clan had considered his audible chatter to be rude and childish.

"We will do that," Grov stated, and smiled at the old man. He had not known the Mog-ur personally, but his _memories_of Mog-ur One-Eye told him that the venerable old shaman of the Clan would have thought this Others shaman a very respectable man as well. "And I would like to thank you," Grov went on, "it seems that I would not have my wonderful mate if you had not met her Clan."

"Her Clan?" Mamut asked, squinting his eyes. "It appears that you have many stories to tell us."

The two young people grinned. "Yes, many, _many_stories," Grov said. "Ayla, would you like to tell one or should I?"

Ayla had been nervous about talking to the large group of people, but this was just Mamut. "I can start, but you should add parts when you can," she said, then she looked at Mamut again.

"Grov's Clan joined ours after a huge earthquake. Actually, his Clan was the second Clan to ask to join with ours after the earthquake. Anyway, Brun's . . . I mean, Broud's Clan only had one death, Creb," Ayla said, as tears filled her eyes. Grov held her hand. "But Grov's cave suffered many losses." Ayla hugged her mate tightly, knowing this was painful for him. "Grov lost his mate, Ora's mother, and his mate's family. His cave lost all but ten people."

"That must have been terrible," Mamut replied. He could tell how devastating the earthquake had been for both of them, but something caught his attention, and he turned back to Ayla. "I did not know Ora was not your daughter. She looks just like you, and nearly identical to Annaliza."

Ayla and Grov had to smile at the man's comment, for it was true. "Well, that is another story, Mamut. Grov's first mate was my cousin. Her mother and Vincenzia were siblings. My aunt had a daughter and a son, but when her son was killed, she and her mate decided to make a journey. They settled with Grov's people, and lived there until they were killed in the earthquake." Ayla paused. "So, Ora is my cousin's daughter, born of Grov's spirit, I am sure, and Anna is of his spirit as well, so that is why the girls look alike, and like me. My cousin, Evenora, looked very much like me as well, or so I am told."

"Hummmm," Mamut was thinking. "That makes a lot of sense, Ayla." Unbeknownst to the three people deep in conversation, several others had come into the passageway and were now sitting down around them, listening to their stories. "You also said that there was another Clan that joined yours, didn't you?" Mamut asked. He had noticed the quiet people sitting around, and wanted them all to hear as much as possible about this woman and her people.

Ayla nodded. "Yes, there was. The first clan that joined us showed up while I was away meeting Grov's people. When we got back we found nine more people than we had left behind, but it was particularly interesting, because their clan was the clan that had the little girl that had been promised to my son at the clan gathering. They had lost many in their cave too; only the nine had survived." Ayla sighed, remembering why her clan had not been in their cave. "Broud's clan was lucky. We were all outside when the earthquake happened, but poor Creb was killed by an aftershock." Ayla's voice was almost a whisper as she spoke about Creb's death, then she shook her head, and continued.

"I am glad that Ura lives in our cave now . . . it will be less painful for all, since we will not have to take her away from her mother at the next clan gathering, and have her live at one of our hearths until she and Durc are old enough to mate. Not that I would have minded. I would have taken her in, and so would several others, but it doesn't matter anymore," she said. "Now she can stay with her mother until the time comes, and it won't be too many more years." She refrained from mentioning that it was not likely that either one of them would have found someone else to mate had their clans not met up like they had, though now Ayla wasn't so sure about that either. There were several mixed children in Brun's cave, including her own, and apparently there were others out there too.

Mamut was very curious. "Now, I know from my experience that the Clan does not have meetings every summer like we do, but you said clan gathering."

"We have clan gatherings every seven years," Grov said, adding his bit to Ayla's thread. "My clan did not attend the same gathering that Ayla's clan went to. Our last gathering was two years ago, and there weren't really many clans in our area, and most of them had many mixed people. I was not so different there, and we did many things differently than other clans did.."

"Brun's clan's last gathering happened the year Durc was born; five years ago," Ayla said. "We had to travel almost as far as from Oak Camp to Lion Camp, and there were many different clans there. I met Ura's mother right away, and she told me about how her mate was angry with her for wishing for a girl. She believed that was why her baby was mixed."

"Mixed because she wished for a girl?" Deegie asked, obviously confused.

"Yes Deegie," Ayla replied. "All clan women are supposed to hope to bring a male child to their mate's hearth. Is it different here?"

"Well yes," Tronie said. "Baby girls are considered special," she said, hugging Nuvie to her breast, "because they will grow into women, and women are the ones that bring forth life. _But_," she said, with a look at her mate, "I think all men want at least one son at their hearth." Tornec smiled at her, and rubbed her pregnant tummy. "Is it the same with the Sungaea?" Tronie asked.

Vincenzia smiled. "Men do want their mates to have sons within the Sungaea too, but daughters are _always_a blessing," he said, looking directly at Crisanie and then Ayla. "I did notice that among the Clan, boys are celebrated, and girls are only tolerated. It seemed strange coming from people that cannot live without the other."

Most were nodding their heads, but it made Grov start thinking. He never cared what Ayla had, or Evenora for that matter, just so long as the birth went well, and the child was healthy. He thought about Ayla's ideas about conception, and realized that the children that had been born, due to him, were all female. Then he considered Broud, and those children were all male. Was his totem weaker than their former leader? Or was a baby made when a man put himself within a woman? Grov started wondering if there was something more going on that made it a girl or boy.

Brulenzia was wondering about it all too. He was also aware of Ayla's theory, and he fervently hoped that Laurana's child, boy or girl, would be of his spirit. The dark haired man hugged his young, and very pregnant promised to his chest, and kissed the top of her blond tresses. Then, over Laurana's head, he noticed Danie sitting in the same position with Ivanolia, and he frowned, wondering if Danie's baby would be of his spirit too. After all, they had shared pleasures during the journey, so if Ayla was right, it could be. He wondered how Laurana would feel about that, or Ivanolia. He also wondered about all the women he had shared pleasures with at past summer meetings, and the children they had had later. Were they really _his_children too? Brulenzia decided to ask Ayla about it at another time; specifically about Danie's unborn child.

As he was sitting there contemplating babies, and where they came from, Laurana's stomach seemed to change shape in his hand, and become hard as a rock. It shocked him and he looked down. She didn't seem to have noticed, but he kept his hand there, feeling the hardness, then he felt it slowly soften, becoming rounded once more, then the child within the woman rolled over, causing a wave to flow from one side of her to the other, as if trying to find a more comfortable position. Laurana also changed positions then, but was engrossed in the story about the Clan, and did not acknowledge the movement of her child.

The storytelling went on a while longer, and then Nezzie broke it up. "You cannot make them sit and talk all day, Talut," she said scolding her big bear of a man. "You have talked so long that now it is time for another meal. They need to get up and walk around." Everyone was smiling. They were well aware that that was Nezzie's way to get her man's attention.

"But Nezzie, I did not start this round of storytelling? Did I Mamut?" the big headman said, looking at the man of the spirit world.

Mamut smiled. "Indeed you did not, but you _are_sitting here, just like everyone else," the old man replied with a smirk on his ancient lips.

Talut boomed with laughter. "That I am, that I am!" Talut looked around the passageway, and smiled. Nearly everyone had managed to join them in the confined space. Then he turned back to Nezzie. "Did you say it was time for a meal?"

Nezzie threw her hands up in the air as she walked toward the Cooking Hearth. "That man can smell food before it's even cooking!"

**End of Part FOUR!**

* * *

><p><strong>Post Script<strong>

As stated at the top of this page, there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is **unfinished**...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an **unfinished** story. Continue at your own risk!

Again, it took me over an hour to transfer part four from the site where I originally posted it to here (copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past, copy/past...and so on), so it might be a while before I transfer parts five through ten. I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	5. Part 5

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – this fic is **UNFINISHED**...so when you get to (and through) part ten, don't bitch at me that you weren't warned! In fact, you are being warned at both the top AND bottom of each and every part, so...yeah!

Okay. I worked REALLY hard to make sure all the scene breaks are there...but again, I apologize if some (or all ) are still missing. They were definitely there when I uploaded this document...I swear! But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write. So VERY aggravating! *sigh*

And further...**sorry** about the typographical errors (spelling, grammar, and the like). This was written _years_ ago, when I was new to writing and just didn't know any better. I have, since learned A LOT! However, not all the errors are mine, as this site seems to make changes without my knowledge and/or consent. It's WEIRD!

* * *

><p><strong>After the Death Curse – Part Five (of ten)<strong>

A few days went by in similar fashion, with questions turning into storytelling, and storytelling leading to more storytelling. More detail was given about Ayla's life with the clan, and the people of Lion Camp were shocked to hear about her life, though all thought that she lucky to have been found by the Clan, and raised as one of them.

Nezzie, in particular, was in awe over what the young woman had gone through, and more than a little grateful to the people on the peninsula that no one at Lion Camp would ever consider anything but human ever again.

Though Ayla told Nezzie and Talut that she could not heal Rydag permanently, the child was looking better already. The young mixed boy's skin color appeared to look a little healthier, and the swelling in the child's face and limbs seemed to go down. But, despite positive appearances, he was still a weak and sickly child, and they would have to watch him closely. There was nothing that could be done about that. He did, however, love his new ability to communicate with his people, and he was thrilled to have Durc there to help him. The two boys became fast friends. Ayla was already worrying about the time they would have to leave, but knew there was nothing she could do about it; for Durc was destined to someday lead Brun's clan.

Ayla, of course, also spent a lot of time with Rydag, and reminded him of all he should have known, had he been raised by a clan. In watching the woman work in earnest with the boy, Grov was continually surprised at his mate's depth of knowledge about the Clan, and mostly kept silent when she told Rydag about the people by whom he should have been raised, because he loved listening to his mate speak. Ayla did confer with him on several occasions though, and Grov was a great help, since he was Clan and a man, but again, Ayla was amazing in her mate's eyes.

Everyone could see that the child was happier now, and for some reason, his new ability to communicate made his humanity all the more visible.

**xXx**

One morning, Nezzie watched the children talking in the Clan way, and sighed. "That must be his way to communicate," she said while cooking everyone a hot meal. She looked at Ayla. "I cannot believe how quickly he has picked it up."

"That is to be expected, Nezzie," Ayla said. "He obviously has the Clan's memories."

"Yes, you have mentioned that before, but I'm not sure I understand," the older woman said. "What are Clan memories?"

"Well, it is like . . . well, you remember everything that you have ever done, right?" Ayla asked. "I mean, with some exceptions, no one remembers everything."

"Yes," Nezzie said hesitantly.

"The Clan memories are not so different than that, except that they remember what happened to their ancestors too." Ayla smiled, then added. "They remember back to their beginnings."

"Wow!" Nezzie said, then she frowned. "But then, why didn't Rydag know that his mother's people communicated in such a way."

"Well, as far as I can tell, the Clan is born knowing everything that they need to know, but they have to be reminded of what the already know. So, since there was no one here to remind him, he wouldn't have done it on his own. And besides, you wouldn't have known what he was doing anyway, so it wouldn't have mattered."

"I suppose you are right, Ayla. I wish we had met you sooner, so that he could have learned all of this sooner, but I guess it doesn't matter now." Nezzie looked sad.

Ayla hugged the woman, knowing what she was thinking, and wishing she could do something to correct the problem with Rydag's heart, but a congenital heart defect could not be repaired, no matter how good a medicine woman one was.

**xXx**

After several more days passed, and the storytelling was winding up, Talut suggested another 'before summer meeting' celebration, to which Nezzie rolled her eyes. "Talut, if you want to drink your bouza, we don't have to have another celebration. Just drink it!"

Talut laughed heartily at his mate's consternation, but insisted that he just wanted to show their visitors a good time. Then, an idea came to the big man, and the conversation shifted to hunting. It was not difficult to convince people that they should plan a hunt for the celebration. "Just for one or two animals," he said when Tulie balked. "We don't really need much. I just want fresh meat. And besides, we would have done a little hunting before the summer meeting anyway, to be ready for our return from Amber Camp."

Tulie thought for a moment, then nodded. It would be nice to have something new. The woman looked around for Mamut, since they first had to decide what was out there for the hunting, if anything. "Mamut, would you please search," Tulie asked the old man.

"There is no need. I already have," Mamut said simply. The man had an incredible way of knowing what his people would want, before they even asked.

Though a huge and powerful man, Talut shivered, wondering how those that served the Mother always seemed to know what was going to be requested. "Okay," the headman replied. "What have you found?"

"I have found a valley full of horses, west of here, but it is very far; perhaps five to six days journey from here," Mamut said. "But, due north, about one day from us, I have found a herd of aurochs. They are just grazing."

Talut looked at Tulie. "What do you think?"

Tulie frowned. "I would rather have horse meat, but they are too far away right now," she said. "Let's go north."

Talut nodded his agreement, then looked back at the old man. "Can you tell us the makeup of the animals, Mamut?" The old man shook his head, making the headman's forehead scrunch up.

"We should send someone ahead, two people, perhaps," Barzec suggested, then he turned to his co-mate. "Darnev, you are the fastest runner . . . I know that we just got back, but would you be willing to go?"

Tulie's co-mate nodded. "But, I won't be running if I'm taking someone else with me," he said. "Who should go with me?"

Barzec smiled. "I was thinking that one of our visitors might want to go with you. What do you say, Grov?" Over the last few days, Barzec had spent many an evening talking to Grov about the way the Clan hunted versus the way the Mamutoi and Sungaea hunted. Grov had expressed a great deal of interest in all aspects of the topic, so Barzec thought he should be the person Darnev brought with him.

Grov had been listening intently, but was surprised that they'd ask one of their visitors to go with them on the scouting mission. "I'd like to go, but I think Ayla would be most interested in going on this scouting trip as well." He smiled over at his mate, and she back at him. He knew that though she would not ask, she was dying to go hunting with these people.

"Well, I think you could both come with me," Darnev replied. "Two won't slow me down any more than one."

And so it was planned, the next day, the three of them would start out, with the rest following the day after that.

**xXx**

When the sun rose the next day, Darnev, Grov and Ayla got up, dressed quickly and prepared their packs to leave. While the man talked to some of the people about their scouting trip, Ayla conversed with the women. Ayla turned to Laurana, "Are you sure it's okay to leave these three here?" she said gesturing toward her little ones.

"Of course it is, Ayla," Laurana replied, holding Annaliza. "I need the practice after all, and it's not like I'll be doing it alone. There's a whole camp of people here to help, and you know Tronie has promised to nurse Anna if she won't take solid food."

Tronie had come up beside the departing woman, and smiled. "Not to worry Ayla," she said with a wave of her hand. "I have always had plenty of milk, because Nuvie is a big eater. Now go and work hard…and don't forget to have some fun too!"

Ayla smiled. She knew her children would be fine. She looked around the main space in the Mamutoi earthlodge, and wondered how they had come to feel like family so quickly. Durc was sitting with the children of his age, and teaching them more Clan words. They were learning very quickly, and that made Ayla happy for Rydag's sake. Ayla smiled again, then frowned when she saw Rydag's small frame sitting next to Durc. He was already nearly as fluent as Durc, and she was thrilled for him, but his health problems broke her heart. Ayla looked over at Nezzie. "You will send someone to get me if Rydag needs me?"

"Of course I will Ayla," the older woman said. "He is my son." Ayla smiled again, thinking that it was silly of her to worry so much.

Then Ayla looked around for Ora. Ora and Nuvie were being attended by some of the older girls that liked having live dolls to play with. Ayla turned back to Laurana, who handed her her baby. Ayla placed a kiss on the child's cheek, and nuzzled her close, then handed her back. "You be good for cousin Laurana," Ayla said to Annaliza." Annaliza just nodded, and stuck her thumb in her mouth. "And Laurana, I want you to rest. You are far enough along in your pregnancy now that your baby should be fine if you had it now, but let's not overdo it, okay? Make sure you put someone else to work once in a while, and not do all the work yourself." Laurana nodded.

"Don't worry Ayla, I will not let her 'overdo it.' She will have plenty of help," Nezzie said.

Then Ayla turned to Danie. "And I do not want to see you on this hunt Danie," Ayla lectured. "You stay here when the hunters leave."

Danie giggled. "Like Ivanolia would let me go on this hunt even if I wanted to," the pregnant woman said with a huge grin.

Ivanolia was standing pretty close and had overheard the conversation. "She won't be going anywhere, Ayla," he said with a smile.

**xXx**

After quite a bit of discussion and goodbyes, the three scouters gave final hugs to the people they were leaving behind. Tulie, Barzec and several others hugged Darnev, while Ayla and Grov hugged their family and friends, then they set out in a northerly direction.

The people of Lion Camp, and all the visitors, stood outside watching them go, waving their hands with the typical come back motion, then went back inside when the travelers were out of sight. Those that were left behind may not be leaving for the hunt on this day, but they had planning to do. The next day would be their day to leave and they had to decide who was going on the hunt, and who would be staying behind with the children.

**XxX**

Back inside the earthlodge, Talut and Tulie called a meeting to organize who would go on the hunt. Everyone quickly moved around the main cooking hearth, found a seat, and prepared to listen. When the big headman saw that his people were ready, he looked over at his sister, an unspoken thought went between them.

"Okay, let's start with who _wants_ to go on this hunt," Tulie said. Talut's hand was up before anyone else's, and Tulie smiled. "Brother, we all _know_ that you are going." The woman paused, as he reluctantly put his hand down. "Who _else_wants to go?" Tulie looked around at the hands, Barzec, Wymez, Vincenzia, Darvie, Brulenzia, Ivanolia, Tornec, Travec, Dreenie, Tralie, and Deegie, plus Talut and herself, and the three already away scouting, and thought there was no way that just one or two animals would get away from this many people. In fact, she thought, they were likely to kill the at least half of the herd with this lot, if it wasn't too large, and they had good luck.

The big headwoman smiled stoically. "Well, okay then, I think we have our hunting party."

Talut was pleased with the amount of people that wanted to go as well, but he looked around and his eyes came to his mate's eldest son, who was standing with Latie and Druwez. He quickly considered the two boys, almost of an age to have their first Red-foot, and immediately made a decision. "And of course Danug and Druwez will go too," he said.

Tulie looked over at the two boys, and shrugged her shoulders. "That makes eighteen. That will be more than enough to kill two beasts," she said. Then she looked at the people that would stay. There were many children being left in the care of only seven adults. She turned to Nezzie. "Would you like anyone else to stay behind to look after the children?" the headwoman asked her brother's mate.

Nezzie looked at the children, noticing immediately that Latie was upset at not being invited on the hunt. She knew the feeling, but understood why her mate had not suggested that the girl go as well; she would be needed at the earthlodge. "No Tulie, we will be fine here," she said putting her arm around her daughter, and squeezing her shoulder.

**xXxXxXx**

Darnev led Grov and Ayla north through the valley that Lion Camp called Lev Valley, following Lev River, and discussing hunting from the Clan standpoint. The two men were talking freely, but Ayla was only listening. Though she had been hunting for years, she had never been allowed to discuss hunting with the men, and had only actually hunted once with men other than Grov. She thought about the time she had gone out sling hunting with Grov, Dorg and Daub, and glanced around wondering where Shriek was.

"Very interesting," Darnev was saying. "So Clan women really do not hunt _at all_?

Grov shook his head. "Well no, well except for Ayla, but then, she is not really Clan."

Ayla's head shot up, and she frowned. She was suddenly focused on their conversation. She did not know that her mate did not think of her as Clan. "I _am_Clan Grov," she said. He looked at her, and realized that she really thought of herself as part of their clan, and he blushed, knowing that he had hurt her feelings.

"I am sorry Ayla," he said. "I did not mean . . . "

She smiled up at him. She knew that he did not mean to hurt her. "That is okay," she said waving a hand to draw the attention away from her red face. She did not like that she had interrupted the men's conversation, and embarrassed her mate.

Darnev watched them, and could tell that Ayla's heritage had caused some problems in her past. It made him think of Rydag, and how different he had seemed to them at first. The man decided to redirect the conversation. "So Ayla, we have already heard how you became a hunter, and I have heard so much about how skilled you are with your sling. Would you care to show me."

Grov smiled at the man gratefully. "That is a wonderful idea," he said, turning and taking his mate's shoulders. "Ayla is the best sling hunter of our clan." His eyes were glowing.

Ayla blushed at his praise, then looked at Darnev. "Well, okay," she said. "What would you like me to hit?"

Darnev looked around, and spied a tree not too far up ahead. "How about that tree?" he said pointing.

Grov gave a guttural laugh. "That's not very far away. She can throw much farther than that, but I guess she can start there." Ayla smiled, knowing that the tree was an easy target, and well within her reach, so she dug into a pouch around her waist, retrieved a stone, then loaded up and fired. She aimed not for the tree, but for one of its branches, and as the stone stuck its target, the branch snapped off and dropped to the ground.

Darnev smiled. "Wow! How _far_can you throw a stone? That was obviously too close."

Ayla looked around. "I could probably hit those rocks that are over there," she said pointing eastward at a rock formation.

"I'd say that is at least four times the distance than the branch you just hit," Darnev said with an impressed tone. "That is amazing."

"Yes, Ayla is amazing with her sling, but distance doesn't really mean anything, if you are not accurate, which she is," Grov went on. "She could probably hit a moving animal at that distance as well.

Just as Grov was saying this, Ayla noticed that a few birds had lifted off from the tree she had struck, and pointed at them as they flew away from them. "I will get two of those birds," she said, as she readied her sling with two stones and let fly. "Thwack, Thwack!" was all that could be heard, and two birds fell to the ground ahead of them.

Darnev's jaw dropped open as the woman darted off to retrieve her kills. The birds had easily doubled the distance from them and the tree in the short time that they had talked about what Ayla should hit next, and the man was impressed. "She is very good," he said to Grov.

"Yes, she is," Grov said proudly. "There is none better." The clan man paused briefly. "In our clan anyway."

Darnev grinned. "I'd wager that there is none better anywhere," he said.

When the two men caught up to Ayla, she had already given one of the birds to Shriek, who had mysteriously appeared overhead when the woman arrived at her kill. True to his name, the hawk shrieked loudly, then lifted off and flew out of sight. Ayla smiled as he flew off, then looked at the two men. "I think we have tonight's meal," she said, holding up the remaining bird.

The two men grinned. "Fresh meat!" they said in unison.

**xXxXxXx**

With help from several hands, Nezzie worked hard on a meal for the people. When she was sure that it would be ready soon, she wiped her hands on a small leather hide she had tied around her waist, and looked around for Latie. The girl was not in the cooking hearth, but Nezzie saw Danug and Druwez sitting across the room discussing the coming hunt excitedly. She went to the boys.

"Have you two seen Latie anywhere?" she asked.

The two boys shook their heads. "No mother," Danug said. "Latie didn't want to discuss hunting, so she left the cooking hearth."

Nezzie raised an eyebrow at the two boys, giving them a knowing look, then left the hearth to find her oldest daughter.

**xXx**

Nezzie didn't have far to go to find her daughter as Lion Hearth of the first hearth after the cooking hearth. Nezzie stepped into the space that defined her hearth, and saw Latie lying on her back on her bed platform with tears streaming down her face. Nezzie approached slowly, and sat down beside her. Latie wiped her tears away with the backs of her hands, then looked away from her mother.

"Latie," Nezzie said, touching her daughter's arm. "I know how badly you want to go. I'm sure that Talut will let you go soon, but you know that I will need your help here, since we have so many more children to look after this time."

Latie frowned, heaved a sob, then sat up and hugged her mother. "But why me? Talut only allowed Danug and Druwez to go because they are boys. He did not even consider me. It's not fair."

Nezzie considered her daughter's statement, and agreed that it was probably part true. "You are just a little younger than the boys, and no one said that life is fair, Latie," the woman said to her daughter as she held her.

Latie pulled back from her mother's embrace, and wiped her tears away again. "Mother, I have shown much skill in hunting small animals around the earthlodge. I am far better than Druwez at catching game. And, Druwez is only a year older than me. I do not think that is a good reason to allow him to go on the hunt, and make me stay behind."

Nezzie had to admit that her daughter was right. At eleven years old, Latie had proved to be skillful in many areas, and hunting was one area in which she excelled. "You are right daughter, it is not a good reason, and I am sure Talut has just overlooked you this time. I am sure that he did not mean to. I could definitely use your help here with the children, but I will talk to Talut and Tulie about allowing you to go along."

Latie gave her mother a huge smile, and hugged her tightly. "Are you sure mother? If you really _need_me here, I will stay, but I want to go hunting so badly."

"No Latie, you are right, you should be allowed to go, and we do have plenty of adults to care for the children," Nezzie said, as she stood up to leave. "I will go talk to them right now."

**xXx**

When Nezzie got back to the cooking hearth, she saw that Talut, Tulie, Barzec and Vincenzia were still talking about the hunt, so she decided she would talk to them right away. As she approached them, she had to sidestep Nuvie and Ora who toddled by holding hands, and the woman smiled as the two girls giggled loudly.

Nezzie came up beside her mate, who was booming on about the hunt excitedly. He did not miss a beat when his mate stepped in, but put his arm around her and pulled her close, as he continued to speak. When there was an opening in the conversation, Nezzie interrupted.

"Talut, Tulie," Nezzie said to get their attention. "I would like to make a suggestion, if that is alright."

Tulie looked down at her brother's mate, and smiled. The younger woman hadn't gone out on any hunting expeditions in a long time, preferring instead to stay at the lodge and care for Lion Camp's children, but Tulie respected Nezzie's suggestions and opinions greatly, as they were always sensible. "Well, of course it is okay Nezzie," Tulie said. The four people standing there turned their full attention to the shorter woman, and waited.

Nezzie cleared her throat, then launched on. "It has been brought to my attention that Latie would like to be invited on this hunt," she said, then went on before anyone could object. "She may be just a girl, but she is only one year younger than Druwez, and with all due respect to Aurochs Hearth," Nezzie said looking into the eyes of the headwoman and her mate, "Latie is just a little more skilled than your son when it comes to hunting." The headwoman and Barzec both nodded; they agreed completely. "I think she could be an asset to the hunt. _And_, I think we will have all the help we need around here, with the visitors helping out, and the children on their best behavior," the woman said, finishing up her speech, and looking at each person in turn.

Tulie was nodding. "I do not see any reason why Latie cannot come with us," the headwoman said, looking at her brother, then at her mate. "She is a good hunter, and we could use all the help we can get when it comes time for butchering. I am thinking that this _little_hunt, is going to be much bigger than we had originally planned."

Barzec was nodding as well. "Yes, I would agree that Latie is a very skilled hunter for her eleven years. I would agree to her coming along."

"Well, I know I am not part of Lion Camp," Vincenzia said, "but we have a couple children of _ten_years that we allow to come along on hunting trips, and they have been very useful."

Talut was unusually silent as he listened to the comments of the people, then he looked over to see Latie standing in the entranceway of the cooking hearth. She was looking over at Danug and Druwez with a wistful expression. He could tell that she had been crying, and he felt terrible that he had left her out. She was growing up fast, and would probably be a woman very soon. He looked back at the people that had gone silent; waiting for him to speak.

The headman nodded, adding his agreement to the group. "Yes, I also see no reason why Latie cannot go on the hunt." He looked at Nezzie who hugged him tightly.

"I will go tell . . . ," Nezzie started to say happily, but Talut cut her off.

"No, let me go talk to her," Talut interrupted. "I was the one that left her out. I should be the one to make it right." Then the big man excused himself. Nezzie watched her mate go, and was once again thankful that she had fallen for the big gentle man.

**xXx**

Latie had come into the cooking hearth shortly after her mother left Lion Hearth, and eyed the group her mother was talking to. There seemed to be a lot of discussion, so Latie turned away, looking instead at Danug and Druwez. In turning away, she missed the nodding heads of the adults.

Her brother and cousin, since they were avidly discussing something, had not noticed her return, and she frowned. She wasn't sure if she wanted to go talk to them; they were probably still talking about the hunt, and she didn't want to hear about it if she couldn't go herself. She was just about to go sit down with them anyway when Talut appeared at her side.

"Latie?" he said. She had obviously been far off in her own thoughts, for she had not seen the big man approach until he was right there. "Can I talk to you?"

"Yes, Talut," Latie said, trying desperately to hold her composure. "Of course you can talk to me."

Talut took the hand of the first daughter of his mate, and led her around the corner to the long passageway, and sat her down on one of the benches. He knelt down in front of her so that he was looking straight into her eyes, and he touched a stand of her blonde hair. "Latie, would you like to come on this hunt with us?"

Latie looked into his eyes, then allowed a huge grin to split across her face. "Really?" she said, and when he nodded, she threw her arms around his neck, and allowed her tears to fall.

The big man hugged Nezzie's daughter back, lifted her up into the air, and as he stood with her in his arms, he let a few of his own tears fall. Yes, this _girl_would be a woman before he knew it; he had better start treating her like one.

**xXx**

When Latie and Talut returned to the cooking hearth, Nezzie saw the change in the girl immediately. She was glowing. Nezzie also noticed that Talut was looking at the girl differently as well, and she smiled; he has finally noticed that she is growing up, she thought with pleasure.

The two of them knew that the girl was not a woman yet, and that it could still be a year or two before she became one, but it was good to have your eyes open, she thought, and now they most definitely did.

**XxX**

**A Gift For Danug, Druwez and Latie  
><strong>  
>There was great excitement among the people at Lion Camp. After it had been determined who would go on the hunt and everyone had eaten, Talut and Tulie began organizing <em>what<em>would be brought on the hunt. It was not a lot, but it still had to be organized.

"Now, we are not going to hunt too many animals," Tulie said. "After all, it's almost time to leave for the summer meeting."

"No, no," Talut said. "Just three or four of them."

Tulie smiled at her brother. "Talut, first is was supposed to be one animal, then it turned into two. _Now_, it's three or four?"

The big man smiled at the woman. "Well, if the herd is there, and we can make the kills easily, then it will save us some hunting when the summer meeting is over."

The big headwoman nodded, thinking that her brother was very wise, then another thought came to her. "But what if something breaks into the lodge while we are away? If that happens, then our hard work will be for not."

"True, but if the kills come easily, then it will not really matter, and besides, we still have some time before we leave, and many hands to help with the work. What do you say?"

Tulie nodded. She knew her brother could not pass up a good hunt, and he was right; they had many hands.

**xXxXxXx**

Darnev, Grov and Ayla traveled until dusk, then stopped for the night. They had only brought a single tent to sleep in, so Ayla went to work on that, while Grov started their fire. Darnev unpacked only the things they would need for that evening, then helped Ayla with the tent.

The set up only took moments for the well-traveled people. Though Grov and Ayla had not been used to travel before their journey to Oak Camp, they had learned quickly, and Darnev was used to it. When the fire was blazing, Ayla made tea for them, and Darnev passed out some traveling food to snack on while Ayla cooked the bird she had caught.

"How much further do we have to go?" Ayla asked Darnev after she sat down with her meal, then took a bite of her food.

Darnev looked around. "I noticed aurochs prints this afternoon, so they must have watered here as recently as yesterday," he said. "We probably could have made it to them tonight, but it's really not necessary, and it could scare them off if we get so close too soon."

"What is the plan?" Grov asked.

"We usually approach a herd cautiously, taking into account the wind direction, so as not to give chase before we are ready, then we count them when they are in view, and try to figure out which way they are going. Then, we come back to tell the others what we saw, and discuss the make up of the herd versus our needs."

"Hummm," Grov said. "That's pretty close to what the Clan would do, except for coming back to tell the others. We don't usually send out scouts, we just go, hunt and come back. We do count them, but not by numbers like you do. The Clan does not have numbers. We just make ourselves aware of bulls, cows; pregnant or not, young ones, old ones, and the amount of meat we need. Then the hunt leader tells everyone what to do."

"That is interesting," Darnev said. "And you said that only the men hunt, right?" Both Grov and Ayla nodded. "That must make it hard to kill a lot of meat at one time. We only have five men at Lion Camp, and two boys that are ready to start hunting. We'd have to go out much more often if we only allowed men to hunt."

"Yes, very often," Ayla replied. "Clan men go out at least half the days that the weather is good, but we have . . . fourteen men in our cave, so maybe that helps us."

"Yes, Ayla, you have many men, but how many women and children do you have?" Darnev asked. "Fourteen men can kill many animals, but they still have to go out often because there are many, many people in your camp."

Ayla frowned, but nodded, understanding what the older man was saying. "Yes, I understand," she said. "We have fifteen women, eighteen children, three babies and one old man. It must be very difficult to have to try to feed that many people."

Grov smiled. He hadn't thought about how many people they had in their cave, but he was impressed that Ayla could count them up so quickly.

"That's a big camp," Darnev said, impressed as well, though not with the quick addition. He was amazed at the number of people that lived together in one camp. "Is that how many people are in other clan camps."

Grov shook his head. "No, we have an unusually large cave of people. It is good we found such a large cave to live in. We were actually three clans that joined together after the earthquake Ayla told everyone about during the storytelling. My clan was traveling east when we happened upon some people from Broud's clan by accident, and Corg's clan was traveling north, looking for Broud's clan, because one of the girls in his clan will mate with Durc when they grow up."

"So, you have fourteen men hunting for . . . fifty-one people?" Darnev asked questioningly. Both Ayla and Grov nodded. "Wow!" Darnev said. "Now I'm really impressed!"

**xXx**

The three scouters continued their discussion about hunting animals, and the ways in which the Clan differed from the Mamutoi. Darnev was gaining a healthy respect for these clan people that not many Others had the chance to get to know. When it was finally time to turn in, the man couldn't get his mind off the boy that had come to mean so much to Lion Camp. He didn't even think his camp realized how much the boy meant, he was just a part of them now.

Inside the tent, Ayla had arranged everyone's sleeping furs so that she was in the middle of the two men, and she and Grov were already snuggled into their furs when the Mamutoi man crawled into the small traveling tent. He could hardly see the other two people as he lay down, because the fire was burning low outside, but he could smell the beautiful young woman next to him, and smiled. It will be a tight fit for three big adults in this small tent, Darnev thought, but at least everyone will stay warm.

**xXxXxXx**

It was pretty late by the time the people of Lion Camp finally went to bed. Latie, in particular, could not contain her excitement. In fact, Danug, Druwez _and_Latie were giddy with joy over the prospect of actually being allowed to hunt. All three of them had attended hunts before, but they hadn't been allowed to do much more than watch.

Just before Druwez separated off from the other two, as they were readying for bed, Wymez approached the three, and handed each of them an expertly made spear. The three youngsters took the gift from the older man, and inspected it. All three spears had expertly made flint tips, but all were different in some way. It was obvious that Ranec had done much of the work as well. The two men had put a lot of effort into each one, and the three young people could tell that they had been working on them for some time.

Danug's spear was the largest, as he was a huge young man, just like his mother's mate, and it was dyed a fiery red to match the man's hair, and wrapped with dark brown sinew at one end, to hold the tip in place, and at the other end, as a place to grip the long spear. Wymez had asked Ranec to carve a lion head into the shaft, which the dark, young man had done with the expertise that only he could produce, but Ranec had not only carved the image of a lion's head, but the whole body as well, wrapping the lion's tail down and around the shaft, making it look as if it were moving.

Latie's spear was much shorter than her brothers, but it too had been dyed the color of her hair, a golden blonde color, with deep blonde streaks cascading down the shaft, which she knew had taken some work. Latie held the spear gingerly, and touched the finely made flint tipped point carefully; she could tell that it was very sharp, and that the slightest pressure would have broken the skin on the end of her finger. The young girl smiled, and ran her hand down over the light brown sinew, which held the tip in place, and then examined the image of a lioness that Ranec had carved into her spear. Its tail was not wrapped around the shaft in a spiral, as Danug's was, but instead went back and forth down the spear's length, giving the impression that the lioness was flicking her tail, getting ready to give chase. It was exquisite.

Druwez's spear, though not as long as Danug's, was larger than Latie's. It was a deep dark brown, matching _his_hair almost perfectly as well, and was wrapped in the same manner as the other two, but with an almost white sinew, that Druwez knew had been costly, since there were not many people that knew how to make leather white, and none which resided at Lion Camp. Druwez turned the spear around to look at Ranec's craving, and saw that the man had put an aurochs on his, to match the hearth in which he lived, and that the animal's head was bent down, horns protruding forward, as if charging, with his tail wrapped around the shaft in the same way that Danug and Latie's lion tails were stretched out, and curled around their spears.

Wymez stood there watching the three young people inspect their new weapons, and then examine the spears of the others. He desperately wished Ranec was here while the gifts were being given, but knew that this was the right time, for these three were going on their first true hunt, and this would give them good luck.

"Oh Wymez," Latie gushed, throwing her arms around her mother's brother. "These are wonderful." Tears were coming out of her eyes, as she buried her face in his beard, and kissed him happily.

Danug and Druwez smiled at the man, nodding their joy at his gift. "Thank you very much Wymez," Druwez said. "This will bring us luck I am sure."

"Though I think this is too much," Danug said. "Is there something we can give you in return?"

Latie removed her arms from around the man's neck, and nodded her agreement. "Yes, what can we do for you, Wymez?"

"Nothing at all," the older man said simply. "We have been working on these for quite some time, and now it the right time to give them. After all, every new hunter needs a special spear. I hope these bring you luck."

**xXx**

After a little more talk about the spears, and many more thanks and hugs, the three youngsters went off to bed. Nezzie had been aware that her brother had been working on a gift for Danug and Druwez, but she had not known about Latie's. She was extremely pleased to see that their flintknapper had noticed Latie's maturity, and had included her in on this special gift.

Talut, on the other hand, had not know about the spears, and wanted to look at them closely. He was well aware that his camp had the best flintknapper and the best carver among the Mamutoi, and he was always amazed at the beautiful work these two men created.

At the other end of the earthlodge, Tulie and Barzec were studying Druwez's spear, and were both nodding appreciatively, and pointing out the many details, which had been carved into the spear. "It is almost too beautiful to use," Barzec commented.

"Yes, almost, but it will be very good luck," Tulie replied.

**XxX**

**The Hunters Leave Lion Camp  
><strong>  
>Before the sun even rose, the scouters were awake, and excited about the coming hunt. They knew the actual hunt would not be until at least the next day, but they were energized all the same.<p>

Ayla got up first, dressed warmly, then went out to stoke the fire and make tea. The two men readied themselves more slowly, but eventually got themselves out of the tent. Ayla smiled at them as they came out, handing them each a cup of tea, and hugging her mate warmly. "So, what do we do this morning, Darnev?" she asked.

The man looked around, getting a feel for the area and wind direction, and looking at the tracks on the ground. There were two directions in which they could go, but it was obvious that the aurochs headed into the northeast valley. "We will head northeast," he said, looking briefly in the direction they would not go. "It doesn't appear that any of the herd went toward the north valley." He looked back at them, and smiled. "It is lucky that there is a northeast wind. The herd will not have smelled us coming yet. Let's hope that we don't alert them to our presence, or they will get nervous and might stampede." He looked around again, and smiled. "I really love a good hunt."

Grov grinned at the man, then looked at his mate. Her eyes sparkled with pure joy at prospect of finally being allowed to hunt like all the men of the clan. He could see something in his mate that he had never seen in any other woman before…excitement. Then he frowned, wondering how hard it would be for her to go back to living as a clan woman. He wondered if she could do it, and wondered where that put him when they returned. Life was sure different now.

**xXx**

After eating a quick meal, and packing up their meager belongings, Darnev placed some sticks and stones in a purposeful way, and the three started off again.

"What was it that you were doing back there with the rocks and branches?" Grov asked.

"Well, our footprints and the aurochs tracks should be more than enough to turn the hunters in the right direction, but it's just for good measure," Darnev said. Grov nodded his understanding, and Ayla smiled at the cleverness. "Actually, if you look at these tracks in the daylight," Darnev said pointing, "they are quite fresh. We really cannot go much further."

They continued to walk for a while, but Darnev was starting to get nervous. "I really don't want to go any further," he said. "Let's climb up this hill and see what's down in the valley. We can get a better view from up there, and we won't disturb the animals."

**xXx**

When they reached the top and looked down, the two clan people gasped at the number of beasts within the valley. "There are so many of them," Ayla whispered at the same time that Grov said, "How can we hunt so many?"

Darnev laughed. "We will not hunt all of them. That is what we have to decide before the others get here. Instead of getting closer, we should sit up here and watch them for a while, and pick out ones that look good. Then, after some time, we'll head back down, and set up a camp out far enough that a fire will not affect our hunt. Then, when Tulie and Talut get to our camp, they will want to come see the herd, so they can decide how many and which ones we should hunt. By the time they get here, things will be different, so deciding now really won't help."

Darnev looked down at the beasts again. "I can see several pregnant females," he said pointing them out. "They are always good to get, but we don't want to take too many of them or there won't be any young for the next year."

Grov and Ayla sat down next to Darnev, and watched the grazing aurochs, and shared more stories.

**xXxXxXx**

The people of Lion Camp woke up early as well, but none so early as the three youngsters that each had fantasies of making their first big kill. All three had slept with their new spears, much to the amusement of their mothers.

Tulie was up early too, as were a few others, and went to the cooking hearth to eat before their departure. When everyone was awake and fed, the hunters said their goodbyes, telling the children to mind their elders.

"Danie, are you sure you are okay with me leaving?" Ivanolia asked.

She rolled her eyes, and looked over at Laurana. "You'd think I was as pregnant as you are," she said with a giggle. "Ivan, it will be a _very_long time before our baby is born, so don't worry." She kissed him, and gave him a shove.

Ivanolia eyed her suspiciously. "_Our_baby? How do you know?"

Danie placed a hand on her belly, and smiled. "I just do."

He grinned at her, then looked at his sister, who was hugging Brulenzia. "Maybe you should stay here with her, Bru. She might go into labor, and you know how to deliver babies." Ivanolia would never get over the loss of his first mate, and couldn't understand why everyone was so nonchalant about the birthing of babies.

Brulenzia was about to say something, but Laurana cut him off. "Ivan! I am fine. If you remember correctly, I am not due for almost a moon. I will be fine for a few days."

Ivanolia hugged his sister, then turned to Braydalana. "Make sure you take care of these two women," he instructed her. She rolled her eyes too, and looked around for help. When her eyes came to Travie, she gave her a pleading look, and the woman came over.

"Ivan, are you going on this hunt or not?" she asked sternly. "These two women are going to be fine, so get going!" Then she pushed past him mumbling under her breath. "After all the trouble that man caused in the last moon, what _is_his problem?"

Ivanolia stepped out of her way just in time, and watched her go. Then he smiled and looked at Danie and Laurana. "I'm being silly, aren't I?" Both women, and several other people nodded. "Okay, okay, I'll try to relax!"

**xXx**

Finally, after more than enough conversation, the hunters left. They did not go in any particular order, they just walked next to people they wanted to talk to.

Talut, Tulie and Vincenzia led the way, and set a rather quick, but steady pace. They wanted to catch up by nightfall if at all possible, so they could discuss the hunt. If they couldn't catch up by night, then the headman wanted to at least be almost there. Either way, they weren't worried; they knew the area very well, and knew that there were only two valleys in which the herd could be, that the scouters were already there, and that they'd likely be heading back to meet them just inside whichever course they needed to take. The big headman was getting excited about the coming hunt, and so was everyone else!

**XxX**

**More Clan Stories  
><strong>  
>The traveling hunters went on with purpose in their step, and by afternoon they had gone a significant distance. Danug, Druwez and Latie were going from one group of experienced hunters to the next, trying to memorize everything they hadn't been too interested in on previous hunts. The adults answered their endless questions, and smiled knowingly when the younger people turned their backs.<p>

"Oh, to be young again," Talut said, with a look of longing.

Tulie glanced at her brother. "Are you feeling old Talut?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Not really, but look at how much energy they have."

Tulie glanced back at her son, and then at Danug and Latie. They were bouncing around laughing, but all three were clutching their new spears tightly. "Yes, they do seem to be excited," she said. "But, I do not feel old, and you, my brother, have more than enough life in you for all of us."

Talut boomed his pleasure. He knew full well that his sister was right on that one. It would be a long time before he could be classified as old.

**xXxXxXx**

The scouters sat atop the hill, watching over the herd, and eating the traveling cakes Nezzie had given them. For them, the day was relaxing, but rather boring to say the least. They broke up the monotony by telling stories about the past. Lion Camp had already been told how Ayla had come to live with Brun's clan, but Darnev wondered about Grov. How had this barely mixed man come to be?

"Well, I do not know much about my mother's people, and _her_mother's people, but I do know that it was very difficult. My mother died before she could give me enough details to really understand, so most of my information came from other people. I know that we came from farther west than any clan around here, nowhere near the peninsula like Brun's clan, and that some of the clans to the west have lighter hair." Ayla was listening carefully, but her head shot up at talk of lighter haired clan people.

"I know that my mother looked more clan than I do, and that she was attacked by the Others, just as her mother was many years before that. My mother seemed to think that even her mother had been mixed, but she wasn't positive about that."

"That is awful," Darnev said. "That happens around here too, or so I've heard."

Ayla was nodding her head. "Yes, it happens to the east of Oak Camp too, inside Clan territory." Ayla looked at Grov. "That is what happened to Oda," she said. "Oda was pregnant with Ura right after one of those attacks." Something about this conversation started to bother Ayla as she thought about it. "It was probably a Sungaea man that attacked her," she said with disgust.

As Grov continued his story, Ayla realized that there was a lot she didn't know about her mate, and listened intently. "I remember my mother telling me how badly she was treated for looking so different, and that sometimes there were things she just could not understand. She said that eventually it got so bad that she and her mate, and some others left, and went to look for some place else to live. She said that her mother's people had done the same years before, and that each group that left didn't seem to learn a lesson; they continued to be intolerant of the newest babies that were born."

Darnev was thinking about Rydag, and it made him sad. Nezzie had insisted on keeping the child, and no one had been about to tell the headman's mate that she couldn't, but no one had _really_accepted the boy, not until Ayla had come.

"I'm not really sure when or how it happened, because I was still young, but we left our territory again, and I guess we entered Sungaea territory. Most Sungaea don't tolerate the Clan, but there were some people just north of Beran Sea that joined us. We found some caves long a nice river valley, and settled there. After that we tried hard to live in harmony. We had full clan people, mixed people and Others among us, and we did not have the rigid rules that so many clans have. It was just our way. That is how I grew up."

"That is very interesting, Grov. It makes me thankful for the childhood that I had," Darnev said. "Do you know how old you were when your mother died?"

"Yes, I was eight years old," Grov said, then he looked at Ayla. "It happened just after Nora arrived with her family and joined our clan. My mother just disappeared; we never found her. It was a good thing I had Nora's family . . . I'm sure that Oza's presence saved me." Ayla put her arms around her mate and held him tight. She wondered why they had never talked about his before; it was obvious that he needed to.

"What else do you remember, Grov," she asked.

"Nothing else about the past beyond that. I remember being treated very well by most people after that final move, and that Teg and Oza were very good to me. I remember how well Nora and I got along, and how she always said she would not mate anyone, but me. Teg knew that his mate's daughter was stubborn and that she would not bend, so he did his best to make me into someone suitable for her. I have to say that I learned a lot from him." Grov smiled at the memory.

"And then, when Nora became a woman, she was given to me. We continued to live at Teg's hearth, but when Nora finally got pregnant, we made our own hearth. Ora was born when Nora was sixteen, and we were happy until the earthquake that killed almost everyone."

Grov stopped there, and Ayla did not ask for more. She knew the rest, and didn't want to push him to retell anything else that was painful. She was glad he finally told her about his past, but upset with herself for not asking sooner. Darnev felt as if he was intruding on their private moment, even though it had started with his questions, so he just sat there silently.

**xXx**

For some time, the three of them continued to watch the herd, and then, as evening approached, Darnev suggested that they go down and set up camp again.

Grov and Ayla readily agree, mostly because of the boredom they were experiencing, but also because of the cold. Up on top of the hill, there was nothing to block the northerly winds which were gusting as the sun went down.

**xXx**

Once back down in the valley, the scouters lit a fire, and set up their tent. "Don't we have to worry about the aurochs smelling the fire?" Ayla asked.

"No, the wind will send our scent south, and will actually help the hunters find us, if the sight of flames does not bring them here." The man smiled, and looked around. "It's probably too dark to see if anyone is coming," he said, peering out onto the almost dark horizon. "They've probably already stopped somewhere, unless they're following the sight of our fire. That could be possible, but I doubt it."

Ayla and Grov stood up next to Darnev, and looked out into the near darkness. "Actually, I see movement out there," Grov said. Ayla and Darnev squinted, but saw nothing. They continued to look out over the dark river valley.

"Maybe we should build up the fire," Ayla suggested. "So they can see better . . . if it is them."

"It could just be animals, but that's a good idea," Darnev said, and picked up a piece of wood to add to the fire.

"I will do this Darnev," Ayla said. "I want to make more tea anyway. You two should keep watch."

**xXxXxXx**

The hunters had only stopped once that day, and only for a short break to have something to eat. As the sun went beyond the western hills, the headman and woman had asked if they wanted to stop. All were weary, and everyone was ready to agree, when Latie said she saw a light up ahead.

It was just a teeny tiny light, but now that it was pointed out, everyone could smell the fire smoke. It was extremely far away, but now they had a decision to make. Talut and Tulie looked at each other, knowing immediately what the other wanted to do, then they looked at their people. "Do we stay here and camp for the night, or continue onward until we reach them?" Tulie said, trying to keep her opinion out of her voice, so everyone would be honest.

Characteristic of the Mamutoi, everyone started talking at once, causing Talut to smile, then he boomed for silence. "Well, I guess that didn't work," he said with amusement in his voice. "How about this . . . everyone that wants to go towards the fire, raise your hand." He was rewarded with sixteen raised hands, including his own. "Okay then, let's keep going."

**xXxXxXx**

"I see movement now too," Darnev said. "But you really have good eyes Grov. Is that a clan trait?"

"I don't know actually. My mother had very good vision, but I'm not sure that had anything to do with her being clan."

Ayla came up between the two men, and handed them each a cup of tea, then patted them both on the back. "You should sit down, they will not get closer any faster with you standing there," she said with a smile, then went back to the warm fire. Grov smiled, looked out into the dark evening once more, then followed her to the fire. Darnev did the same thing.

**xXxXxXx**

Latie was jumping with joy, thrilled that she had been the one to see the fire first. As they got closer, the fire got larger, and they could see figures standing there looking out into the nothingness. When finally they were close enough, the three young people asked if they could run ahead.

"Nezzie would have my head, if she knew, but go on, and stay together . . . and be careful . . . it's dark," the headman yelled as the three ran off.

Tulie and Barzec hid their smiles, and shook their heads.

**xXx**

Danug, Druwez and Latie were used to playing together, and knew the speed at which the others could run. Danug was a big guy, and pretty fast. Probably the fastest, but he would not abandon his family. Druwez was smaller than his big cousin in both height and girth, but he was agile, and strove to keep up no matter what. And Latie was smaller than both boys, but her slender sinewy muscles were quite fast for her age. Basically, they were all capable of keeping up with the others, and close enough to one another that they would never leave one behind when it was important.

**xXxXxXx**

Darnev, Grov and Ayla were sitting down by their crackling fire, quietly talking about the hunt, when finally the three youths ran into their midst. They came in so fast that the three scouters had not been aware they were coming. Ayla was surprised that they had not heard them coming, but realized the fire was blazing too loudly to hear a thing outside their inner circle.

"Danug, Druwez, Latie, what are you three doing here?" Darnev asked, obviously surprised that Tulie and Nezzie had let them come.

"Mother and Barzec decided it was time," the boy said to the first man of his hearth. "And Talut invited Danug too, and finally Nezzie convinced Talut to let Latie come too."

"That is good Latie," Ayla said. "I'm sure there is a lot you can do. Come, let me fix you three some tea." Ayla took Danug's hand, causing the boy to blush. He was glad the darkness hid his red face, but followed the Sungaean woman to the fire.

Grov could not see the boy's face, but he could tell by the boy's posture that he was much closer to manhood than most suspected. Grov smiled at the boy's obvious crush on Ayla.

"How far away is everyone else?" Darnev asked.

"No far at all," Latie said after a sip of her hot tea. "They will arrive any moment."

"Well then, I should make this fire bigger," Ayla said.

"No Ayla, I'll do it this time," Grov said. "You sit down and talk." He liked watching her talk to these people; he was learning so much about her just by doing that, and besides, he was able to carry the wood easier than she could, so it was better to do it this way.

**xXx**

Latie had not been wrong, they had only a short time before the hunters arrived. Tulie and Barzec went straight to Darnev, and the three of them briefly embraced. Grov stood by watching, extremely interested in the woman with two mates. That was something he had never seen before.

Barzec set up their tent, while Tulie talked to Ayla, and Darnev retrieved his furs from their tent, and moved them into the headwoman's tent.

**xXx**

Everyone moved quickly setting up seven small tents in addition to the one that was already there. Ayla quickly made tea, and everyone sat around drinking it.

Though dark, it was not late at all. The hunters were only tired because of their day of travel, but now that they were sitting down with a hot drink, they seemed fine to stay up and talk.

Ayla sat down next to Brulenzia and Ivanolia. "How were Laurana and Danie when you two left?" she asked.

"They were good," Brulenzia said, smiling.

Ivanolia frowned. "Well, I'm not so sure, Ayla. I tried to get Bru to stay behind. Laurana looked pale."

Brulenzia was shaking his head and rolling his eyes. "She did not," he said, looking at the man. "She looked just fine Ayla. Can you tell this man that there is still some time left for Laurana, and that most women survive childbirth just fine?"

Ayla glanced at Ivanolia, whose breath sucked in at Brulenzia's words. "It is true Ivanolia. Most likely Laurana, _and_Danie, will be just fine. Ivanolia looked away. Ayla turned to see Grov and Deegie approaching, and she patted the ground next to her, indicating that the woman should sit next to her. Ayla was very excited to have so many new female friends, and just loved to talk to them all.

Deegie sat down and smiled. "I was wondering if you would mind if I slept in your tent tonight? I could sleep in my mother's tent, but it will be crowded, or Danug's tent, but those kids talk too much."

Ayla smiled. "That is fine with me, let me ask Grov though." Ayla looked around. "He was here a moment ago . . . oh, Grov!" she called across the fire. He was now talking to Tornec and Travec. When he looked up, Ayla motioned, "Do you mind if Deegie shares our bed?"

"That's fine," he gestured back, then went back to his conversation.

Ivanolia laughed. "I don't believe this," he said. "That man takes the two prettiest women here."

Brulenzia laughed so hard that his tea came out of his nose. "Well, it's not like you could take one of them to _your_furs, being that she's your cousin and all."

"That's not the point," the young man retorted.

Tornec, Travec and Grov approached, and smiled at the laughing men, none knowing what was so funny. Ayla and Deegie scoffed at the topic of conversation;_them_, and moved off to find someone else to talk to.

Ayla was interested in talk of the hunt, and when she saw Talut going over to talk to Darnev and Tulie, Ayla pulled Deegie over to them.

"It's a very big herd, Talut," Darnev was saying. "Many pregnant females. I think we can have anything we want."

Tulie could feel her brother's anticipation. "Talut, remember we're only going to go for three or four of them," she warned. He was about to argue, but realized she was using a tone that said she would not budge.

"I thought you just wanted one or two of them," Ayla said.

Tulie looked at the younger woman. "My brother here, thinks we need more." Ayla smiled. "I tried to tell him that it will be very difficult to carry back the meat from four animals, but he is insistent." Ayla nodded.

**xXx**

After a while, Grov came over to tell Ayla he was tired, and that he was going to go to bed. "Do you want me to come with you?" she asked.

"Only if you're tired. If not, then you should stay up."

Ayla thought about it for a moment; she had never stayed up when Grov was going to bed. She always did whatever he did, and she was not sure what she should do now, but she knew one thing, she wasn't tired. "You do not mind if I stay up?"

"No Ayla, stay up," he said with a wave of his hand. "I'm more tired than I realized. You should go have some fun."

He started to turn away, but Ayla grabbed his arm, and pulled him close, then kissed him tenderly. "Good night my mate. I will see you in the morning." Grov put his arms around her waist and kissed her back passionately, then turned to go.

Ayla watched him go, then went to join Deegie, who was sitting with Brulenzia, Ivanolia, Darvie, Tornec, Travec, and Tralie. "Where is Vincenzia?" Ayla asked when she was sitting next to Darvie and Deegie.

"He is over there with Dreenie," Darvie said, causing Travec and Tralie to smile knowingly. Ayla glanced over at the man that had been her mother's mate. When he noticed his daughter's look, he smiled at her, then came over.

"Good evening everyone," he said as he knelt down between Darvie and Ayla, and planted a kiss on Ayla's cheek. Then, he looked at Darvie. "I am ready for bed Darvie," he said, kissing his mate's neck. "Do you want to join us?"

"Actually no, I still want to talk to everyone," she said. "You go on though." Vincenzia kissed her once again, then headed back over to Dreenie.

Ayla was shaking her head. "I do not understand you Others," she said.

Everyone was now looking directly at her, and she blushed. "What don't you understand, Ayla?" Darvie asked.

"Well, in the clan, a man would not signal another woman if his mate was not available, and a woman wouldn't tell her mate that she doesn't want to go to his furs."

Deegie giggled. "But Ayla, didn't you just tell Grov that you wanted to stay up?"

"Well yes, but I asked if it was okay first. I didn't just decide to stay up," Ayla replied. "If Grov had said come to bed, I would have gone with him."

Deegie frowned, as did Darvie and Tralie. "Are you saying that you would _never_tell him no, even if you did not want to?" Darvie asked. Darvie was clearly referring to more than sleep.

"I have never told him no; he is my mate," Ayla said, as if that should explain everything. This was a strange forum to be discussing clan protocol, but it was effective, and everyone was now listening and learning.

"So, what if you were not _available_? Would he ask someone else?" Deegie asked, half joking, but Ayla did not know that.

"In the clan, men do not ask, they tell, and yes, he as signaled another woman before," Ayla replied. "But Oga is like a second mate, she and Broud live at Grov's hearth with us." Ivanolia grimaced, and Ayla gave him a dirty look. "I know you do not like Broud, Ivan. It has taken me many years to be able to tolerate him as well, but he is not so bad anymore. He just does not understand us."

Deegie looked from Ayla to Ivan and back to Ayla. She knew something else was going on here, but what, she wondered? "So Ayla, does Grov know that that is not how we do things?"

"Of course Deegie. We have learned a lot about the Others since we have met you, but sometimes I get confused. I do not understand why Vincenzia is going to bed with Dreenie, when you are available, Darvie, or why he did not ask Travec's permission first, since he is Dreenie's mate," Ayla said with a confused look on her face.

Tornec smiled. "Do you mean to tell me that if I want to take you to my furs, then all I have to do is ask Grov's permission first, and it's done?" All the men were smiling, but the women didn't think it was funny.

"Well yes," Ayla began. "But Grov is not here for you to ask right now, so you could just tell me to come to your furs."

Tralie was watching Ayla's face, and could not detect even the slightest smile. "You are serious, aren't you," she asked.

Ayla looked at Tralie. "Yes Tralie. That is the clan way."

"But what if you do not want to go with the man that . . . what did you say before . . . signals you to his furs?" Deegie asked.

"In the clan, a woman must do what a man asks of her," Ayla said. The women looked incredulous, but Brulenzia and Ivanolia were nodding.

"That is their way," Brulenzia said. "We were there, and saw it happen." Ivanolia kept silent. The women scowled at the thought.

"So, what is this signal then?" Travec asked. "Maybe it could come in handy." He gave his mate a suggestive look, which lightened the mood, and made everyone laugh.

Ayla made the signal, and blushed. "Women do not make the signal though. It is for the man to decide."

"But what if a woman is interested in a man? Then what?" Tralie asked.

"Then she would sit in a manner that tells the man she is interested, or she might make him food the way he likes it. There are many ways to tell a man you want him without actually saying it. Clan women are not so obvious, but a clan man knows."

"Well, I want to suggest something," Tralie said, standing up. "I suggest that we go to bed, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." Everyone laughed at the woman, and Ayla was surprised that Darvie got up and followed Travec, and Tornec got up and followed Tralie. She shook her head again, wondering why Travec did not take his own mate to his furs.

The other three that remained sitting, Brulenzia, Ivanolia and Deegie, saw Ayla's confusion and laughed. "Ayla, it's just for fun, to have a change; something different than what you always have. It happens when different camps get together," Deegie said. "And now that everyone else is gone, I think I'll turn in too." Deegie got up. "Goodnight boys!"

Ayla waited for a moment, then got up too. "You Others really confuse me," she said to her cousin and friend. "But I will see you in the morning." Ayla hurried to catch up to Deegie.

"It's not fair, I tell you," came Ivanolia's voice. "Why does Grov get both of you?" Deegie giggled, and then she and Ayla disappeared into Grov's tent.

**XxX**

Deegie and Ayla crawled into their furs, one on either side of Grov, and lay there for a moment staring at the semi-transparent tent roof, watching the light from the flames of the fire dance across the ceiling. Both women were on their backs, thinking. Ayla was very curious about the customs of Deegie's people, and those of her own people, the Sungaea. They seemed to be very similar, yet very different from the Clan.

Deegie was also deep in thought, but her mind was with the customs of the Clan. She wondered how clan women put up with their men, and more importantly, how Ayla had put up with it for so long. Then a thought occurred to her. "Ayla," Deegie whispered.

Ayla had just started to drift off to sleep when she heard Deegie's whisper, but her eyes opened immediately. "Huh?"

"What about a girl's first time? Does a man just signal her then?"

"Yes," Ayla said.

Deegie frowned in the dark. "You mean there is no ceremony; it is not special? A man just opens her without people to watch and make sure he doesn't hurt her too much?

"No Deegie," Ayla replied. "The clan has no ceremony for that. Is that how the Mamutoi do it?"

"Yes. When a girl becomes a woman, she must have her first rites. That is the ceremony that opens the girl-woman and makes her a woman."

Ayla thought for a moment. "The Clan does not have anything like that. When a clan girl becomes a woman, she is isolated while she bleeds for the first time, and then, when that is over, she is usually mated to whichever man is available."

"Is that what happened to you? They just picked a mate for you?" Deegie asked disbelievingly.

"No, I was very old by clan standards when I became a woman, and no one wanted me; I am too big and ugly."

Deegie snorted. "You are not ugly, Ayla," Deegie burst out, forgetting to whisper. Grov groaned and rolled over, turning toward Deegie, and draped his arm over her. Deegie stiffened slightly, then relaxed. He was clearly sleeping. "You are not ugly, Ayla," Deegie repeated in a whisper. You are one of the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You must have realized that by now."

Ayla smiled. "Thank you Deegie, but to the clan, I am ugly. Maybe I should say, _we_are ugly." Ayla paused. "Anyway, I was eleven when Durc was born, and fourteen when I met Grov. I was given to him when we found our new cave." She paused again. "But I am very happy with Grov, and he is not like most of the other clan men."

Deegie sighed. "I can see that," she said, as she gazed at the sleeping man, whose face was only inches from hers. Deegie smiled, thinking that the man _was_a good-looking man despite his background. She wondered what her mother would think about her lying here with a clan man's arm over her.

Ayla sat up slightly, trying to see Deegie in the dark. "Deegie, your people's ways are just as confusing to me, as our ways are to you, but I assure you that Grov will not do anything that would go against your traditions. He is a good man, and very observant. He can see how the woman are treated here, and if it makes you feel any better, he never treats the clan women the way that some of the clan men do." Ayla then lay down again, and snuggled up against her mates back. In his sleep, he was aware of her presence, and rolled over and cuddled her close.

Deegie thought about what Ayla had said, and had to smile. Ayla had experienced things that many people never did in their lives, but she had gained much from those experiences. Deegie could tell that Ayla did not count herself unlucky, but actually the exact opposite.

With those thoughts in her head, the dark-haired Mamutoi woman fell asleep next to the clan couple.

**xXxxXx**

When the sun began to rise, the hunting party started getting up. Vincenzia and Dreenie had been the first two in bed, and therefore were the first two awake. Dreenie dressed quickly, then went to her tent and crawled in bed with her mate. Darvie, who was lying beside Dreenie's mate, smiled at the woman. "Is Vincenzia awake?" she whispered. Dreenie nodded, and Darvie got up, dressed and left.

By the time Darvie got outside, many people were awake. Talut, Tulie, Barzec and Vincenzia were with Darnev, discussing the herd again, so Darvie only kissed her mate quietly, then went to their tent to freshen up.

By the fire, Danug, Druwez and Latie were talking to Ivanolia and Brulenzia about Sungaean hunting spears, and they were showing the two men their gifts from Wymez and Ranec. "Those are really beautiful," Brulenzia was saying as Tornec and Tralie approached.

"Yes," Tralie said. "Almost too beautiful to use." Tralie looked around. "Are Travec and Dreenie still sleeping?"

"I know Dreenie's awake," Latie said. "I saw her go into your tent, but I haven't seen Travec yet." Tralie smiled gratefully at Latie, then excused herself, giving Tornec's hand a squeeze before she left. She was very fond of her sister's mate, and shared pleasures with him often.

Tornec looked around. "Seems almost everyone is up," he said.

"Yeah, almost everyone," Ivanolia said with a smirk. "All except for those in _that_tent." The man pointed at Grov's tent, but it wasn't necessary, because everyone sitting by the fire was aware that Grov, Ayla and Deegie were still missing.

"Jealous?" Tornec asked.

"By the Great Earth Mother's underworld, I sure am," Ivanolia retorted, with a smile. "_I_had to sleep next to this one," he said poking Brulenzia in the ribs, and laughing loudly.

The three youngsters blushed, knowing what the adults were talking about. Nothing was hidden from the children of the Mamutoi people, including pleasures. Druwez looked over at Grov's tent, and then over at his mother, whose back was to him at that moment.

**xXx**

Grov woke up and looked at the two sleeping women in the dimly lit tent. He seemed to be pinned. Ayla's head was on his left shoulder and she had her hand on his chest, just the way she always did. He smiled at her, wanting to caress her hair, but he couldn't.

Then he looked down at the other woman. Deegie's head was resting on him as well, though more on his right arm than his shoulder, and her dark hair was spread across their furs as well. Basically, he could not move without disturbing either woman, and he didn't know what to do.

After a few moments, the man's arm began to fall asleep, and he shifted slightly, hoping some feeling would return to his arm; it did not. Instead, it only served to make both woman move in closer. Grov did not know what to do.

**xXx**

Outside, talk of the hunt was progressing, but Darnev wanted to talk to Grov and Ayla to see if they had seen anything that he had not. He looked around, and seeing that they were missing, he turned to Vincenzia. "It seems the daughter of your hearth is a little sleepy this morning," he said.

Vincenzia looked around. He had been engrossed in conversation and had not noticed. "Hummm, seems that the daughter of _your_hearth is missing as well," Vincenzia said with a smile. That got Tulie's attention. She then looked around as well, and observed that Grov was also not there.

The six adults that had been standing there discussing the hunt turned to look at Grov's tent in unison. Tulie frowned slightly, then shook her head. She was, after all, an adult.

Ivanolia and Brulenzia had heard the leaders' conversation, and decided that they should go wake the sleeping people. The two men approached the tent, and carefully pulled aside the flap, and crawled inside, to see Grov surrounded by the two women.

"I'm telling you," Ivanolia said, "that this is not fair."

Grov's eyes were closed, having fallen back to sleep, but Ivanolia's voiced roused him again. "This is not what it looks like," he said.

Brulenzia smiled. "Sure it's not."

"No, really. I woke up this way, and I cannot move without waking them." Grov looked worried that someone may get upset with him. He knew full well what the Others thought of the Clan, and he did not want to offend.

Ivanolia laughed. "Any other man would have taken full advantage of the situation, but not you." He carefully moved his cousin off of Grov's chest, so that Grov could slide out from under Deegie's head.

"Thank you. That was starting to hurt," Grov said, as he sat up and shook his right arm.

Brulenzia looked at the man and grinned, "Yeah, I can see that it was pure torture."

Grov didn't know why he was feeling strangely about this, but he was embarrassed. "I think my arm has gone numb," he said defensively.

"They're talking about the hunt out there, and Darnev wanted to talk to you and Ayla about it," Ivanolia said, changing the subject. Grov nodded, pulling his tunic over his head, and his leggings on. The three men then exited the tent, and went over to join the discussion. By this time, everyone was present except for the two sleeping women.

**xXx**

Grov walked up silently with the other two men, feeling a little self conscious. He received a stern look from the headwoman, but no one commented on their thoughts. Talut smiled at him, and Darnev immediately started in.

"How many pregnant females did you see, Grov?" the man asked.

Grov pushed his thoughts away. "I counted seven."

"That is what I counted too," Darnev said, turning to the others. "How many do you think we should hunt."

"I think Tronie would like some fetus skin," Tornec said, "since she is expecting again. Fetus skin always makes soft baby clothing." Dreenie and Tralie nodded, knowing that they liked soft clothing for babies too.

"So then," Tulie said, "one pregnant female."

"Let's make it two, if we can," Talut went on. "Fetus meat is so tender, and Nezzie can make great meals out of it." He could tell that Tulie was about to object, so he went on. "How about two pregnant females, and only _one_of something else?"

The headwoman opened her mouth to oppose her brother's suggestion, but nodded instead. "Alright then, three animals."

**xXx**

Inside Grov's tent, the two women started to wake up. Deegie opened her eyes to see Ayla sitting up. "Morning," she said.

Ayla turned around and smiled. "I guess we slept late," she said. They could hear voices outside, and knew everyone else was awake and moving around. "I hope it's not too late. I would like to go on the hunt today, so we can get back to the children in the next couple days."

Deegie nodded, noticing that Ayla's breasts were a little swollen from not nursing. "Maybe you shouldn't have come, Ayla."

Ayla looked down at herself, and smiled. "Annaliza hardly ever nurses anymore, so I really don't have that much left." Ayla looked up at Deegie and smiled again. "She's a bit young to be weaned, but she doesn't seem to mind, and can always go to another woman if she has to. With Durc, my milk dried up when my mother died, and he always had to go to other women." Ayla's eyes misted over a bit, then she shrugged and laughed. "I'll just have to have Grov help me with my little problem."

Deegie giggled. "I can't believe you have three children. We're the same age and I'm not even mated yet."

"Well, I did have Durc very young, and Ora's not _really_my daughter, so I'm not that far ahead of you," Ayla said, then she considered the Others way of finding a mate, and realized Deegie could choose who she wanted to mate. "Is there someone you have your eyes on, Deegie?"

Deegie smiled. "Actually, yes. His name is Branag, but we haven't actually talked about mating yet. I hope I can spend more time with him this summer, so we see how it goes between us."

Ayla smiled at her friend. "Well, I guess we better get ourselves out there, or we'll never get to go hunting." Deegie nodded and the two women quickly dressed for the hunt.

**xXx**

When the two woman appeared, Deegie couldn't help but notice her mother's penetrating stare. Deegie looked over at Grov, and hid her smile, obviously her mother thought something had happened. Deegie looked around at the other people, and it appeared as if everyone thought Grov had shared pleasures with the two of them. Deegie thought it was funny.

Ayla went immediately to her mate, and put her arms around him. "You should have woken us. We have made everyone wait."

"You two were tired. I thought it best to let you sleep," Grov said, looking over at Deegie, then back at his mate. "We are talking about the hunt. Darnev wants to hike back up the hill to take another look, do you want to go?"

Ayla nodded, "Of course."

**XxX**

**And The Drive Begins  
><strong>  
>The hike to the top of the hill was made in no time. Nearly half the hunters went, some staying behind to break camp. After the hunt, they would be camping out again, but it would definitely be <em>in<em>the valley so that they wouldn't have to carry the dead carcasses away to gut and skin them. They would not waste their energy carrying parts they would not use.

Talut had insisted that Danug, Druwez and Latie make the trip up the hill to observe; he wanted them to have every opportunity possible to learn about what they were going to do, and he was giving them every bit of information that he had. Ayla, who had also never hunted with other people, stayed close to the large headman to hear all that he had to say.

"How will we hunt them, Talut?" Ayla asked.

"Darnev tells me that there is a canyon in the valley. I would like to drive the ones we want into the canyon, then kill them there," the headman said.

Latie's eyes opened wide. "But how do we only drive certain ones Talut? They are so big."

Talut smiled. "That is the hard part. Once we get them moving in the right direction, we will use all we have to only turn the selected aurochs."

When they reached the top of the hill, the man and the youngsters knelt down. "See Latie," Talut said to her, though he was speaking to all that were there. "There is the canyon." He was pointing to their east. "We can see it, because we are higher than that area. That is where we want to drive the animals."

Latie, and Danug and Druwez, were nodding, but Ayla was wondering how that would help. "Won't they get there and discover there is no out, then turn around and stampede?" she asked.

"They might, Ayla," Tulie said from behind her. They headwoman had come up silently. "But, aurochs are afraid of fire, and we will be carrying fire." The woman looked at Grov, who was kneeling next to Ayla. "And how would the Clan hunt a herd of aurochs?" she asked, curious about his people.

"The clan would not hunt a herd," Grov said. "We would single out one animal, then take turns running it down. Our spears are not made for throwing, but for thrusting instead."

"Hummm, I see, but you are not able to get as much meat that way, are you?"

"No, we must have many more hunts that you do," he said. "Nearly everyday to be ready for winter."

While Grov and Tulie were talking about Clan ways of hunting, Ayla was looking around, and thinking about the hunt. "Talut," she said to get his attention. "What if some people walked along the top of this hill, and climbed down over there, at the mouth of the canyon, after the chosen aurochs already entered, would that not help? They could start some fires up there, before the others arrive. That way the animals would surely stay in."

Talut studied the area carefully, and smiled. "That's a good idea, Ayla. Are you sure you have not hunted before?"

Ayla blushed at the headman's praise. She hadn't thought her idea was _that_good, she was just trying to help, but she was pleased that he was so happy. Tulie appeared to be thinking it out as well, and her smile told the woman that she liked the idea as well. "We could have several people go up on the northern hill as well," Tulie suggested. "Four here, and four there, and the rest of us can drive. What do you think Talut?"

"Who should go?" he asked.

"I think Barzec, Danug, Grov and Ayla should take this side, and you, Darnev, Druwez and Latie should take the other side," she said. "That way there are two experienced hunters on each side, with the four that haven't done this before, and the rest of us can drive."

Talut was nodding his head. "That sounds good. Does anyone else have any ideas?" When no one said anything, the headman smiled. "Okay, we should get going. Who will stay up here with them to know when we are in place?"

"I will do that, Talut," Deegie said.

Tulie looked at her daughter, then at the visitors, thinking that they had gotten really chummy in a very short amount of time, then she smiled. "Well then, I guess that's it," Tulie said. "Let's get back down there, so we can let everyone know the plan, and so your four can start making your way up the other side." She paused for a moment. "Deegie, when you see them in position, you'll need to climb back down, and we'll begin the drive." Deegie nodded. "I think the eleven of us can handle that, don't you?" Everyone nodded, and began their descent. Tulie looked back over her shoulder. "I will send someone up with the materials to make the fires."

**xXx**

After the rest of the hunters had gone, Barzec and the others made there way to their lookout place, which was on top of the hill, but down the valley somewhat. Then, they sat down to relax. It was going to take awhile for the others to get around to the other side, and he wanted to be rested. Danug was very excited, as was Ayla; Barzec, Grov and Deegie smiled knowingly. All three remembered their first hunts; they were a very big deal.

While they waited, Deegie and Ayla talked more about the clan, and about what the Mamutoi thought about the clan, and Deegie finally told Ayla that everyone thought the three of them had shared pleasures the night before. Ayla smiled. "But we just slept, Deegie," Ayla said.

"I know that, but they assumed that because we all went into Grov's tent, that . . . you know." Deegie smiled. The two women looked over at Grov, who was talking with Barzec and Danug, and then the two young women erupted into giggles, causing the men to look up at them.

**xXx**

On the other side of the valley, the other four hunters were making their way east, and into position. The most difficult part of the trek was the climbing up and down on the hillside, but the traversing across the top was easy; since it was relatively flat. Talut was keeping his eyes on the people on the other side, and noted that they looked like tiny dots on the horizon. He sure hoped Deegie could tell when they were ready. He didn't have to worry, because it was quite obvious when they are in place.

**xXx**

They were munching on traveling food, when Ayla looked up to see Brulenzia and Ivanolia approaching. "Tulie wanted us to bring the things you will need to make torches.

"Oh thank you Ivan, Bru," Ayla said, before anyone else could even get up. They could see her excitement, and it was extremely catchy. Both men smiled at the woman, as they handed the materials to Barzec and Grov.

Ivanolia put his hands on Ayla's shoulders, and looked into her eyes. "Vincenzia wanted us to tell you to be careful, Ayla," he said.

Ayla hugged her cousin, and smiled. "Tell Vincenzia that his _daughter_will be fine," she said, then she hugged Brulenzia too. "I will be fine you two. Now go!" They smiled back at her, then left quickly.

**xXx**

Not long after that, Deegie looked up again to see that the other hunters were ready. "They are there," she exclaimed excitedly. "It's time for me to go."

Barzec hugged her, and smiled. "Be safe," he called after her retreating back, then turned to his hunters. "Okay, let's move on a little. Can you see where Talut and the others are?" The other three nodded. "That's where we need to be, so we can climb down as they are entering the canyon." Barzec looked at Ayla. "I think this is a very good idea, Ayla." Ayla smiled at him, fervently hoping that she was right, then picked up her weapons; sling, spears and knife, and followed behind the three men.

**xXx**

Down at the bottom of the hill, Deegie skidded to a stop where everyone was waiting. They allowed her to catch her breath, but there was expectancy in the air. "Talut and Darnev are in place. I have sent Barzec and Grov on. It is time to start the drive.

Within moments, they had their torches lit, and were slowly making their way down the narrow valley.

**XxX**

**The Hunt  
><strong>  
>The eleven hunters fanned out in moving wall, which extended across the narrow river valley, and began their drive. Each carried a medium sized piece of leather to flap at the herd, hopeful that it would create enough fear to get them moving, a hot coal, to make a fire when necessary, and their weapon of choice. Only Ayla and Grov, up on the southern hill, carried a sling with their spear<p>

Tulie and Vincenzia took up the middle positions, one on either side of the smallish river. On the northern side of the river there was Vincenzia, Darvie, Travec, Dreenie, Tralie, Ivanolia, Brulenzia; the bulk of the hunters, and it would be their job to push the main part of the herd into the canyon where the hunting would not take place, and out of the way.

On the southern side of the river, Tulie would lead Wymez, Deegie and Tornec, and they would be responsible for cutting off the chosen aurochs, and driving them into the hunting canyon.

For those on top of the northeastern hill, Talut, Darnev, Druwez and Latie, it was a game of wait, to see what animals were left to drive into the southern canyon, once the herd had made its way safely into the northern canyon. They would not come down off their perch until the separation was made, and fires were needed.

For the last group up on the southern hill, Barzec, Grov, Ayla and Danug may have to come down sooner, since their side had fewer drivers, and may need a nudge. However, Tulie was hopeful that that would not be the case, since they only planned on killing three animals. She hoped that the animals would blindly go into the canyon, that the fires could be set to pen them in, and that the hunters from the hill could get in to make the kills easily. That was what they hoped for.

**xXx**

As they approached the herd, they could tell that the animals were a little nervous; probably having smelled Talut's party up on the northern hill earlier, then crossing the northern canyon, and then again above them where they lay in wait. Tulie eyed Vincenzia, watching to see where her cousin's mate led his group, then veered accordingly when he made his decision. She was pleased with his choice, when she saw a few young aurochs dart for the northern canyon. One stubborn bull snorted loudly, and pawed the ground, but a few flapping hides sent the animal in the right direction. Tulie smiled; all was going well.

When the hunters got to a point where they could not go any further, until more of the animals chose the northern canyon, Tulie stopped her hunters and waited. Ivanolia shot forward first, frightening a small group of females, and sending them running, then it was Darvie's turn. She went up against a particularly obstinate bull, requiring the need for help. That is where Brulenzia came in to save the day, brandishing his hide and flicking it madly.

Tulie could see that it was going well on the northern side, so she directed her hunters to further separate the chosen animals. They were already heading for the southern canyon, which pleased the headwoman immensely. From where he stood, Tornec gathered kindling and lit a fire, then moved on. Not too far ahead, Deegie did the same, and Wymez ahead of her. Tulie watched as the three aurochs made their way into the southern canyon, and the hunters upon the southeastern hill descended to follow them in. The head woman looked up at the northeaster hill to see Talut's group coming down to join the rest.

By the time Tulie's hunters reached the line, Barzec had taken Grov and Danug into the canyon. Just a ways up the hill, Ayla was waiting for the group to catch up. On the other side, Talut, Druwez and Latie had gone in, but Darnev was waiting just the same as Ayla was. When all the hunters converged at the canyon opening, their wall began to move in earnest, and Ayla and Darnev took up the rear.

At the front of the line, the hunters had run the aurochs into the steep wall of the canyon, and the three animals were more nervous than ever. The two pregnant females were snorting loudly, and trying to move away from the onslaught, but there was nowhere for them to go. Danug took aim, and cast his spear, hitting one of them just above the hip area. It was not a fatal blow, but it was an extremely hard thrown spear, and quickly debilitating. Grov's spear, thrown only moments after Danug's, hit the female in the midsection, knocking her down where her life's blood began to drain from her. She struggled to get back up, creating panic in the other two, but a third spear, coming from Barzec, went through her eye, and into her brain, ending her life, and that of her unborn calf.

Seeing the downed female caused the young bull to dart away from the scene, but Talut, Druwez and Latie were waiting for him. Talut's mighty heave, struck the beast in the neck, causing the animal to crash into the ground hard, but it was not over at that point; the beast managed to get up, and veered away from the strong headman, and straight at Latie. Seeing the angry aurochs headed her way, Latie's eyes opened wide, as she pulled out her hide, focused on the movement, then flapped at the exact right time, causing the animal to turn left, as she stepped out of its way, and right at Druwez. Druwez did the same thing, sending it back at Latie. By this time, the animal was heaving, from exhaustion and loss of blood, but it was still trying. It made another pass at Latie, and the girl was getting just a little tired. Druwez watched carefully, then seeing that Latie was tiring, he threw his spear hard, downing it at her feet. Both Talut and Latie threw just moments later, but it had not been necessary; Druwez's well-aimed spear had ended the animals life.

The final female went down easily, as Tornec and Deegie reached the cow, she hardly stood a chance; she was cornered and could not move. She hardly tried. Tornec cast first, and Deegie's spear came next, one going through the neck, severing an artery, then other going through the middle, killing the fetus instantly.

Tulie looked around, pleased as can be. It had gone so fast; all three were down, and it was over.

**xXx**

But what no one seemed to see was that there was trouble in the rear. Darnev and Ayla were each on their own side of the small river, moving toward the hunters, when, for some reason, Ayla looked over at the headwoman's mate. At first she didn't see him, so she looked back farther. That was when the woman paled. Darnev was jogging slowing toward the noise of the kills ahead, and did not hear the charging aurochs behind him.

Ayla stopped and screamed at him, but he did not hear her; he did not even seem to see her. Ayla looked around, and saw only Tralie and Brulenzia ahead of her, but they were so far away. Ayla summoned all of her breath, and let out a whistle that she hoped would catch someone's ear; Brulenzia turned around, but he was still too far away to help here, so she darted for the river.

The other person that heard the whistle was Darnev himself, but he did not know why the woman had whistled, but her sudden movement toward the river, caused him to look behind him. As he turned around, then color drained from the man, as a full-grown male aurochs was upon him.

Darnev was, by no means, a small man, but his form was lifted by the charging beast as if it was a child's rag doll, and tossed angrily to the side. The man's weapons dropped to the ground, and lay still.

Ayla, who was stumbling out of the river, screamed as she dodged the bull, and readied her sling, as it was the only weapon she was truly proficient at, but there was no way to kill a full grown aurochs with a puny stone. It only served to anger the animal and stop his frantic stampede. Behind the woman and her charge, Brulenzia had gotten Tralie's attention, who had turned Travec, and then Tulie. They were on their way.

Ayla slid to a stop, falling hard on the ground beside the unconscious and bloody man, then rolled over, and looked up. The aurochs was on his way back. Ayla did not want the man to be trampled as well as gored, so she grabbed his spear, and ran toward the hill; the bull followed. By this time, Brulenzia had gotten close enough to throw his spear, which he did, only catching the animal's rump, and turning him, so that he was no longer looking at Ayla. The woman immediately took her chance and threw her own spear, getting him in the side, which confused him, making him turn again. Now Brulenzia had help, Tralie and Travec were there, and Tulie was on her way, so Ayla left the scene and headed for the downed man.

When the medicine woman got there, she had a moment of panic; there was blood everywhere, then she went to work.

**XxX**

**Ayla Goes To Work  
><strong>  
>Ayla quickly looked the man over, he was definitely breathing, but he was absolutely covered in blood. She had to find out where it was coming from, and if she could do anything about it immediately.<p>

At quick glance, Ayla could tell that Darnev had a broken arm, as it was bent at an unnatural angle, and that he already had a bruise on his face, where he had likely hit the ground, but she was not worried about either injury at the moment; they were both minor in comparison to his other injuries. She was far more concerned about the bleeding.

Taking out her knife, she sliced through Darnev's tunic, and saw a huge gash in his right side. As fast as she could, the medicine woman untied the thong around her waist and pulled her own tunic over her head, then cut it into pieces, and applied pressure to the man's gaping wound. Ayla then looked around frantically. Seeing Brulenzia approaching, she waved him over quickly. "We need to stop the bleeding, and we need to keep him warm. Losing blood makes people cold," she explained. Brulenzia nodded. "I need a fire and some water." Brulenzia ran off to get water, and Ayla went on, seeing Tralie drop down beside her.

"Tralie, I need you to push right here," she said showing the woman what to do by grabbing the woman's hands and putting them on her tunic, which was holding Darnev's blood inside his body. When Tralie took over for her, Ayla began examining her patient further. The pressure she exerted made Darnev groan, which pleased the woman somewhat. At least he is conscious enough to feel this probing, she thought.

Ayla then picked up her knife, and cut through the man's leggings, which exposed another long gash in his upper leg, this time with muscle protruding through the tear.

Travec and Tulie arrived on the scene next, and the big stern headwoman fell to the ground beside her mate, with tears in her eyes. Ayla didn't have time to worry about the woman's pain at that moment, but the headwoman was no longer the rock she usually was. Ayla turned to the woman and issued an order. "I need fire, Tulie." The headwoman nodded, wiped her eyes, and got up to do as she was told.

**xXx**

Though the killing was finished in the canyon, most of the people were occupied with their butchering and hadn't even realized there had been an accident. Talut was hefting his mighty ax, gutting the animals expertly; he was in his glory, while the rest of Lion Camp did the same. He worked along side Tornec and Deegie, but suddenly realized he hadn't seen Tulie in a while, and looked around for his sister; the woman was usually waist deep in the throng.

He looked over Deegie's head, toward the exit to the canyon, and saw that something else was going on in that direction; there seemed to be another animal down . . . and something else. What, he thought, still staring? It looked like an injury. Why hadn't he noticed, he thought? The headman dropped his ax mid-swing, and dashed off, causing Tornec and Deegie to turn to look as well. They could not tell what had happened, but Dreenie eyes followed the headman. She could see both Travec and Tralie doing . . . something, then she paled. Quickly scanning the area for her brother, she let out a scream. "_NOOOOOO!_" and she took off running. Several others turned at her scream.

Deegie looked up and watched the woman run by. Then, realizing the downed person must be Darnev, she too stopped everything and ran.

**xXx**

At the scene, Ayla had finished her probing; none of his insides seemed to be punctured, but she could not figure out how she could close so big a wound and stop the bleeding. "He is losing too much blood," she said to Tralie, who was still applying pressure to Darnev's side. Then a thought occurred to her, what if I sew him up, like we do when we make clothing, she thought. Would it work? The woman made a quick decision, it was going to have to work, or the man would die for sure.

Ayla jumped up, washed her hands in the water Brulenzia had brought, then grabbed her pack, rummaged through it and pulled out the sewing awl Jendoza had made for her the winter before, and the thinnest sinew she had. Then she quickly sat back down beside the injured man, and began sewing his skin back together, as if he were a new winter tunic.

Tralie stared at the medicine woman for a moment, then looked up at Tulie, who had the fire going, and was standing over her unconscious mate next to Talut, who had just arrived. The headwoman shrugged, then turned at Dreenie's wail, and took the woman into her arms. "No, no," Dreenie sobbed. "Not Darnev." The headwoman had to be strong now.

Ayla was still concentrating on her patient's wound, but smiled at it when she finished sewing his side. Pulling the sinew into a small knot, then biting it off cleanly, she indicated to Tralie that she should release pressure from the man's injured leg. Ayla saw that blood immediately pooled, and the muscle hung outside of the man's leg unnaturally. Ayla pushed the muscle back in, but realized it would come right back out when she let go of it, and that it too was torn. If she could not repair the muscle, the man may never walk again, she thought. She frowned.

"Can't you sew the muscle too," Tralie asked desperately. Hearing the sobs of her co-mate was too painful to listen to.

Ayla cocked her head and looked at the muscle again. "It couldn't hurt, Tralie. I will try." Ayla looked up at Tulie, who was comforting Dreenie and seeing that the woman was about to be smothered by Deegie as well. Ayla flicked her head, indicating to the headwoman that she had incoming, then she went back to her patient. Talut took Dreenie from Tulie, and Tulie turned toward her daughter.

Deegie was much more calm than her aunt; she got that from her mother, but the sight of all the human blood, caused her to have to turn and retch. When she was finished, she took a small drink of water, then forcibly led Dreenie away. At Tornec's appearance, Tulie sent him for Barzec and Druwez. They were still in the canyon butchering and did not know about the accident.

**xXx**

Word of Darnev's injury spread quickly from there, but there was work to be done, so all that were not essential were sent away to continue butchering meat. Even Tulie left to help for a time, returning only when Ayla summoned her. "Tulie, Barzec, I have sewn up Darnev's wounds, but that does not mean the bleeding has stopped. I need to set his broken bones." She paused to catch her breath, then continued. "At first I thought it was only his right arm, but his lower leg looks broken too. I might need some help setting the bones."

Brulenzia had not left the woman's side. "I can help with that Ayla," he said. "I have set broken bones before."

Ayla smiled at him with gratitude, as did Barzec and Tulie. "Thank you Ayla," Tulie said. "I do not know what we would have done without you."

"Do not thank me yet, Tulie," Ayla continued. "Darnev is not safe yet. We need to get this set, and get him wrapped up. It is already getting cold out, and now we're going to have to spend the night in this valley."

The headwoman nodded, then suddenly realized the woman was bare from the waist up, and went off to get her something to wear. Ayla gratefully accepted a tunic, and the headwoman left to begin preparations to have their camp set up right where they were, and for the meat to be brought closer to them. Barzec went to comfort Deegie and Druwez, leaving Tulie to work on the camp, and Talut and Travec went to work on making more fires to keep predators away.

The rest of the people of Lion Camp, worked somberly, wishing the day would end.

**XxX**

**Into The Night  
><strong>  
>By the time the meat had been moved to the makeshift campsite, Ayla, with the help of some others, had constructed a large tent around Darnev by reworking three of the existing tents. The large tent was to have a place for Tulie and Barzec, Deegie, Druwez and Dreenie, Grov and herself, of course an infirmary for their injured man. The other five tents were set up so that there was a large center space, with surrounding fires, to keep predators away from the meat.<p>

When the woman finished, she went directly to Darnev's side, where she was pleased to find Tulie and Barzec sitting, each holding one of their mate's hands. Deegie was sitting there as well, but Deegie's strength was being given to Dreenie, whose head was on her shoulder. Ayla quickly looked Darnev over, he still had not awoken, but his breathing seemed good to her, then she left the tent again.

Outside, the medicine woman looked around, and spotting Druwez with Danug and Latie, she sighed, glad that he was not being forgotten during the sadness and confusion, then she went to the main fire to make a calming tea for the people inside, as well as anyone else that wanted some, and a sedative for Dreenie.

"Ayla, can I help you?" came a voice behind her.

Ayla turned around to see Tralie standing there with tears in her eyes. "Of course Tralie," she said, then explained that Dreenie was not doing good, and that she wanted her to sleep.

"You look so tired Ayla, maybe you should lie down too," the woman suggested.

"I will, but I can't yet. There is still some work to do." Ayla paused. "I have made a space for Dreenie inside the tent. I hope you do not mind."

Tralie was shaking her head, and Ayla suddenly noticed that the woman was extremely dirty; having been Ayla's main assistance during the incident, the woman was covered in dried blood and dirt. It was obvious that the woman was _also_exhausted beyond measure. "Where is Travec?"

"He is still working on cutting the meat into smaller pieces, so that we can dry it at the fires."

Ayla frowned, thinking that they had wanted to bring the meat home to freeze it in their underground area, and that dried meat had not been the plan for so much meat. Ayla then looked around for Grov, and seeing him over talking to Tornec, Ivanolia and Brulenzia, she called for his attention. "Grov!" The man turned around immediately. "We need to construct a stretcher so that we can start home right away," she gestured across the encampment. "If we don't get this meat back to Lion Camp fast, we will have to dry it, and that was not the point of this hunt."

Grov nodded. "We could make several of them, so that the meat can be carried in the same way," he motioned back to her.

She nodded. "Good idea." She started to turn back to Tralie, then faced her mate again. "Can you tell Tornec to come help me with Tralie, please?" Grov gave her a clipped nod, then looked at the three men watching them.

"Tornec, Ayla would like some help with Tralie. Can you help her?"

The man nodded, but he had an astonished look on his face. "I can't believe she said all that with a few hand motions."

Brulenzia chuckled. "She said a lot more than that, but I'm not sure I understood it all. Something about getting the meat back to the earthlodge."

Grov smiled. "Yes, you did learn some of the Clan's signs, didn't you? Ayla wants us to build her something to carry Darnev and the meat back to the earthlodge. She's worried about the meat having to be dried instead of frozen."

"I was wondering about that," Ivanolia said. "This whole hunt is for naught, if the meat has to be dried." Then he glanced toward the large tent. "But I don't suppose anyone cares about the meat right now."

Grov shook his head. "Probably not, but why lose the meat if you do not have to. In the Clan, a foiled hunt, or an injured hunter, could mean the death of others, so Ayla is thinking with her Clan head; she wants to have both, if she can, and she has a great idea. Come, I'll show you what she wants us to do." Tornec left to go join Ayla and Tralie.

**xXx**

Back at the fire, Ayla was still waiting for the water to boil for tea when Tornec arrived. "I want you to take Tralie over to the river, and have her wash up, then I want her to lie down; she is beat."

Tralie's eyes opened wide. "Ayla, you are far more tired than I. You should do the same. I can wait."

"No, Tralie," Ayla said. "I still have more to do, and I can make this tea myself. You go wash and rest. Everyone needs to get some rest or we'll never get out of here. Besides that, I have plenty of people to help me." Tralie nodded, and allowed Tornec to lead her away.

Ayla watched them go, then noticed the water was boiling. She quickly made three different types of tea: the first, a gentle calming tea; the second, a stronger tea, to knock out Dreenie, and anyone else that needed it; and the third, a strong painkiller for when Darnev woke up. When she was finished, she stacked the three containers she had brewed, then headed for the tent.

**xXx**

Inside the tent, Ayla could see, and hear, that Dreenie's grief had lessened in her absence, so she started with her. "Dreenie, I want you to drink this."

Dreenie looked at her, and took the cup, and drank the warm liquid down quickly. Ayla smiled. Then she looked at Tulie, and handed her a cup of tea. "I do not want to sleep, Ayla," the headwoman said, turning away from the cup." Dreenie opened her eyes; she had been unaware that Ayla had given her a sedative.

"This tea is just to relax you a bit, Tulie. I knew that you would want to stay awake," the medicine woman said. "I have some for Barzec and Deegie too."

The three other people smiled, and accepted cups. "Thank you, Ayla," Tulie said.

"Yes, thank you so much, but you should have some too, and rest," Barzec went on.

"No, not yet Barzec. I still need to do a few things around here, and I think you all should wash up before it gets dark. Sleeping all bloody and dirty is not very comfortable." They had forgotten how dirty they were, and decided they would do that soon. "I have to go give some of this tea to the others, but I have also made a painkilling tea for Darnev, should he wake up while I'm away. But, can someone come get me if he does awaken?" Three of the people in the tent nodded assent; Dreenie was already nodding off.

**xXx**

Back outside again, Ayla went to Druwez, who was sitting dejectedly with a silent Danug and Latie. "Druwez?" the woman said gently. The man looked up; all three of them did. "I have made you all some tea. It will help you relax." Druwez looked up at her, and Ayla noticed that his face was tea stained, all of their faces were.

"Ayla . . . will he . . . will Darnev be okay?" Druwez asked. Latie's eyes filled with tears, and spilled over before Ayla could even answer the question.

Ayla knelt down on the ground in front of the three youngsters, and put her arms around all three of them. "I have done everything that I can right now, and he is not bleeding anymore. We will know more when he wakes up." She purposely said when, and not if, just to stay on the positive side of the situation, then she gave the three of them a strong squeeze and changed the subject. "I want all of you to go clean up in the river before it gets dark, then eat something small and go to bed." They all nodded at her, drank their tea, then ran off to do as they were told.

**xXx**

After that, Ayla went around to the rest of the people, giving them tea, and suggesting that they get off to bed early. Talut and Vincenzia insisted on staying up to watch over the meat, Travec and Grov said they'd take second watch, Ivanolia and Brulenzia volunteered for third, and the returning Tornec agreed to take the final watch along with Wymez.

**xXx**

Ayla was extremely pleased that everyone was working so hard to make things run smoothly, and was just standing there staring at the fire, when Grov came up to her.

"It is nearly sunset, Ayla," he said. "Everyone has washed up, except you. Come on, I will go with you."

"Let me just look in on Darnev first. It will not take long, I promise." He nodded, and followed her into the tent. Deegie was lying next to her mother, head on the headwoman's lap, but Tulie and Barzec's positions had not changed despite their recent bathing. Druwez was sitting in the corner of the tent, apparently sleeping. Ayla smiled at the family close-knit family. "I am going to go wash up, but I will hurry up. I want everyone to drink some more tea," she said, pouring more into their cups, then leaving.

**xXx**

At the river, Ayla quickly splashed into the cold river water, soaped up, scrubbed the dried blood and caked dirt off her skin and hair, then dunked down again to rinse off. Grov had already washed, and was in a clean tunic and leggings, but held her towel for her when she got out of the cold water, and then held her when she started to cry.

"Ayla, you are exhausted. Let's get you back to the tent so you can rest," he said, lifting her up into his strong arms, and carrying her back to the tent in just her towel. She lay her head on his shoulder as he carried her, and succumbed to her weariness.

**xXx**

The people in the tent looked up when Grov came in carrying Ayla, and thought that she had been hurt. "Grov?" Tulie said, getting up. "Is Ayla okay?"

"Yes, she is fine, but she is tired," he whispered. "I'm putting her in bed, but I'm sure she wants you to wake her the moment Darnev wakes up, so please do." The headwoman readily agreed, and Grov took Ayla to her sleeping furs, dressed her in her sleeping tunic, then put her in bed. Ayla never even stirred.

When Grov went back out, Deegie and Druwez had gone to bed, and Tulie and Barzec had moved off to their furs to sleep, so Grov went back outside to see where everyone else was. The two woman, as well as Latie and Danug, had gone to bed, so it was only the men that were sitting by the fire. Grov joined them.

"How are Tulie and Barzec doing?" Talut asked.

"Ayla has given them more tea, and they are in bed," Grov answered.

Brulenzia frowned. "Is Ayla okay? I saw you carrying her into the tent."

Ivanolia's head shot up. "What is wrong with Ayla?"

"Ayla is fine. She was just so tired that she couldn't stay awake any longer. She washed in the river, and I have put her to bed." Grov hid his smile, thinking that it had not been very long since Ivanolia couldn't stand to be near his cousin. He was very thankful the man had changed.

Talut sighed. "Well, you all should go to sleep, so you can get up for your watch." The men all nodded, and went to their tents.

**xXx**

Grov slipped into their partitioned off area of the large tent, removed his leggings and got under the furs with his woman. She groaned as he took her into his arms and held her, and squeezed him back in her sleep, then he drifted off, fatigue finally overtaking him.

**XxX**

**And Through The Night  
><strong>  
>Talut and Vincenzia sat together silently for some time sipping their tea, while watching the meat and keeping the fires up. Talut kept glancing at his sister's tent, and Vincenzia had to smile.<p>

"This has been a difficult day," he said.

Talut looked up at him. "Yes, particularly for my sister and her mate. It is not how I imagined this hunt. I am feeling rather guilty that I even suggested it."

"You should not feel guilty, Talut," Vincenzia said. "You would have probably planned a hunt before the summer meeting, right?" Talut nodded. "Well then, count yourself lucky that Ayla was here to help. She has learned a lot from her clan, medicine being one thing, and I have seen none better."

Talut nodded. "I know Ayla said Darnev is not safe yet, but I do believe he would have died if she was not here, so I do count Lion Camp lucky, for she has just saved many of us much grief." He was not willing to think anything but positive thoughts; Darnev would live, he told himself.

**xXx**

After the period of time that was agreed upon, Talut went wake Travec and Vincenzia went into the big tent to wake Grov. Inside the tent, Vincenzia looked down at Ayla and her mate. They were entwined in each other's arms, sleeping soundly; he hated to wake the man, but knelt down and shook him gently anyway.

Grov's eyes opened, and he stared at Vincenzia. He quickly disentangled himself from Ayla, stood up, pulled on his leggings and parka, and followed the man outside. He saw that Talut and Travec were standing by the fire talking, and as they approached, the two men turned to look at them.

"Is Ayla still sleeping?" the headman asked.

Grov nodded. "Did you need to talk to her?"

"Oh no. I was just hoping she was resting," Talut said. "She has done some much for Lion Camp. I wish I could do something to repay her."

Grov smiled. "That is not necessary; it is what she does. Darnev's survival will be payment enough."

Talut thought about the man's statement, and wondered why so gifted a healer would not want to be repaid, but he was sure that Grov was right, and he nodded. He would try to think of something anyway.

**xXx**

Travec and Grov started talking right away, and a decent friendship developed in the fraction of time they spent together. It made Grov truly feel like part of the group.

"Tornec tells me that you used more of your clan signs today, and he thinks it could be good for us to learn more of them," the man said. "I mean, not just for Rydag's sake, though that is obviously a good reason in itself to learn."

"Yes, it is good on hunts, when it is too loud to hear. And good for talking from across a distance like we used it today," Grov said.

Tornec smiled. "And good for saying private things to someone when others are near; like behind a curtain, in the furs."

"I have not thought of it that way," Grov said. "In the clan, people do not watch other conversations; it is considered rude."

"It is considered rude to listen to other people's conversations among us too, but sometimes it cannot be helped."

Grov nodded. "I understand. It is easy to avert one's eyes, but you cannot close your ears."

"Tornec said you were building something today?" Travec said hopefully.

"Yes, Ayla wanted us to make a stretcher to carry Darnev back to Lion Camp. Actually, she wanted us to make several of them, so we can carry the meat back too." Grov looked around at all the meat. "I think we can carry all this meat back. It will be very heavy, but it is possible." Grov looked back at Travec. "I'll show you the stretchers, come on," he said getting up, and leading the man to the other side of the camp.

**xXx**

Travec inspected the device that Grov showed him, and smiled. "This will work," he said excitedly. "I'm sure of it. Have you shown Talut yet? He will be thrilled."

"No, he was busy butchering, and doing other things while we made these things. I did not have a chance."

"Well, he's going to be thrilled when he finds out we won't have to dry all this meat," Travec said, waving his hand at the many haunches of meat around them. "In fact, it's cold enough tonight that we should probably move the meat far enough away from the fires, so that it does not dry."

Grov nodded, and they went to work moving the meat around.

**xXx**

As the time neared to wake Ivanolia and Brulenzia, Travec and Grov had done quite a bit of work. Grov went over to their first load, and smiled. "It's already starting to freeze," he said astonished.

"Yeah, we're much closer to the glacier right now, than you are down near the peninsula, and it's still pretty cold at night in the spring. I'd guess that by morning, it'll all be almost frozen solid." Travec grinned. "I can't wait to see Talut's face when he wakes up to all the meat moved away from the fires. It's going to be funny. Too bad we're likely to miss it, since we'll probably still be sleeping."

Grov gave a guttural laugh, then said he would go wake Ivanolia and Brulenzia.

**xXx**

"What in the Mother's world is going on out here?" Ivanolia said when he finally got up and out of his tent.

Brulenzia looked at the smiling men. "What gives?"

"Well, it is Ayla intention that we leave here tomorrow, and we decided the headman would prefer frozen meat over dried meat, so we made a bit of a change," Grov said.

Travec was standing beside the clan man smiling, then he yawned. "Well, I'm going to bed," he said, and left. Grov waved, then left too.

**xXx**

Grov entered the tent, stopping only briefly next to Darnev. The man's breathing sounded good, but then again, he really knew nothing about healing. He looked over at the sleeping headwoman and her co-mate. They, as least, looked peaceful; Ayla must have put a sedative in their last tea. He smiled. She was a smart woman to trick them with calming tea all evening, then slip something else in there later. He started to go toward his and Ayla's area, but heard something. A groan? Then he realized it was Darnev, and went to the man's side.

"Darnev?"

Darnev's eyes opened up, and then blinked several times. "Owwhhhhh," he groaned again. "What happened?"

"You've been gored by an angry aurochs. Ayla spent half the day, and into the night working on you, and it is good that you are awake."

"I hurt everywhere," the man said. "What are my injuries?"

"Before we talk about that, you need to drink some of Ayla's tea; it will help with the pain." Grov picked up the cold container of liquid, poured some into a cup, then fed it to the man.

"Eewww," Darnev said with a disgusted look. "That stuff tastes awful."

Grov encouraged him to sip some more. "I should go get Ayla now. The tea works fast, so you will likely feel tired again soon."

"But I want . . . " the man began, but Grov disappeared. "I wanted to know what my injuries are," he finished to the room at large.

**xXx**

Grov slipped into his 'hearth' and knelt down next to Ayla. "Ayla," he whispered. "Ayla, Darnev is awake."

Ayla's eyes opened, and she sat up. "What? He's awake? That's good." She was on her feet, and searching for her leggings. "Where are my clothes?" she asked frantically.

Grov steadied her, and handed them to her. "Here, let me help you," he said.

"How long has he been awake?"

"Only just. I was coming to bed after my watch, and he groaned as I was coming in." He pulled her tunic over her head, and kissed her tousled hair. "I gave him some tea for the pain. I hope that's okay."

"Yes, yes, of course." She frowned. "He won't be awake very long then, I made it strong." She slipped on her boots, and went to Darnev, and Grov followed.

**xXx**

"Darnev," Ayla said, sitting down next to him, and putting her hand on his forehead.

His eyes focused on her, and he tried to smile. "It's bad, huh?"

Ayla wanted to say, 'no, it'll be okay,' but her upbringing wouldn't allow her to speak untruths. "Yes, Darnev, it is bad, but I have worked to make it right again."

"Grov said I was gored. I do not even remember."

"Yes, you were. When we came down the hill, an angry aurochs charged you from behind. You didn't see it coming, until it was too late." Ayla leaned down and listened to his heart. "Your heart is strong."

"What are my injuries?" he asked yet again.

"The worst was a gash in your side, which I have sewn closed," she answered.

"Sewn? You sewed the wound closed?" he persisted.

"Yes, the one on your side, and the one on your leg. I was able to stop the bleeding, but I do need to look at them. I'd like to do that while you're awake, if that's okay?"

The man attempted to nodded, but moaned with the effort. "Tulie? Barzec?" he asked next.

"They are here. I have given them something to make them sleep, so they will be rested for tomorrow."

Darnev summoned his strength and turned his head. He could just barely see his mates sleeping off to the side. Then he looked back at Ayla. "What else is wrong with me?"

Ayla removed the bandaging she had placed on him, and looked at his wound. "You have a bruised face, a broken arm, a broken leg, and then the two severe gashes. I am going to make a poultice to put on this. It is swelling." Ayla looked at Grov. "Grov, would you mind bringing me more water before you go back to sleep? And bringing me my medicine bag . . . I left it in our hearth." Grov went to get her her bag, then ran out to get water.

Ivanolia looked up at his appearance. "Where are you going, Grov?"

"Darnev is awake," he whispered. "Ayla asked for water."

The two men smiled. "That's got to be a good sign," Brulenzia sighed.

When Grov returned, Ayla insisted that he go to bed. "I will be in as soon as he falls asleep again, but you should go now." She wasn't used to ordering her mate around, but when it came to medicine, not even their clan's leader would argue with her. Grov left immediately.

"Ayla?" a voice from behind her said, and Ayla remembered that she had not given either Deegie or Druwez the sleeping tea.

"Hi Deegie, come talk to Darnev before he falls asleep again," Ayla encouraged, noticing that Druwez was right behind his sister. "Hi Druwez."

"Darnev?" Deegie said questioningly. "How do you feel?"

The man attempted a smile. "Like I've been run over by an aurochs," he said, struggling not to laugh and cause himself more pain.

Deegie giggled, then stopped herself. "That's not funny, Darnev. You _have_been run over by an aurochs."

"How are your mother and Barzec? And Dreenie? Are they all okay?" he said, raising his uninjured arm out to the daughter and son of his hearth.

Deegie and Druwez both took the man's arm, and smiled. "Mother is strong," Druwez said. "But she did cry."

Darnev raised an eyebrow. That meant it was _really_bad, he thought. Deegie smiled. "Barzec is good, he's been working hard butchering the meat. We got the three aurochs that we intended, and the one that came after you."

"Wow, that's a lot . . ." Darnev's voice was becoming less strong. "a lot . . . of . . . of meat." He took a deep breath, and Ayla was pleased to see that he did not wince from pain; her medication was taking affect. "Dreenie?" he asked again.

Deegie was glad for the dim light, because she was sure her face would have revealed more than her words. "Dreenie's okay. Ayla knocked her out first. She wouldn't stop crying, Darnev." Deegie was beginning to cry herself, and she held the man's hand tighter. She didn't realize he had fallen asleep again.

Ayla waited for a moment, then touched Deegie's shoulder. The woman was quietly sobbing. "It's good, right? I mean, it's good that he woke up and talked to us, right?"

Ayla nodded. "Of course it is, Deegie, but we still have to wait." Ayla put her arm around Deegie and Druwez. "It's best that you go back to sleep. Here, take some more tea." Ayla saw that Deegie was going to resist it, then she changed her mind and drank the tea down. Ayla smiled as Druwez did the same, and watched them go back to their hearth, then she went to her bed.

**xXx**

Back in her hearth again, she stripped off her tunic and leggings again, and crawled into her furs, this time without pulling on her sleeping tunic. She was too tired for that, _and_she didn't need the extra work, should she have to jump up and dress to go see Darnev in the middle of the night again.

Grov had dozed off, but his naked mate next to him woke him up quick, and he put his arms around her and held her against his large frame. "How is he?"

"Hummmm, talking," she replied, kissing the man softly. He kissed back, and started to pull away, but she kissed him again, this time with more urgency. "Will you make the signal, Grov?" she asked, hungrily kissing him again. She did not even think about her words, or about the fact that a woman would never ask a man to do that. She was essentially giving _him_the signal with her words.

Grov was a little shocked that his mate was being so forward, but it only served to inflame his desire for her, and she felt his need arise, even though he made no signal. He continued to kiss her, until she was panting and moaning. "Grov, please . . . please signal me," she begged.

"No Ayla, I can't do that to you anymore," he said, then seeing her confusion, he went on. "I can't make you relieve my needs anymore. I have lived with the Others; I see that it's not right that way. I . . ." he could not continue with her mouth on his.

She pulled back far enough to speak to him. "Then I will do it," she said. "You just _have to_relieve my needs Grov. I just cannot take it." As she said what she did, she made the signal to him, then pulled his leggings down and lowered herself onto him. Grov didn't resist; he couldn't. Instead, he put his hands on her hips, and arched his back into her, burying himself into her deeply, and satisfying them both.

**xXx**

When they were finished, Ayla rolled off of him, feeling that somehow it had been perfect. She was a little embarrassed that she had taken control, and demanded something no good clan woman ever would, but she pushed that feeling aside. She was not like any other clan woman, and she knew it.

Grov, on the other hand, wondered why it was that clan men did not like their women to be so open. He had to admit that he enjoyed Ayla completely when she was herself.

"Thank you, Grov," she said. "I really needed you just then."

The man smiled in the darkness. "Well Ayla, you can have me anytime, or any way you want me."

**xXx**

As the night wore on, Ivanolia and Brulenzia woke up Tornec and Wymez. They had to explain the movement of the meat again, but the new watchers understood. It was going to be an interesting morning, with Talut waking up completely unaware of the change.

**XxX**

**The Lion Camp Earthlodge**

**ENTRY area—**storage of fuel, implements, outer clothes

**FIRST hearth—**cooking hearth and space for gathering

**SECOND—** _Lion Hearth_

Talut — headman  
>Nezzie<br>-~- Danug (13)  
>-~- Latie (11)<br>-~- Rugie (6)  
>-~- Rydag (5) - mixed child<p>

**THIRD—** _Fox Hearth_

Wymez – Nezzie's older brother  
>Travie (44) – sharing Wymez's bed, Darvie and Danie's mother<br>-~- Ranec – away until summer meeting

**FOURTH—** _Mammoth Hearth_—space for ceremonies, gathering, projects, visitors

*** Mamut —** shaman, Tulie, Talut and Travie's great grandfather (pardon the modern term)

-~- Darvie (26)  
>-~- Vincenzia (37)<br>-~- Laurana (15) - very pregnant  
>-~- Brulenzia (20)<br>-~- Ayla (16)  
>-~- Grov (18)<br>-~- Danie (21) - newly pregnant  
>-~- Ivanolia (22)<p>

*** Visiting Children of Mammoth Hearth** – sleeping on benches in passageway

-~- Braydalana (8) - Ivanolia's hearth daughter  
>-~- Crisanie (8) – Darvie's daughter<br>-~- Brenev (5) – Darvie's son  
>-~- Durc (5)<br>-~- Ora (3)  
>-~- Annaliza (1)<p>

**FIFTH—** _Reindeer Hearth_

Manuv – grandson of one of Mamut's cousins, man of Tornec's hearth  
>-~- Tronie - pregnant<br>-~- Tornec  
>-~-~- Nuvie (2)<p>

**SIXTH—** _Antelope Hearth_

Travec - mated to Dreenie and Tralie  
>Dreenie – Darnev's sister, Travec's co-mate<br>Tralie – Tronie's sister, Travec's co-mate  
>-~- Caylie (9) – Dreenie's daughter<br>-~- Corlie (9) – Tralie's daughter  
>-~- Danen (7) – Dreenie's son<p>

**SEVENTH—** _Aurochs Hearth_

Tulie — headwoman  
>Darnev – Tulie's co-mate<br>Barzec – Tulie's co-mate  
>-~- Tarneg – gone to live at mate's mother's camp, of Darnev's spirit<br>-~- Deegie (16) - of Darnev's spirit  
>-~- Druwez (12) - of Barzec's spirit<br>-~- Brinan (7) - not sure whose spirit created him  
>-~- Tusie (5) - of Barzec's spirit<p>

**XxX**

**Starting Home  
><strong>  
>The morning sun was shining brightly in the crisp air when the headman stepped out of his tent. Looking toward the sun, he squinted his eyes, then immediately went around the corner to pass his water, without even looking at their camp very closely. Tornec and Wymez saw him go, and decided to disappear.<p>

**xXx**

In the big tent, Tulie and Barzec had awoken as well, and were sitting with their sleeping mate, talking quietly. Though low, their voices finally reached the sleeping medicine woman, and she rolled out of bed, dressed, then slipped into the main tent space. "How is he this morning," Ayla asked.

"He is still sleeping," Tulie said with a frown.

"Oh! I am sorry, Tulie. I did not tell you. Darnev woke up late last night. Well actually, very early this morning," Ayla said. "He asked about everyone, and wanted to know what happened, but he was in pain, so I gave him a strong painkiller to put him back to sleep."

The couple took a deep breath and smiled. "I would ask why you did not wake us, but my whirling head tells me we were not . . . wakeable."

Ayla blushed deeply. "I am sorry about that Tulie, Barzec, but I thought it was best that everyone slept. I . . . "

"WHAT IN THE GREAT EARTH MOTHER'S WORLD IS GOING ON OUT HERE?" the huge headman thundered from outside.

Everyone looked at the tent opening, then Ayla looked back at them. "I need to go talk to Talut. I have made a change with the meat, and he is likely very confused. I will be back." Ayla hurried away.

**xXx**

When Ayla got outside, the headman was pacing in front of the first meat pile, and several others were coming out of their tents. "Talut?" Ayla said, gingerly touching his arm.

"Ayla," he said. "What is going on here? This meat is going to spoil."

"No, Talut. It was very cold outside last night, as I am sure you already know, so the meat is already frozen. And, we are going to leave today, so we do not need to dry all this meat. We will get it back to Lion Camp," she said.

Talut ran one hand through his flaming red hair, scratched his thick beard, then looked at the blonde woman. "_Leave_? How can we leave today? Darnev is not fit to travel."

"No, he is not, but we have made stretchers, so that he, and the meat can be carried. I think you will be pleased," she said. Then seeing that he was still upset, she went on. "I hope you will not be angry with me, Talut. I think this is the best way to get Darnev back to Lion Camp, and still save the meat."

"We can save all the meat," the man said hopefully. "Will you show me how this will work?" he asked.

Ayla let out her breath; she had not been aware that she was holding it. "Of course I will, Talut." Then seeing Grov standing there, she motioned him over. "Look Talut," she went on when Grov had placed a stretcher on the ground in front of her. "It goes like this." She straightening it out, then lay down upon it. Grov then went to the end of it and grabbed the poles that extended from the end, and indicated that Talut should do the same at the other end. When the man was in place, they lifted it up, with Ayla lying down on it.

Talut grinned. "This is great!" he said. It was almost a yell. "TULIE! BARZEC! You must come out here." He looked at Ayla again. "Are they awake?" Ayla nodded. "And the meat, we can make these for the meat as well?"

"We already have," Grov stated simply. "They're all ready."

When Tulie and Barzec appeared, Talut and Grov were still holding Ayla up on the stretcher. "Look, we can carry Darnev home. We can leave today." Tulie and Barzec smiled, then quietly went back inside.

**xXx**

While some of the people of the camp worked to pile the stretchers with all that could feasibly be carried, and others filled packs to be worn on their backs, Ayla hovered over her patient, waiting for him to wake up again.

"Shouldn't he be awake by now?" Dreenie whined.

"He will wake up soon, Dreenie," Ayla said to the woman, though she said it for the benefit of all. "I can tell that he is stirring. It will not be much longer." Tulie and Barzec had just come back with plates of food, and Deegie and Druwez were sitting there dejectedly.

"I will need to give him some more tea, which will put him back to sleep, but that will be best, because transferring him to the stretcher will most probably be painful. I'd rather him be . . . "

"_Ohhhhh_," the man moaned, causing the entire room to come to attention. Dreenie made it to her brother first.

"Darnev?" she said.

He opened his eyes, and focused on his younger sister. "Dreenie, you look awful," he said, and the woman laughed softly; it was the first sign that _she_was going to be okay.

"Oh Darnev, how do you feel?" she asked him.

"I feel like . . .," he started.

But Deegie and Druwez finished for him, ". . . like he's been run over by an aurochs." They giggled, and Dreenie gasped.

"But, Darnev, you have been run over by an aurochs," his sister replied.

Ayla watched the people and it was obvious to her that they all loved each other very much. Tulie and Barzec were sitting on one side of their mate, while the other three knelt on the other side. Ayla cleared her throat. "I am glad to see you awake again, Darnev," she said. "I would like to change the poultice I put on last night, and check the swelling in your arm and leg. I also need to give you more medicine."

The man frowned. "But I do not want to sleep," he protested.

"I know, but we are going to start back to camp today, and we need to move you to a stretcher so you can be carried."

"A what?" he asked.

Barzec smiled. "Grov has made a device that will make it possible to carry you back, and he meat as well."

Darnev nodded, and Ayla helped the man with another cup of the her medication. Then she turned to Dreenie, Deegie and Druwez. "I think we need to start breaking camp." Dreenie wanted to stay with her brother, but nodded acquiescence and left with the other two.

"Tulie, Barzec, I would like to move Darnev to the stretcher as soon as he falls asleep," Ayla glanced at the man; he was already drifting.

Tulie looked down at Darnev and nodded. "Thank you again, Ayla. We are so grateful."

Ayla smiled. "Well, I cannot be positive yet, but it looks good."

"It sure does," Talut said from the entrance. "Most of the meat fits on five stretchers, which the men will carry, and what doesn't fit there has been put into backframes for the women to carry. And Darnev's stretcher is ready to be loaded now too."

Ayla looked at Darnev, and nodded. "He is sleeping, so let's get started. Put the stretcher down there," she said pointing to the spot immediately next to the sleeping man. Once that was done, she put another fur on it to make it comfortable, then continued. "Okay, Tulie and Barzec take that end of the ground covering, and Talut, you and I will take this end. On the count of three," she prompted. "One . . . two . . . three." The quickly lifted and shifted. The man groaned loudly, but he was now in place, and everyone relaxed.

Tulie sighed and Barzec put his arm around her. Ayla smiled at them. "If we can get back to Lion Camp in two or three days, he will be able to rest more comfortably, but this is going to be tough work for all of us." They were all aware of that fact.

**xXx**

When the sun was high in the sky, the people were ready to go. The meat had been stacked, the tents had been taken down, the fires had been put out, Darnev had been strapped to his stretcher, and everyone was ready to go. The people looked around one last time, then picked up their burdens, and began the trek home.

**XxX**

**An Uneventful Evening  
><strong>  
>The heavily loaded hunting party made it slightly past the place where they had camped the night before the hunt, but the people were exhausted, so stopped their trek before the sun was even on the horizon.<p>

Ayla dropped her backframe, ordered Darnev put down, and had the tent constructed around him. Everyone else did his or her work silently, and finally collapsed by the central fire when all was finished. Talut had fires set up around their perimeter, to protect the meat from predators, but kept the meat far enough away so that it stayed frozen.

It was a quiet evening for the tired crew, but they all ate heartily, even Darnev, who was given a warm aurochs stew, and then more of Ayla's painkilling tea.

When the man was sleeping soundly, Ayla again stripped off his bandaging, felt around his wounds, just to reassure herself that his insides were where they should be, and then cleaned them again and bandaged him back up. She noticed that the bruising had gotten worse, but she had expected that, since bruises sometimes take time to appear.

After looking at his stitched wounds, she wanted to look at his broken bones. Her bark casts seemed a little tight, indicating that he was still swelling, so she loosened them, and went on to the man's badly bruised face.

His face looked even more awful than it had that morning, because the bruising had deepen from a blue color to almost purplish-black, and the cuts he had sustained from impacting the ground so hard, were now scabbed over, adding more darkness to his now distorted look. However, his ability to speak had not been affected, as his jaw was not broken, and that pleased Ayla greatly. She was pretty sure that he would recover, but she was not ready to tell everyone yet; she wanted to be certain first.

**xXx**

The next day started off early, with the same breaking down of the tents, and packing up of supplies as before. Talut had managed to spend some time with Darnev that morning, and he was happy to see that his sister's mate still had a sense of humor, despite the whole ordeal. And, the man's attitude was sure good for the spirits of everyone else; especially his sister Dreenie, who had to be forced to leave his side.

Talut looked around at all the meat that had been saved, and smiled over at the woman that had made it all possible. She is very inventive, he thought as he considered what she had managed to accomplish. _And_, her stretchers made it so they didn't even have to repack the meat during the trek back; it was so convenient. He grinned to no one in particular, but Ayla looked up just as he did, and grinned back.

"What makes you so happy, Talut?" she asked, coming up to the happy man.

"It is you. You have made this man very happy," he said.

"Me?" she said in a shocked manner. "What I have done is not extraordinary."

"You do not think saving a man's life, and an entire hunt is extraordinary?" he asked.

She smiled. "I have done all that I can for Darnev, and I hope that he recovers, but he is not _saved_yet, Talut. And as for the hunt . . . well, it is Grov's people that came up with the stretcher, so you can be happy with the Clan too."

Talut nodded. "I am, Ayla. I am very happy with you and your mate."

**xXx**

It was not long after Talut and Ayla's talk that the people started out again. It was now day two of the hike home.

**XxX**

**Homeward Bound – Day Two  
><strong>  
>Sometime before midday, the exhausted travelers were still walking at a decent pace. Talut had suggested that some of the meat be left behind, so it was. It was just too much for them to carry. He didn't want to kill the hunting party with the load.<p>

Tulie, on the other hand, didn't want to lose what her mate had given his blood for. She reluctantly agreed to discard some meat, but didn't want to lose too much. There was no arguing with the headwoman. As a result, each pair carrying the meat, relieved themselves of just two medium sized pieces of meat, with the exception of Grov and the headman, as they were quite capable of going on the way they were. As they walked away from what they were leaving behind, scavengers were already upon it. The meat would not be wasted!

**xXx**

"I think we can make it back to the earthlodge by tomorrow evening," Talut was saying to Vincenzia. "If we can keep up this pace, that is."

"Yeah, this way of carrying the meat makes it somewhat less awkward," Vincenzia agreed. "My entire body is going to be sore for a moon though."

Talut laughed. "Won't we all."

"No one will be as sore as Darnev," Ayla commented, glancing back at the man, and sighing. "I think it may be time to stop for a rest; he seems to be waking up, and I need to redress his wounds."

Talut looked back at the unconscious man, then at his exhausted sister. "Yes, time to rest," he said. "Let's take a break!" he called to everyone else.

Ayla shrugged off her pack of meat, and put down the rest of things she was carrying, then turned toward Tulie and Barzec. "I will need a fire to make him a warm tea," she said. "I have some that is cold, but it would be better warm." Barzec nodded, and went to gather some wood.

Tulie smiled at the young healer. "Ayla," she said awkwardly. "I would like to thank you for saving Darnev. I am sure he would not have survived if you had not been here."

"Oh Tulie, there is no need to thank me," Ayla said. "This is what I do." Ayla paused. "I did not want to say, until I was sure, but I think Darnev _will_survive. He is a very strong man, and has a strong will to live." Ayla glanced over at them injured man, and Tulie followed her eyes. "However, I do not want you to get your hopes up just yet. . . it is still bad, and infection could still set in. But again, he looks good, and seems to be fully aware when he is awake, and that is very good." Tulie smiled widely, then pulled the woman into her arms; it was a completely uncharacteristic smile, and the hug that followed caught the medicine woman off guard. It pleased Ayla to know that the strong woman had more feelings than she had thought.

"Why is our headwoman so happy," Dreenie asked curiously, coming over to find out why their stoic headwoman seemed so pleased.

"Ayla believes Darnev will recover," Tulie repeated.

Dreenie broke into sobs and flung her arms around the medicine woman as well. "Oh thank you Ayla. This is wonderful news!" she burst.

Ayla hugged her back, then pulled back somewhat. "I am very hopeful for Darnev, but Dreenie we still have to see," she said, holding the woman at arms length. "I_am_concerned about his leg. It is badly torn apart, and I am afraid he may not walk normally again."

Tulie frowned. "But he will walk again?"

"Well, I have done stitches before, but never on a leg, and never on such a severe injury. It appears that I put everything back where it belongs, and the wound is stitched up cleanly, but we won't know for sure until it has healed and he tries to walk, Tulie." Ayla thought for a moment, then continued on. "I stitched up a little clan girl's arm at our cave, and she seems to have full use, but a leg could be different. We will have to wait and see."

Tulie nodded, and smiled. "It does not matter, Ayla, he is alive; that is all that matters."

**xXx**

Soon, Barzec had a fire going and everyone was sitting around eating the last of Nezzie's traveling cakes, trying to catch his or her breath before they had to move on. Ayla had examined Darnev again, and was amazed that he found humor in the whole situation. Deegie let her know that Darnev had always been the one to find the positive points of everything.

With Deegie's help, Ayla finished bandaging the man's wounds, gave him some more tea, and went to sit by the fire to eat. She did not have long before Talut called everyone to rise and head out.

**xXx**

With the fire put out behind them, the group moved on. For what seemed like forever, they followed Lev River in a generally southwestern direction, which had pretty much melted at this point, making them want to get back to the earthlodge even more quickly.

As Talut led his people, he worried that if the river of ice had melted, then they may not have much time for the meat. The headman looked up at the dreary sky, and smiled somewhat. The only thing that may save their kills was the cloud cover, which was keeping direct sunlight off of it.

Ayla followed the man's line of thought, and broke in. "It will be okay, Talut. You will make it back in time. The meat will not spoil, and Darnev will survive."

The man looked at her, and saw something different in her; something prophetic; something he had not seen before. He wished Mamut was there, so the old man could hear and see what was in this woman. He did not realize that it was not the woman talking at all.

**xXxXxXx**

What Talut did not see was that Mamut was there with them; speaking _through_Ayla. With the goring of Darnev, the old Mamut had fallen into a spirit trace. No one at the lodge seemed to be bothered by it; it was quite usual for the old man to sit meditating for long periods of time, and the people just helped him to his hearth, where they let him be.

Mamut had been pulled into the young medicine woman's mind, and was watching over his people through her. It was a strange occurrence, he thought, and different than he had ever experienced before. He had not done this with an untrained Mamut, but he was very curious about it.

He also did not want to interfere with her thoughts, thinking that he may frighten her, but as she spoke to the headman, he realized that it was _she_who had summoned him there, not just wanting his support, but needing it. He suddenly became conscious that she would be very powerful someday; if only she were trained.

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla suddenly shook her head. She did not know why she had said those things to the headman, and shivered even though she was not even cold. Talut saw the look on her face, and looked around at the people. "I think it is time to stop for the night," he said. "Everyone needs some rest!" No one argued with the man, they just unloaded themselves, and went to work setting up camp.

With the help of Talut, Tulie, Barzec and Grov, Ayla made Darnev comfortable again, then went to help the women with a meal. Since Nezzie's traveling cakes were gone, they decided to cook some of the aurochs meat, which was a welcome change for the travelers.

After everyone had eaten, most fell into their furs completely worn out. Now that Dreenie was hopeful that her brother would recover, she retreated to her mates' tent, and was welcomed back with open arms.

Druwez did the same, which pleased Danug and Latie; they had missed their cousin's company. The three youngsters were three of the people that chose to stay awake by the fire talking. They knew they'd be tired the next day, but they did not care.

Seeing that the other two people in her tent space had moved to other tents, Deegie realized that Tornec would be in need of a tent, now that Dreenie was going back to Travec and Tralie. Deegie figured she could share that tent with him, and invited him to share her space.

So, as the everyone went off to bed, the younger woman lay next to the sleeping man of Reindeer hearth, thinking about the preceding days' events, and finally fell asleep with hopeful thoughts in her mind.

**XxX**

**Homeward Bound – Day Three  
><strong>  
>The next morning began the same as the last, with everyone rising early, breaking up camp, and setting out. Darnev spent more time conscious on the third day, which pleased Ayla, and his wounds actually seemed to be healing nicely. It would be a good long time before the man's breaks and gashes healed enough for him to move around adequately, and the scars would never heal completely, but Ayla was becoming more and more sure that he was going to survive. There was even a happy air to the traveling people. They had made four kills and everyone was now safe.<p>

The only thing that marred their joy was the bright sun that lit up the morning, and the heat that was brought with it; spring was definitely over. Talut trudged along, carrying his shared load, wondering it they would make it back before the meat spoiled. It was still frozen, which was a good thing, but he worried all the same.

**xXxXxXx**

Back at the earthlodge, the people were working on various projects. In hopes that the hunters would return in the next day or so, Nezzie, Manuv and Travie were straightening up the lodge, which had seriously become a disaster since there were fourteen children running around at all times, playing games and roughhousing, and not enough adults to clean up after them.

Mamut, who had barely come out of the Mammoth hearth since Ayla had drawn his spirit to her, was now sitting in the cooking hearth, talking to some of the children about the Clan's signs. With Durc and Ora's help, Rydag had become amazingly proficient in Ayla's absence, making Mamut wonder if the Clan would even know he had been raised by the Others. The old man was extremely impressed by Rydag's ability, and the boy was thinking along the same line about the old man. Mamut was remembering more and more of the signs as they talked; he had forgotten how well he had known them all those years ago.

Laurana and Danie were sitting down with Tronie, and they were making baby clothes. Braydalana had given her aunt and her mother each an outfit that she had made on her journey with Ivanolia. Both women were thrilled, but the gifts made them want to get started on more.

"_Ohhhhh_," Laurana groaned, as she made the last stitch of the baby gown she was working on.

Tronie and Danie looked up from the work. "Are you okay, Laurana?" Danie asked, involuntarily bringing her hand to her still flat, yet impregnated middle.

Laurana didn't say anything, and Tronie eyed her, looking for signs that it was the young woman's time. When Laurana relaxed she smiled. "Was that the first one?" she asked.

Laurana nodded. "I've been having pains at night, but none like that one. Is it time?"

"I don't think so, but we'll have to see. At first the pains are pretty far apart, but when they're closer together, you'll know it's time."

Danie was frowning. "How much did it hurt?" She was just a little fearful about what she'd go through in another seven moons.

Laurana shrugged. "It hurt a little, but it was more uncomfortable than anything else."

"It does get much more intense, but uncomfortable is a good word for it, Laurana," Tronie said with a smile. "I think you're going to do just fine. How much longer do you have anyway?"

"Less than a moon now," she said. "I am so excited to see our baby."

Tronie cocked her head at the woman's words. "What do you mean, 'our baby,' Laurana?" she asked.

"Well, Ayla believes that it is a man that starts a baby growing inside a woman when they share pleasures, so it is Brulenzia's baby just as much as it is my baby."

Tronie frowned. "That is very interesting. I have never heard anything like that before." She rubbed her swollen belly, and thought about Tornec.

**xXxXxXx**

The hunters stopped for a meal when the sun was high above them, and Ayla went to check on Darnev. The man had been awake all morning, but was now experiencing some pain, so Ayla fed him her painkilling tea, which caused him to slowly drift into a peaceful sleep.

At the fire with everyone else, Ayla settled down next to Grov, who put an arm around her shoulder. "How are you doing, Ayla?" he asked.

"I am fine . . . _tired_, but fine," she responded. "And I am missing the children."

Grov looked at his mate's dirt streaked face, and smiled at her. "I do too," he said and hugged her. Then, noticing that she winced when he touched her, he pulled back. "What is wrong, Ayla?"

She blushed, then touched her breasts. "I know you have helped me," she gestured so no one else would know what she was saying, then she smiled and continued, "but it's been five days and I really need to nurse Annalisa." She paused for a moment, then touched her own face and went on verbally. "_And_, I feel so dirty."

"We are all dirty, Ayla," Grov said. "You could wet a piece of leather and wipe yourself down. Would that help your second problem?"

Ayla nodded, then she looked around. "Actually, I think I'm going to go wash a bit in the river," she said, then she kissed the man's forehead and got up.

Seeing where Ayla was headed caused several other women to follow. At the river's edge, Ayla stripped down, and dove in. The water was cold, but refreshing, and it made the woman feel good again.

"Oh, it's so cold, Ayla," Dreenie said, standing at the water's edge. "How can you just dive right in?"

Ayla had quickly washed herself, and was out of the river, pushing the water off of herself, and shaking her head by the time the other woman had taken off their clothing. "Yes, it is cold, but it feels so good." She shivered as a slight breeze licked her naked body, but the sun was drying her fast. Ayla stood there, waiting for the women to jump in and wash, then they headed back to the group when everyone was done.

When they reached the men, the men decided it was a good idea, and went to do the same; all except Darnev of course, who was sleeping, and couldn't have gone to the river even if he had wanted to.

By the time the men returned, the women had dressed, and were again ready to travel. Everyone was feeling a sense of renewal, and all wanted to get home. They knew the area quite well, and all were aware that they would make it home before evening.

**xXxXxXx**

Mamut had spent the morning with some of the children, but now he was meditating while he waited for a good time to talk to the headman's mate. From his usual spot in the cooking hearth, he opened his eyes and looked across the hearth to see what Nezzie was busy with. The old man smiled as he looked at the rotund woman that always managed to take care of the entire camp. It seems that she is always busy, he thought, but that is understandable, considering how many children there are to keep track of right now. He finally decided he would have to interrupt her work.

Getting up slowly, old Mamut crossed the space that separated them, and tapped the woman on the shoulder. "Nezzie," he said, "I need to talk to you."

Nezzie looked up at the old man, as did Travie, since she was standing there too. Both women knew right away that something was wrong. "_Mamut_?" they said in unison, both with a creased brow.

"One of the hunters has been injured. It is not Talut or Wymez or any of your children," he said quickly, seeing the fear on the two women's faces.

"Who is it?" Nezzie asked at the same time that Travie asked, "How bad is it?"

"It is Darnev, and it was very bad." The old man paused for a moment, then went on. "I have made a connection with Ayla, and it seems that she is a very good healer; we believe he will survive."

Both women frowned. Darnev was a much-loved member of Lion Camp, as well as the headwoman's co-mate. "Well then, we are lucky that Ayla was there," Travie said. "I have heard a lot about her healing skills."

"Do you think we should tell Brinan and Tusie what has happened?" Nezzie asked.

"I will talk to them," Mamut said. "They should be prepared. In fact, I think I'll sit all the children down and explain as much as I know. I really don't know too much. It was Ayla that called me to her, but she did not give me all the details. She only wanted my support. I'm not even sure that she knew she was calling me. I will have to talk to her when she returns."

"And when will that be?" Nezzie asked.

Mamut closed his eyes and thought for a moment, accessing the vision that he had had. He looked around the area, noting familiar landmarks, then opened his eyes again. "They should arrive before nightfall."

Nezzie took a deep breath. "That is good. I will start a meal now. That will be one less thing to think about tonight."

"Yes, and I will go talk to Manuv, Tronie, Danie and Laurana before I talk to Brinan and Tusie," Travie said. "Maybe we should have some of the older children keep watch outside. What do you think?"

"We can have Caylie, Corlie, Crisanie and Braydalana go out there, and send Danen and Brinan out to join them a little later," Mamut said. "Would you mind asking Tronie, Danie and Laurana sit outside with them as well?"

Travie shook her head. "I'm sure they'd love to get outside, and they can work on baby clothes out there too." The three people started to disperse, then Travie stopped. "What about the hunt, Mamut? Do you have any idea how the hunt went?"

"They are heavily burdened," the old man said with a grim smile.

**xXx**

Once everyone had been told about the hunter's situation, they all got busy again. Tronie, Danie and Laurana took the eldest children outside, where they put a hide on the ground to continue their work. The children immediately began playing games to pass time while they waited. Brinan seemed a little uptight, but he got into their game anyway, which eased his nerves somewhat.

Inside the lodge, Nezzie and Travie worked on the evening meal, while Mamut sat with Rugie, Tusie and Brenev, learning more hand signs from Durc and Rydag. Manuv entertained the last group of children, the babies; Nuvie, Ora and Annalisa.

**xXxXxXx**

After their swim the hunters were able to pick up some speed, and had made good time in the afternoon. As they approached the area they called home, they got a new burst of speed, and pushed even harder.

Finally, they rounded the bend to see several children playing outside. They were home!

**XxX**

**The Hunters Return  
><strong>  
>"They're back!" Brinan shouted, running toward the returning hunters. Danie helped Laurana up, and Tronie quickly slipped into the lodge to inform the others that the hunters had returned. It was not long before everyone was assembled outside to welcome them back.<p>

Nezzie, Travie and Manuv took the packs off five of the six female hunters, and hustled them into the lodge. Tronie stood holding Annaliza, who squealed at the sight of her mother. Despite her heavy load, Ayla reached for her daughter, and held her close. Annaliza put her head on her mother's shoulder, and popped her thumb in her mouth. Tronie tried to take the young woman's pack, but Ayla wanted to get Darnev inside quickly and make him comfortable, so she didn't relinquish her burden.

Tulie and Barzec entered the earthlodge immediately after Ayla, and followed the woman through the entry area, and into the cooking hearth. "Where do you usually keep injured people?" Ayla asked unsure of where to put the man. In the clan's cave, he would have been brought to the medicine hearth, but that was a relatively new addition, and she didn't know what the Others did in cases like this one.

"The Mammoth hearth," Tulie replied, then she frowned. "But we do not have a healer there."

"Tulie," Mamut cut in. Ayla had not seen the old man standing there, but focused on him. "We do have a healer there. Ayla is our healer right now."

The headwoman smiled weakly. "Yes, she is. I am not thinking." Barzec gave his mate a reassuring look. He wanted to take her into his arms, but they were still carrying the stretcher that held their co-mate.

Mamut smiled at the woman, and placed a hand on her arm. "Perhaps it would be best if Darnev was put in Aurochs hearth. Ayla is quite capable of going there to see her patient, don't you think?"

Barzec smiled widely, and looked at Ayla. "Would you mind, Ayla?" he asked.

Ayla shook her head. "Of course I do not mind going to Aurochs hearth to check on Darnev. I will come with you to help make him comfortable, but he will probably sleep for some time." Tulie and Barzec smiled at her appreciatively, and headed for their hearth at the end of the lodge.

Once in the hearth, it was decided that Darnev would be given his own bed platform until he had healed enough to join his co-mates in their regular sleeping place. Ayla thought that it would be best for him to be undisturbed during his recovery, and everyone agreed with her.

Brinan and Tusie had followed them back to the hearth as well, and were standing in the opening of the hearth, wondering what they should do. No one seemed to notice them standing there, but when Ayla turned around she saw tears in little Tusie's eyes, so she went over to the little girl and knelt down in front of her, standing Annaliza on the ground between her legs.

"Tusie," Ayla began. "Darnev has been seriously injured, but I think he is going to be fine."

Tusie looked at the woman, who was the mother of Durc, her new playmate, and wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. "Do you really think so?" she asked.

"I do," Ayla replied with a smile. "I really do." Annaliza noticed that Tusie was crying, and hugged her friend, then reached up to her mother again.

Ayla finally decided that the headwoman and her mate needed to be alone with their children, so she left the hearth. On her way out she passed Deegie and Druwez in the passageway, and smiled at them. They were on their way to be with their mother.

**xXx**

Ayla headed for the cooking hearth. She really wanted to nurse her daughter, since the pressure was now almost unbearable, but she wanted to see everyone first. As she walked through the passageway, she noticed that many people were bringing the meat into rooms on the other side of the passageway; rooms she had not noticed before.

"Mamma," Ora said, as Ayla walked into the cooking hearth. "I thought you were not coming back."

Ayla suddenly felt terrible that she had left her children for so long. It really had only been six days, but with everything that had happened, it felt longer. Ayla put Annaliza down so she could gather her older two children into her arms. Durc hugged his mother, and smiled at her. "We have taught Rydag to talk in the Clan way, Mama," he said. "You wouldn't even know he grew up here."

"Really?" Ayla said, still holding her children tightly. "I cannot wait to see all that you've taught him, Durc. I will have to come talk to you children later though, because I am very tired."

Annaliza was stuck in the middle of the big hug and was struggling to free herself from their grip. "Too tight," she said.

Once Ora was released from Ayla arms, she had to put in her two pebbles as well. "I helped teach Rydag too, Mamma," Ora gestured.

Ayla smiled and kissed Grov's daughter; her daughter. "I bet you were a big help, Ora." Ora gave the woman a big grin.

"Mamma, hungry," Annaliza gestured. Ayla nodded, then picked the baby up again. Three-year-old Ora reached up to Ayla when the woman stood, so Ayla picked her up too.

"You do not look any less burdened right now, than you did when you got back from the hunt," a voice said from behind the young mother of three. Ayla turned around to see Laurana standing behind her, with Brulenzia, Ivanolia and Danie right next to her.

Ayla laughed. "No, I suppose not," she said with a smile. "But these two are permanent fixtures, and they are no burden." Then Ayla focused on her younger cousin. "Laurana, how long has it been?" she asked.

"How long has _what_been?" Ivanolia and Brulenzia asked in unison.

Laurana smiled at them, then looked at Ayla. "Not too long, but they are still sporadic."

"I need to take care of these two, but I would like to look at you afterward, if you do not mind."

"No, that is fine. Take your time," Laurana said. "I am okay."

Ivanolia's arm had been around Danie's waist, but now he was standing at his sister's side. "What is going on Laurana? What is sporadic?" he asked worriedly.

Brulenzia had the same confused look on his face, but suddenly comprehension dawned on him, and he smiled. "Is it time Laurana?" he asked.

"Time for what?" Ivanolia pressed. "What is going on?" It was obvious the man concerned.

Ayla looked at her cousin and smiled at his naiveté. "Laurana is close to her time, Ivan. Soon, your little sister will have her baby."

"Oh," the man said, suddenly draining of color. He did not like the idea of her giving birth. There was nothing he could do about it, and he knew it. That was part of the problem, he knew he could not save her if something went wrong, and he was desperately worried.

Ayla smiled at him again. "Don't worry, Ivan," Ayla said. "I will look her over carefully, after I feed these two, but you should relax. Having babies isn't _that_dangerous. Women do it every day." She squeezed the man's arm, then headed for the Mammoth hearth.

**xXx**

At Mammoth hearth, Ayla put her girls down on the bed platform, so that she could take off her pack. She was glad to be back at the earthlodge. Sleeping in a tent could get old, and she had been doing a lot of that lately. Ayla moved a few things around in her space, then pulled her tunic over her head, and crawled up onto the bed. Both girls waited patiently while she made herself comfortable, and when she finally offered a breast to each daughter, they settled in contentedly.

It wasn't an easy job, feeding both of them at the same time. They were both getting so big. Ora didn't really need to nurse anymore, but Ayla didn't mind whenever the child felt the need for closeness. With all the changes they had experienced as of late, she knew Ora needed some reassurance.

In fact, the last moon had been filled with new people, new places, _and_ new experiences, and that in itself was a little unsettling for Ayla, let alone her children. As her daughters suckled, Ayla thought about all they had done in the last moon. They had left the only people she had known as family, to go visit her true people. Despite the fact that they _were_going back to the clan at the end of the summer, it had been a difficult and scary adventure.

Then, the joy of their arrival at Oak Camp had been marred by Ivanolia's attitude, and their quick departure to Lion Camp. Ayla had been excited to be going to meet Lion Camp's clan boy, Rydag, but the continued travel made life exhausting, and the meeting of so many new people was overwhelming.

First there were the people of Oak Camp to get to know in only one day. For the most part, that had gone well, with the exception of Ivanolia's prejudice. But now that he had finally warmed up to her, she was no longer uncomfortable with the man, which made that part of this whole journey less tiring.

Then they met the people of Beech Camp, where they had to deal with more closed minded people, but that had actually gone okay too. There really had only been one hearth that had a problem with the Clan, and not even everyone within the hearth had the same feelings. There had been others that didn't talk to her, but Ayla still had hope that they just needed time.

Then, they came across some members of Pine Camp, which seemed initially suspicious, but more open. Part of that was the fact that Gredenzia, Oak Camp's Shogur, was related to Pine Camp's second in command, Zackodia. The other part of it was that there were only a few people there to have to convince. Ayla decided that for the most part, people were good, if only a little misguided.

It had been explained to her that it would be a long haul; that trying to convince people to change their beliefs was extremely difficult. Ayla knew that from her experience with the Clan. The Clan had even more problems with change. She hoped the Sungaea people would be more open to new ideas, and new people. The whole thought of trouble seriously frightened her, but she was willing to try, for the sake of the Clan _and_the Others.

And finally, they had arrived at Lion Camp, where there was not one member that seemed disturbed by her son and mate. That was mostly because they had Rydag living among them, but they were probably the most accepting people she had ever met. She was definitely happy among them, but that may be because they had spent more time with them than any other camp.

Ayla's thoughts were running wild as her daughters suckled, but slowly, all three of them drifted off to sleep.

**xXx**

When the work of storing all the meat was finished, Nezzie sent Latie around to tell everyone that the evening meal would be ready shortly. Latie was glad to be home, and skipped off to inform the people.

When she came to Talut, the man boomed. "Great! I have been wondering when we'd be eating."

Latie rolled her eyes, and hugged the man of her hearth. "You are always hungry, Talut." Then she looked at Grov, who was standing next to the headman. "Do you want to tell Ayla, or should I find her?"

"I will do it Latie," he said. "She went to Mammoth hearth to feed Annaliza, but she should be done by now." Latie smiled at the man, and he turned to go.

**XxX**

**The Hunters Return  
><strong>  
>"They're back!" Brinan shouted, running toward the returning hunters. Danie helped Laurana up, and Tronie quickly slipped into the lodge to inform the others that the hunters had returned. It was not long before everyone was assembled outside to welcome them back.<p>

Nezzie, Travie and Manuv took the packs off five of the six female hunters, and hustled them into the lodge. Tronie stood holding Annaliza, who squealed at the sight of her mother. Despite her heavy load, Ayla reached for her daughter, and held her close. Annaliza put her head on her mother's shoulder, and popped her thumb in her mouth. Tronie tried to take the young woman's pack, but Ayla wanted to get Darnev inside quickly and make him comfortable, so she didn't relinquish her burden.

Tulie and Barzec entered the earthlodge immediately after Ayla, and followed the woman through the entry area, and into the cooking hearth. "Where do you usually keep injured people?" Ayla asked unsure of where to put the man. In the clan's cave, he would have been brought to the medicine hearth, but that was a relatively new addition, and she didn't know what the Others did in cases like this one.

"The Mammoth hearth," Tulie replied, then she frowned. "But we do not have a healer there."

"Tulie," Mamut cut in. Ayla had not seen the old man standing there, but focused on him. "We do have a healer there. Ayla is our healer right now."

The headwoman smiled weakly. "Yes, she is. I am not thinking." Barzec gave his mate a reassuring look. He wanted to take her into his arms, but they were still carrying the stretcher that held their co-mate.

Mamut smiled at the woman, and placed a hand on her arm. "Perhaps it would be best if Darnev was put in Aurochs hearth. Ayla is quite capable of going there to see her patient, don't you think?"

Barzec smiled widely, and looked at Ayla. "Would you mind, Ayla?" he asked.

Ayla shook her head. "Of course I do not mind going to Aurochs hearth to check on Darnev. I will come with you to help make him comfortable, but he will probably sleep for some time." Tulie and Barzec smiled at her appreciatively, and headed for their hearth at the end of the lodge.

Once in the hearth, it was decided that Darnev would be given his own bed platform until he had healed enough to join his co-mates in their regular sleeping place. Ayla thought that it would be best for him to be undisturbed during his recovery, and everyone agreed with her.

Brinan and Tusie had followed them back to the hearth as well, and were standing in the opening of the hearth, wondering what they should do. No one seemed to notice them standing there, but when Ayla turned around she saw tears in little Tusie's eyes, so she went over to the little girl and knelt down in front of her, standing Annaliza on the ground between her legs.

"Tusie," Ayla began. "Darnev has been seriously injured, but I think he is going to be fine."

Tusie looked at the woman, who was the mother of Durc, her new playmate, and wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. "Do you really think so?" she asked.

"I do," Ayla replied with a smile. "I really do." Annaliza noticed that Tusie was crying, and hugged her friend, then reached up to her mother again.

Ayla finally decided that the headwoman and her mate needed to be alone with their children, so she left the hearth. On her way out she passed Deegie and Druwez in the passageway, and smiled at them. They were on their way to be with their mother.

**xXx**

Ayla headed for the cooking hearth. She really wanted to nurse her daughter, since the pressure was now almost unbearable, but she wanted to see everyone first. As she walked through the passageway, she noticed that many people were bringing the meat into rooms on the other side of the passageway; rooms she had not noticed before.

"Mamma," Ora said, as Ayla walked into the cooking hearth. "I thought you were not coming back."

Ayla suddenly felt terrible that she had left her children for so long. It really had only been six days, but with everything that had happened, it felt longer. Ayla put Annaliza down so she could gather her older two children into her arms. Durc hugged his mother, and smiled at her. "We have taught Rydag to talk in the Clan way, Mama," he said. "You wouldn't even know he grew up here."

"Really?" Ayla said, still holding her children tightly. "I cannot wait to see all that you've taught him, Durc. I will have to come talk to you children later though, because I am very tired."

Annaliza was stuck in the middle of the big hug and was struggling to free herself from their grip. "Too tight," she said.

Once Ora was released from Ayla arms, she had to put in her two pebbles as well. "I helped teach Rydag too, Mamma," Ora gestured.

Ayla smiled and kissed Grov's daughter; her daughter. "I bet you were a big help, Ora." Ora gave the woman a big grin.

"Mamma, hungry," Annaliza gestured. Ayla nodded, then picked the baby up again. Three-year-old Ora reached up to Ayla when the woman stood, so Ayla picked her up too.

"You do not look any less burdened right now, than you did when you got back from the hunt," a voice said from behind the young mother of three. Ayla turned around to see Laurana standing behind her, with Brulenzia, Ivanolia and Danie right next to her.

Ayla laughed. "No, I suppose not," she said with a smile. "But these two are permanent fixtures, and they are no burden." Then Ayla focused on her younger cousin. "Laurana, how long has it been?" she asked.

"How long has _what_been?" Ivanolia and Brulenzia asked in unison.

Laurana smiled at them, then looked at Ayla. "Not too long, but they are still sporadic."

"I need to take care of these two, but I would like to look at you afterward, if you do not mind."

"No, that is fine. Take your time," Laurana said. "I am okay."

Ivanolia's arm had been around Danie's waist, but now he was standing at his sister's side. "What is going on Laurana? What is sporadic?" he asked worriedly.

Brulenzia had the same confused look on his face, but suddenly comprehension dawned on him, and he smiled. "Is it time Laurana?" he asked.

"Time for what?" Ivanolia pressed. "What is going on?" It was obvious the man concerned.

Ayla looked at her cousin and smiled at his naiveté. "Laurana is close to her time, Ivan. Soon, your little sister will have her baby."

"Oh," the man said, suddenly draining of color. He did not like the idea of her giving birth. There was nothing he could do about it, and he knew it. That was part of the problem, he knew he could not save her if something went wrong, and he was desperately worried.

Ayla smiled at him again. "Don't worry, Ivan," Ayla said. "I will look her over carefully, after I feed these two, but you should relax. Having babies isn't _that_dangerous. Women do it every day." She squeezed the man's arm, then headed for the Mammoth hearth.

**xXx**

At Mammoth hearth, Ayla put her girls down on the bed platform, so that she could take off her pack. She was glad to be back at the earthlodge. Sleeping in a tent could get old, and she had been doing a lot of that lately. Ayla moved a few things around in her space, then pulled her tunic over her head, and crawled up onto the bed. Both girls waited patiently while she made herself comfortable, and when she finally offered a breast to each daughter, they settled in contentedly.

It wasn't an easy job, feeding both of them at the same time. They were both getting so big. Ora didn't really need to nurse anymore, but Ayla didn't mind whenever the child felt the need for closeness. With all the changes they had experienced as of late, she knew Ora needed some reassurance.

In fact, the last moon had been filled with new people, new places, _and_ new experiences, and that in itself was a little unsettling for Ayla, let alone her children. As her daughters suckled, Ayla thought about all they had done in the last moon. They had left the only people she had known as family, to go visit her true people. Despite the fact that they _were_going back to the clan at the end of the summer, it had been a difficult and scary adventure.

Then, the joy of their arrival at Oak Camp had been marred by Ivanolia's attitude, and their quick departure to Lion Camp. Ayla had been excited to be going to meet Lion Camp's clan boy, Rydag, but the continued travel made life exhausting, and the meeting of so many new people was overwhelming.

First there were the people of Oak Camp to get to know in only one day. For the most part, that had gone well, with the exception of Ivanolia's prejudice. But now that he had finally warmed up to her, she was no longer uncomfortable with the man, which made that part of this whole journey less tiring.

Then they met the people of Beech Camp, where they had to deal with more closed minded people, but that had actually gone okay too. There really had only been one hearth that had a problem with the Clan, and not even everyone within the hearth had the same feelings. There had been others that didn't talk to her, but Ayla still had hope that they just needed time.

Then, they came across some members of Pine Camp, which seemed initially suspicious, but more open. Part of that was the fact that Gredenzia, Oak Camp's Shogur, was related to Pine Camp's second in command, Zackodia. The other part of it was that there were only a few people there to have to convince. Ayla decided that for the most part, people were good, if only a little misguided.

It had been explained to her that it would be a long haul; that trying to convince people to change their beliefs was extremely difficult. Ayla knew that from her experience with the Clan. The Clan had even more problems with change. She hoped the Sungaea people would be more open to new ideas, and new people. The whole thought of trouble seriously frightened her, but she was willing to try, for the sake of the Clan _and_the Others.

And finally, they had arrived at Lion Camp, where there was not one member that seemed disturbed by her son and mate. That was mostly because they had Rydag living among them, but they were probably the most accepting people she had ever met. She was definitely happy among them, but that may be because they had spent more time with them than any other camp.

Ayla's thoughts were running wild as her daughters suckled, but slowly, all three of them drifted off to sleep.

**xXx**

When the work of storing all the meat was finished, Nezzie sent Latie around to tell everyone that the evening meal would be ready shortly. Latie was glad to be home, and skipped off to inform the people.

When she came to Talut, the man boomed. "Great! I have been wondering when we'd be eating."

Latie rolled her eyes, and hugged the man of her hearth. "You are always hungry, Talut." Then she looked at Grov, who was standing next to the headman. "Do you want to tell Ayla, or should I find her?"

"I will do it Latie," he said. "She went to Mammoth hearth to feed Annaliza, but she should be done by now." Latie smiled at the man, and he turned to go.

**XxX**

**The Evening Meal  
><strong>  
>The four young people finished up what they were doing in Mammoth hearth, and headed to the cooking hearth. The smell of roasting meat was enough to get most people ready for a meal, but <em>Nezzie's<em>roasts made one's mouth water, especially those who had been consuming traveling food for so long.

By the time Ayla arrived most people were settling themselves down, waiting for the headman's mate to tell them to get their plates. Darnev had been brought in and was made comfortable. The man had insisted on a position that was somewhat upright, making it easier for him to see everyone. His position made Ayla worry when she first entered the area, but after checking him over and making sure he had not torn a stitch, or anything else, she decided that it would be okay. Tulie and Barzec were sitting with their mate, along with Talut, Dreenie, Vincenzia and Darvie.

After Ayla was satisfied that the injured man was okay, she looked for Grov. He was with Wymez and Travec, and they seemed to be talking about the Other's ways of flint knapping. It was a subject that Grov was very interested in, though he rarely had someone as proficient as these two men to discuss it with.

Ayla then looked around for her son, found him with the other children his age, and smiled. Durc just happened to look up when she looked at him, and he smiled back. "Are you okay, Mama?" he gestured across the cooking hearth.

Ayla nodded to her son, grateful that he was so caring, and glad that he had not turned out like Broud; the way Broud had been, she thought. Her mind briefly thought about the man that had started her son growing in her, then wondered if men should be called some other name by their children, like women were called mother.

"Yes, my son," she signed back. "I am good. Are you having fun?" Durc nodded emphatically. Ayla was so glad that her son was fitting in; that they all were. She was still nervous about their acceptance among the Sungaea, but this was a good start. "Good. I am going to go help Rydag's mother with the evening meal. I will be back." Ayla gave her son one last look, then turned to go help Nezzie.

**xXx**

"Nezzie," Ayla said, as she walked up to the rotund woman. "Is there anything I can do?" Travie was cutting the last of the meat, and Nezzie was just finishing with something that Ayla did not recognize.

"Latie!" Nezzie said, swatting at her daughter's hand. "Wait to be called to the meal. Danug! Druwez! Out!" Nezzie watched Latie pout, and tried to look angry, but she was so happy that they were home from the hunt and safe. The three youngsters smiled, then walk out of the area.

Nezzie turned toward Ayla. "Of course Ayla. We are going to bring the food over to that bench," she said pointing. "You can help Travie with that, and I will go let everyone know that the feast is on." She smiled and handed Ayla a bowl.

Nezzie dipped her hands in to a bowl of water that was sitting near her cooking pipes, then dried her hands and went to get the people.

**xXx**

The woman stood in the space just behind where everyone was gathered. Conversation was running wild, and the noise level was pretty high. Several children were running around, playing games. Nuvie was in her mother's arms crying; she was tried. Laurana was talking to Tronie and Tralie, but was holding her belly, trying to finish her sentence without letting her brother know she was having a contraction. Nezzie looked at Ivanolia and could tell that he wasn't fooled; she saw the man elbow Brulenzia, and they watched her carefully, then went back to their conversation when Laurana's face returned to normal. Nezzie smiled, then cleared her throat. "Ah-ah-hum! Is there anyone that would like to eat?"

Silence descended upon the hearth, as people jumped up, all except Darnev of course. Ayla had just set down the last bowl, and looked up to see everyone watching her. She wondered what they were looking at, and went to join the mass of people waiting for the food.

It soon became apparent that everyone was waiting for something, but she didn't know what, and they were quite amused by her lack of understanding. Then it struck her . . . they were expecting her to go first, just like at Oak Camp. She wondered why she was first again, since there were several other female visitors; Travie, Darvie, Danie and Laurana. Ayla shrugged her shoulders, and picked up her plate.

Everyone waited for their visitors to fill their plates, then they all dug in, in no particular order. Talut heaped food on his plate, then went to get his skin of bouza, and went around pouring it generously.

"Ooo-hoo," Travec said with a smile. "Talut's pouring full cups of his drink. We better watch out!"

Ayla frowned at the cup of strong liquid, then drank it down. Grov watched her, knowing she didn't really like it, then drank his own as he ate.

Danie giggled. "Well, at least we have your secret tea for tomorrow morning," she said.

"Well, I'm not drinking any bouza," Laurana said. Then she leaned into Ayla and Danie and whispered, "These labor pains are uncomfortable enough without having a headache too."

"That is smart, Laurana," Ayla said. "There is no need to make it harder on yourself. And, your contractions are getting closer together, so it could be tomorrow. Do they seem regular yet?"

Laurana shook her head. "No, they just come every once in a while." She looked over at her brother and Brulenzia, who had gotten up to get more food. "But it's getting harder to hide them."

Ayla smiled. "Well, don't try to hide them from me, okay? I need to know when you need me."

"I won't, Ayla," Laurana promised.

"I don't think anyone could hide anything from Ayla anyway," Danie said. "You're always aware of who's doing what."

"Yes, and so are others," Ayla said nodding toward Ivanolia and Brulenzia. "Don't think you're fooling them; they're keeping a close eye on you."

Laurana looked over at the two men, saw them glance over at her, then say something to each other, and go sit with some others. Danie smiled, thinking that it was great that Laurana was loved so much.

**xXx**

As the meal ended, people started asking about the hunt. Everyone was curious about how Darnev had been injured so badly, and how the man had survived such an onslaught. They had all heard tidbits of the hunt and of the aurochs that had tossed the man like a doll, but even the ones that had been _on_the hunt did not know all the details, since not many had seen the incident, and no one had had time to really tell the tale while they were traveling.

"Well, let's start from the beginning," Nezzie said, knowing what most really wanted to hear. "We'll get to everything else soon enough," she went on. "Some of us don't even know how or when you all met up."

"Okay, Nezzie," Talut said. "You got it. Who wants to start?" The big headman looked around, his eyes resting on Latie, whose hand was raised. "Latie?"

"I saw their fire before anyone else did," she said. "It was getting dark and the light from the fire was so tiny, but we decided to keep going until we caught up." The girl was still thrilled that she had been allowed to go on the hunt; she had finally experienced what it would be like to be a woman.

"Yes, we were very surprised when Danug, Druwez and Latie ran into our camp," Ayla interjected.

Latie smiled. "I think Darnev was more surprised than anyone," she said.

"You are right Latie," the injured man said from his stationary position between Tulie and Barzec. "I was surprised that your mothers let you three come along. Not that it wasn't time," he went on. "I just mean that I didn't expect it."

Latie nodded. "Anyway, we had a good night," she said. "We all ate and drank by the fire, then went to bed so we'd be rested for the hunt."

The story was momentarily interrupted when Ora came stumbling in with Annaliza in her arms. The two blond, sleepy-eyed girls went to their mother. "We're hungry, Mamma," Ora said. Ayla got up to get some food for her three-year old, then settled her down in between herself and Laurana, and put the one-year old to her breast. Annaliza nursed some, but became interested in her sister's plate of food, and stopped to eat that instead. "Sorry," Ayla said.

"No, no," Nezzie said. "They need to eat too."

"So, in the morning, we discussed what animals had been seen, and we made our preliminary decisions as to which ones we'd go after," Tulie said.

"And after that," Talut went on. "We climbed up the hill to get a better view of the canyon." As Ayla listened she was continually amazed at how much everyone talked at Lion Camp. She had to keep turning from one person to the next to see who was putting in his or her part. This was so different from the Clan, where basically only one person would retell a story, or reinact it. This was also pretty different from Oak Camp, though she didn't have much experience with them to know that for sure. The Sungaea were open as well, but not so much as the Mamutoi.

"What happened next, Talut?" Durc asked expectantly. He was extremely interested in the hunt that had taken his mother away for a while.

Talut smiled at Ayla's son, then looked over at Rydag. Rydag's face had the same expression on it that Durc's had, making Talut suddenly realize that the child had always been speaking to them; they just had not understood his language. The man was suddenly filled with emotion for the boy that was Nezzie's youngest son.

"Well Durc, it was your mother that came up with the idea to come down into the canyon from on top of the hill. We usually box herds into canyons, so they have no way to get out, but this made it faster since we didn't have to worry about them turning around and stampeding back out." The headman smiled. "She suggested that some hunters stay up on the hill to wait, and then climb down to light fires after the herd went through, but before the rest of the hunters arrived."

"It was a brilliant plan!" Tulie said. Ayla blushed at the headwoman's praise and smiled, knowing that the woman did not praise often. "Barzec, Danug, Grov and Ayla took that canyon hill, and Talut, Darnev, Druwez and Latie hiked around to the other side."

"Then what, then what?" Brinan asked. He was tired of all the little details, and wanted to hear about how Darnev had been hurt. He didn't really care about the rest, just as many other seven year olds wouldn't.

Tulie smiled at her youngest son, and shifted her eyes to Ayla. "I guess Ayla will have to tell us about that part," she said. "None of us really saw it."

Ayla sat stunned for a moment. She hadn't realized that she would be expected to tell some of the story. She was no less nervous about telling this story as she had been when they first arrived and she had to tell about parts of her life. The whole 'center of attention' thing made her a little uncomfortable, but she swallowed and preceded to tell everyone what happened.

"Well, everyone had gone into the canyon, and Darnev and I were the last to come down our hills. At first I could not find him, but then I looked back farther and I saw the charging aurochs. He hadn't heard it coming because of all the noise from the hunt, but when I whistled and he turned around, there wasn't time for him to move." Ayla looked over at the man, who now looked a little pale, and smiled at him weakly. "Are you okay, Darnev?" she asked.

"Yes, I am fine," he reassured her. "I am just reliving that moment with all of you." The man smiled.

Ayla nodded, then looked back at everyone. "After it got to Darnev, I tried to keep the aurochs away with my sling, but I thank Ursus that Brulenzia, Tralie and Travec were there to help down that beast."

Ayla continued on with the story, including an explanation about how the Clan honored Ursus, the Great Cave Bear, just as they honored Sumata, the Great Earth Mother. As she went on, she worried that she was giving too many details to the people about the bloody scene, but they seemed to want to hear them. She finally decided that Lion Camp had tough stomachs, and that Darnev was very brave to listen to the gruesome tale about his goring.

"It was hysterical," Tornec said. "When we saw Talut come out of the tent, we hid, but no one could miss our thundering headman's response to all the meat being moved away from the fire." Tornec cleared his throat, and in his best Talut-booming voice, he continued, "WHAT IN THE GREAT EARTH MOTHER'S WORLD IS GOING ON OUT HERE?"

The camp of people laughed at Tornec's most accurate portrayal of their headman. Even Tulie laughed, which made Darnev start up as well. Ayla watched the man wince as he sucked in his breath for more laughter, then he held it so as not to hurt himself further. "Ayla," he said quietly when he had finally stopped laughing. "I think it's time for me to return to the hearth." Ayla nodded and smiled, and immediately directed Talut and Grov to get the man back to his bed.

This was everyone's chance to get up and stretch. Most stayed in the cooking hearth, but Ayla wanted to make sure Darnev was settled in properly, so she picked up a container of hot tea, put in her painkilling ingredients, then went down the long earthlodge corridor to Aurochs hearth. Tusie followed the woman, still unsure that Darnev was going to be alright.

Once there, Ayla poured the man a cup full, fluffed up his bedding, then sat down next to him for one last look. Darnev hardly needed her tea to fall asleep, he was exhausted just from the day's travel and the evening's get together. By the time she was ready to leave the hearth, he was nearly asleep.

Tulie walked Ayla back out into the passageway, and the two women paused briefly. "Is he _really_alright, Ayla," the headwoman asked.

Ayla nodded. "He will be fine Tulie. He lost a lot of blood, but the body seems to be able to make more of it. Darnev is a very lucky man. It is good that we were there to help him. Had someone noticed him even moments after we did, he would not have survived"

"Well then, it is you that we have to thank then, because you are the one that saw the aurochs coming, and you are the healer that took care of him," Tulie said.

"No Tulie, I cannot take full credit for saving Darnev. Everyone helped. I could not have done it without the water that was brought to me, the fire that was started for me, the assistance when stopping the bleeding and bandaging him. I did not come up with the idea for the stretcher; that was something invented by a member of my clan. I could not have built the shelter that you all built or carried him back. It was definitely a cooperative effort."

Tulie smiled, thinking that there was a lot more to this woman than what one could see on the outside. She truly did not believe that she should have all the credit. "Yes Ayla, you are right, but I will _always_remember what you have done for Aurochs hearth." Tulie leaned over and gave her a stiff hug, then went back to her hearth.

Ayla watched her go, thinking that she was pretty tired herself. The nap she had taken earlier had helped to get her through the evening meal, but exhaustion combined with Talut's bouza took everything out of her. She decided she would return to the cooking hearth, but only long enough to clean up and excuse herself.

**xXx**

After cleaning up, Ayla stood quietly, waiting for Grov to finish his conversation. He and some of the men seemed rather involved in another conversation about flint knapping, and she did not want to interrupt. When he finally noticed that she was just standing there waiting patiently, he waved her over.

"I think that I am going to sleep, if you do not mind," she asked. "I am so tired."

Grov hugged her. "Of course I do not mind, Ayla. I'm tired too, but I'm going to stay up and talk to Wymez, Travec and Danug about the Others' way of knapping flint. It is very interesting, and I would like to take the knowledge back to the Clan with us. Most of them probably won't use it, but I'd like to learn anyway."

Ayla smiled at him. "That sounds like a good idea. This woman would like to learn too, if it is okay for woman to learn this skill too."

"Ayla, Others women are allowed to do anything they want to. You do not have to ask around here. Just do what you want," he said. "Do you want to come learn some of it now?"

The woman smiled. She really did want to go, but she was so tired. "Maybe tomorrow, I really am tired. _But_, thank you. Do you mind keeping Ora up with you? She's not really tired yet, since she slept for so long."

"That's fine. She can just play with the other children. I will tell her not to wake you though," he said. He was going to tell her not to thank him, but decided against it; Clan ways were just too ingrained in her head. He kissed her softly, and she left for Mammoth hearth, taking Annaliza with her.

**XxX**

**Into the Night  
><strong>  
>Once within the confines of Mammoth hearth, Ayla changed Annaliza, and tucked her into the empty bed platform. The child unsuccessfully protested going to bed, but was already looking droopy by the time her mother had finished getting her ready. Ayla smiled down at her daughter, then went over to her own bed to change her clothes.<p>

Ayla tried to be as silent as possible, since Ivanolia and Danie's curtain was already closed, but conversation was inevitable when Brulenzia and Laurana entered the hearth. He was supporting her and she looked as though she had just had a labor pain.

"Ayla," he whispered with a worried expression on his handsome face.

Pulling her tunic back down over her head, Ayla turned around and went to the woman immediately. "How are you Laurana?" the medicine woman asked.

Laurana smiled. "I am fine," she answered. "Bru is more worried than I've ever seen him, but I'm thinking that it won't be too much longer." She smiled, but only for a second, because her face instantly transformed into a frown of pain. She leaned against her man, and took several deep breaths.

"Ayla?" Brulenzia said when his woman's pain had passed. He was suddenly even more worried about this than he thought he would be.

"Brulenzia, you know this is normal," Ayla whispered. "Don't worry, she is doing fine." Ayla patted his arm, and helped him lead Laurana to their bed platform. While the woman got comfortable, Ayla began heating up the tea that she had been sipping herself. As it warmed, Ayla added some willow bark, a mild painkiller, and raspberry leaf, which was especially relaxing during labor. When it was finished, she poured the young woman a cup full and handed it over.

After settling Laurana down with her tea, Ayla noticed that Brulenzia had no intention of leaving Laurana to do this alone. Ayla decided she would allow the man to examine his laboring promised, _if_ it was all right with her _and_if he wished to do so. But now that the time had come, he didn't want to.

"No," he said backing away slightly and shaking his head. "I will leave that to you, Ayla."

Ayla smiled and went about the exam. "You are right, Laurana, it will not be much longer. You are about this open," she said, holding up three fingers close together. "That is just about half way. By morning at least." Laurana smiled up at Brulenzia, then gritted her teeth as another contraction rippled across her abdomen.

**xXx**

For quite some time, the three of them sat there talking quietly in between contractions. They had not woken anyone yet, which surprised them. After all the worrying Ivanolia had been doing, they figured he would have been awake at the first groan, since he was only two beds over, but he wasn't. Ayla decided that that was good, and they continued to keep the noise down. Laurana was doing very well for someone so young.

The only other person to come into the hearth was Durc, but that was only to say good night to his mother, then he went to join Brenev on their sleeping platform in the passageway. Ayla watched him go, then looked over at Vincenzia and Darvie's bed. They must still be talking in the cooking hearth, she thought.

**xXx**

After what seemed like forever to Laurana, Ayla finally told her she could start pushing. Ayla arranged a birthing blanket beneath the woman, and prepared to help her into a squatting position with the next contraction. As her next pain began, so did her pushing.

Ayla held the young woman's hand and watched her face through the next few pains, then eased her back down and checked her again. "You are almost there, Laurana," Ayla said with a smile. "It should not be too much longer."

"Ayla," Laurana gasped, grabbing the medicine woman's hand again. "I am so tired." A single tear slid down her cheek. "I can't do this," she said desperately.

Ayla let go of her hand and touched her face. "Laurana, I know this is hard. I have done this twice, but you are doing very well. You _can_do this," she encouraged. "You have to." Ayla looked at Brulenzia. He looked nervous too.

"Laurana," he said. "Your baby is almost here. You can do it!" He was no longer whispering.

"_Our_. . . baby," she winced, eyes closed, as another one came on. When it was over, they eased her back again and she opened her eyes. "Ivan? What are you doing here?"

Ayla moved aside so that Ivanolia could take up his sister hand. "Are you okay, Laur?"

Instant tears began to fall, flooding both her cheeks. "I'm scared."

Ivanolia looked at Ayla and suddenly relaxed. He knew his sister was in good hands. He smiled at the healer, then at his sister. "You're doing great!" he said. As he spoke to her, her grip tightened on his hand, so he and Brulenzia pulled her into a squat again. "PUSH Laurana!" he commanded.

Ayla reached out to touch her as she pushed, then smiled. "Laurana, I can feel its head. Just a few more pushes and you'll have your baby."

Laurana relaxed as the pain subsided, and nodded her head. It was not long before the next one came, and she began pushing again. Danie sat on the edge of her bed, watching anxiously. She was more than a little nervous about her own time, which was quite a ways off. She watched Ivanolia and Brulenzia assist Ayla, and smiled. She definitely wanted Ayla to help her too. Then it suddenly occurred to her . . . Ayla would probably be back with the Clan when it was her time. She frowned. She didn't like that at all. She wondered if she could convince Ivanolia to travel to the Clan for _her_delivery, so that Ayla could help her too. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a flurry of activity in front of her.

"I have its head, Laurana," Ayla said excitedly. "One more push and it will come out." Laurana took a deep breath and pushed again, easing her new baby onto the birthing blanket. Ayla picked it up and wiped it clean. "You have a daughter, Laurana," Ayla said, handing the tiny girl to her mother.

Laurana smiled down at her baby, and then up at Brulenzia. "Look Bru, she has your dark hair. Brulenzia leaned over and kissed the woman's forehead, and looked at the baby. She did indeed have his hair.

Ivanolia backed off a bit, sitting next to Danie on their bed, trying to give his sister and Brulenzia some space. He took a deep breath, and continued to watch the scene. He put his arm around his woman and rested his head on her shoulder.

Ayla tied off the infant's umbilical cord and helped deliver the afterbirth, then cleaned Laurana off as best she could. Finally, she packed her with some absorbent padding and covered her up.

"I am going to go wash up, and make some more tea," Ayla announced, and got up to go. She was heading toward the cooking hearth, when Ivanolia grabbed her from behind and pulled her into his arms, and swung her around.

"Thank you, Ayla" he said into her hair. Ayla didn't know what to say, since he was still holding her tightly. She was caught completely off guard.

"Well, something has made this man happy," Grov said, coming up behind them. He had an old expression on his face.

Ivanolia instantly let go of Ayla and looked at his cousin's mate with a big grin. "Laurana has just had her baby, and they are both safe."

Grov smiled. "That is great," he said. Then he looked at Ayla and realized she needed to sit down. "Are you okay, Ayla?"

"Yes, I am just dirty and tired. I was going to go clean up and make tea."

Grov noticed that she had blood on her clothes, and momentarily felt like he should not be there. Then he remembered that the Others had no such restrictions about men being near the women that gave birth. He relaxed. "Well," he said. "I will go with you."

Ivanolia felt somewhat silly for swinging Ayla around, but he was just too happy. With a huge smile, he returned to Mammoth hearth.

**XxX**

**Laurana's New Little Girl  
><strong>  
>In the cooking hearth Ayla washed her hands, and then picked up a piece of leather, wet it and started wiping down her face.<p>

"Here, let me do that, Ayla. You can't see what you're doing," Grov said, taking the cloth and wiping her face gently. "I didn't even realize you were still awake. We were so intent on our flint knapping that we never heard a thing." He paused for a moment. Her eyes were closed as he wiped her face, and she was so beautiful; even dirty. When he was finished he went on. "Look what I made," he said, holding out the beautiful flint spear point that he had spent all night on.

Ayla looked at it carefully, but didn't reach out to take it. She smiled. "That is wonderful, Grov." He was holding it out for her to take, but she still didn't.

"Take it Ayla. I want you to feel it."

Gingerly, as if she thought it would bite her, she reached out her hand and took the small spear tip. It was hard and smooth, but warm. Grov's touch had warmed it. She smiled up at her mate. "This is beautiful, Grov; so smooth. You made this tonight?"

He nodded, then blushed. "Well actually, I started several of them, but I kept breaking them." He frowned. "This is the only one that I finally finished.

Ayla saw his embarrassment. "Are you going to make a spear like Wymez made for Danug, Druwez and Latie?" she asked, trying to steer the conversation away from his failure. She did not see his attempts at making the Others' spear points as failures, but she knew he did.

"I would like to, but Wymez says that he only made the points. I guess the son of his hearth carved the spear shafts."

"Ranec," Ayla said. "His name is Ranec."

"Yes, that's what he said," Grov said with a nod. "I wish he was here, so I could learn."

"What do you think of your mate's spear point?" Vincenzia said from behind them. "Isn't it perfect?"

Ayla turned around and smiled up at the man of her hearth. "It is. I have seen none better," she said, still holding onto the shaped flint.

"Grov says you are interested in learning this too. Maybe we can work on more of them after we get some sleep."

Ayla looked at her mate. Did he really not mind if she made hunting weapons? His expression told her everything; he did not mind. In fact, he was always telling her to do whatever she wanted. "Yes, I would like that, but I need some sleep. Did you hear that Laurana has had her baby?"

Vincenzia shook his head. "No, I did not. Vilognia and Serlona will be thrilled when we get to the summer meeting." The man turned around. "Darvie!" he called out to the woman who was still across the cooking hearth cleaning up the flint chips so no one would cut their feet. She came over quickly. "Laurana had her baby," he said, then he looked back at Ayla. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"She had a girl," Ayla answered.

"How is she doing?" Darvie asked. "And how is _Ivanolia_doing?" She giggled.

"Laurana is good. I left her with Brulenzia. They were just sitting there staring at the baby." Ayla smiled. "And Ivanolia was amazing. I would never have believed he could be so supportive, but he was invaluable. In fact, I would not have thought any man capable of helping a woman have a baby until Brulenzia helped me. Those two men encouraged her all the way. It was great!"

Darvie smiled. "I have learned that _that_is much more common among the Sungaea," she said grinning at her mate. "I had never actually seen a man attend the birth of his mate's child while living among the Mamutoi, except occasionally when the man was the camp's healer . . . but even then, usually another healer is sent for. It can be bad if something goes wrong, and there isn't someone else there. We know that all too well from our experience with Nemlora. Oak Camp didn't even have one healer then." She paused, a far away look in her eyes. "Anyway, you can imagine the shock I got when I was delivering Crisanie and Vincenzia wanted to be there to help." She grinned up at her mate and he at her. "But, I was ready for it when it came time for Brenev."

"You certainly were," he commented.

"Well, I thought it odd when Brulenzia wanted to examine Ayla during Anna's birth," Grov said, remembering the real reason why it had bothered him. "And the men of the Clan were downright put off by a man doing a woman's job, but I can see that it helps many women to have their mates there," Grov said.

Ayla giggled. "Do you remember when Goov had to help Ovra?" she asked her mate. He nodded. Ayla turned back to Vincenzia and Darvie still laughing. "I felt so bad for the man. Ovra went into labor in the middle of the night, and he did not have time to get help. They delivered her son, and he came to get me. He was covered in blood and he could hardly tell us what had happen. It turned out that his mate had a second baby when I got to the hearth. I'm afraid Goov was traumatized, but it's a good thing it was him and not some other man," Ayla finished.

"Why?" Darvie asked.

"Because Goov is our Mog-ur, like your Mamut," Ayla said. "He was probably the only man that could have handled it . . . aside from Grov . . . and maybe Vorg, when he grows up. I think being mixed makes them more able to accept change."

"Oh," Darvie said, nodding her head. "Well, let's go see the new mother and baby." Vincenzia nodded and they started for Mammoth hearth.

**xXx**

When they got there Mamut was sitting on his bed platform holding Annaliza. Ivanolia was sitting on Grov and Ayla's bed talking to Brulenzia, and Danie was sitting next to the nursing new mother. Darvie went and sat down with the two women, and started cooing to the new baby.

Ayla went to Mamut. "I am sorry, Mamut. I did not mean for you to have to hold her." Ayla felt bad for making the old man have to work.

"It was not a problem Ayla. I like babies, and she was a very good girl." He handed the child to her mother. "And besides, Danie offered to take her, so do not feel bad." Ayla sighed her relief and smiled at the old man.

"Oh Vincenzia," Darvie said. "Come look at her. She is so cute." Vincenzia had just taken Annaliza from her mother's arms, but he went to sit on the bed to see the new baby. Annaliza was very interested.

"Baby, Mamma," she said. "Tiny baby."

"Yes, Anna, she is very tiny. She is a new baby. Just like Teglodia. Do you remember Teglodia?" Annaliza shook her head, and stared with wide eyes at the newest member of Oak Camp.

"So, what will you call her, Laurana?" Danie asked. Ayla had been wondering that too, but didn't know if she should ask. She was glad that someone else had asked for her.

Laurana looked over at Brulenzia, who had looked up at the mention of the child's name. "I have decided to call her Bruana," she said. "That way I can bring in both Brulenzia's name and my own. What do you think?" she asked looking directly at the man she loved.

"I think it is perfect," he replied.

**xXx**

They spent a little more time talking, but soon everyone was yawning. It was nearly morning, and many would soon be waking up. Old Mamut had melted into the background a while back, but he was watching the young people as they rejoiced the new life.

Ivanolia placed a kiss on the forehead of his sister and her daughter. "She is beautiful, Laur." He touched the baby's dark brown hair, and smiled at how dark it was. They could not tell what eye color the child would have yet, but Ivanolia was sure it would be some shade of blue. He gave them one last smile, then he climbed back under his own furs with his mate.

Vincenzia and Darvie quietly retreated, but not before the man hugged and kissed Laurana. "Your mother and my brother will be so happy for you," he said. Then he turned toward Ayla and Grov, and put one arm around each of them. "Good night you two," he said lovingly. Then he followed Darvie to their sleeping place and disappeared behind the curtain.

Grov watched him go with a strange smile on his face. Ayla wondered what her mate was thinking as the man changed his clothes and slid into bed, but she did not ask. Once Grov was in bed, he lay there patiently, waiting for Ayla to nurse Annaliza and put her back down. The child wanted to stay up again, and Ayla knew she'd be up early, but Ayla needed some rest right now, so she didn't give in to the child's pleas.

Then Ayla finally crawled in beside her mate, and closed their drape. Behind their curtain, he pulled her close and kissed her deeply. "I am so proud of you Ayla," he said. "You were always a good woman of the Clan, and you are a good Others woman too. Any camp would be lucky to count you among them."

Ayla smiled in the darkness. "I was not always a good Clan woman, Grov. I was often defiant when I was younger."

"That does not matter," he said. "You had a lot to deal with then, and it was not all your fault. You know that."

"You are right," she agreed, then she remembered his strange smile. "What were grinning about earlier?"

It was his turn to smile into the darkness. "I was so nervous about going to meet the people you were born to." He lowered his voice. "After meeting Ivanolia I did not think that they would like me. It was hard at first, and I am sure that there will still be trouble at the summer meeting, but it means everything that Vincenzia accepts me as your mate. And I now know that, for the most part, people are good."

Ayla knew that it took a lot for any man of the Clan to admit something akin to fear, even an _Others_man would have trouble with that, she thought. Ayla rolled over and kissed him. "I know that it has been hard on you, Grov. It has been hard on me too, but this woman thanks you for being willing to do this for me; for putting what I want over what makes you nervous. I will never forget what a wonderful mate you are. Thank you."

Though he was exhausted, and so was she, Grov slipped his hand under her sleeping tunic, and fondled her breast. Ayla responded with like passion, and reached for her mate's manhood. They had not had much time for pleasures during the last few days, and it felt good to have their desires met at last.

**xXx**

The last two of Mammoth hearth to go to sleep, didn't do so for a while. Brulenzia and Laurana sat up staring at the new little life that had been given to them by the Great Earth Mother. They counted her fingers, they counted her toes. Brulenzia ran his large finger down the child's tiny little nose, and watched her involuntary response of wiggling her head to rid herself of what was tickling her. The man smiled. Laurana stroked her daughter's hair, and wrapped a ringlet of darkness around her finger, then leaned down to smell the child's baby scent. They were very content.

As they finally drifted off to sleep, the sun was already rising outside. They were completely unaware that they had been up all night. Their joy had gotten them through the night. Though they knew they would have some tired days ahead, it did not matter, they would not be following the sun's schedule for a while.

**XxX**

**Midday  
><strong>  
>It was near midday when Laurana woke up to the whimpers of her new baby. The new family had slept all nestled together, and the baby had felt as though she was still inside her mother's womb. That is until she felt the emptiness within her stomach. That was when the child woke up and decided to let her mother know she needed to be fed.<p>

Laurana opened her eyes, and brought her child to her breast. Bruana fussed only for a moment, then found her mother's nipple and suckled. Laurana gazed at the child as if she could not believe her baby was finally in her arms. "She's beautiful, Laurana," Brulenzia whispered. Laurana looked up at him as he leaned to kiss her.

**xXx**

Ayla awoke to Ora and Annaliza pulling their curtain aside and crawling up onto the bed platform. "Mamma, we're hungry," they said in unison.

Ayla smiled at her daughters. "Shhhhh, Laurana had her baby and they are sleeping," she said in a hushed voice.

"She is so small," Annaliza said to Ora. "I saw her last night."

"Yes, she is very small," Ayla agreed.

Ora pouted. "That's not fair. I want to see her too." Her voice was shrill.

"Ora, you will have to wait, and you need to be quiet," Ayla said. "They are not awake yet. Let's get you dressed."

"But I want to see her now, Mamma. And I don't want to get dressed yet." Ora was speaking quieter, but she still wasn't whispering, and she had her arms folded over her chest in protest. Ayla couldn't help but smile at the girl. She picked her up and kissed her cheek.

Grov opened his eyes. "When they wake up Ora. Right now you need to be quiet," he said calmly. "And you should not talk back to your mother," he gestured. Ora continued to pout as Ayla dressed her, but she didn't say anything else. Annaliza didn't want to get dressed either, but she also didn't want to be scolded by Grov, so she did as she was told.

"I guess I will go get these girls some food," Ayla signed, then leaned over to kiss Grov. Grov was still lying sleepily in their bed, but he sat up to kiss her back. "Then I better go check on Darnev. Do you want me to bring you some food?"

"No, I'll be up soon. I'll have some tea when I get up." Grov was quiet, but he spoke out loud. "Is anyone else in here up?"

Ayla glanced around Mammoth hearth. "Vincenzia and Darvie are gone," she said. "And Ivanolia and Danie too, but Laurana and Brulenzia are still in bed. I'm not sure about Mamut."

"We are still here," Laurana said quietly from behind their curtain. Brulenzia pulled it open to reveal that they were indeed still in bed. "I was so tired."

Grov pulled his curtain open on the side and smiled at them. "I am sorry if the girls woke you, Laurana."

"They did not wake us. We were already awake. Bruana woke us just a bit ago."

Ora began struggling to get down, and Annaliza had already made her way over to the bed that contained the new little one. Brulenzia grabbed the one year old and hoisted her up so that she was sitting in his lap, just next to Bruana. Ayla finally smiled. "I guess food will have to wait for a while," she said as she set Ora down on the end of their bed, then went around to see the baby for herself.

Ora frowned. "She has black hair," she said, eyeing the child strangely.

Laurana laughed. "That's because Brulenzia has very dark hair, Ora. She is his daughter too."

Ora looked skeptical. "Brulenzia is the baby's mother too?" she asked, obviously confused.

Laurana smiled. "Well no, but Bruana is just a much a part of _him_as she is of me. Right Ayla?"

Ayla nodded, which seemed to quell Ora's questions. Then, Ora reached out and touched the baby's cheek, causing her to turn her head toward the older child. "Can I hold her?"

Laurana smiled. "Sure you can. Come sit next to Anna, and I will put her in your lap." Ora did as she was instructed, and once settled down, Laurana put Bruana in her lap. Bruana lay there quietly for a moment, then decided she wasn't comfortable anymore and began to cry.

"Why is she crying? I didn't hurt her, did I?" Ora asked.

"No, you did not hurt her, but she wants her mother," Grov said. "You were just like that when you were a baby."

Ora smiled. "I was?" Grov nodded.

Ayla smiled at her daughter. "Okay girls, let's go get something to eat," Ayla started to say, but she was interrupted by several children that were coming in to see the new baby. Crisanie and Braydalana were the leaders, but Caylie, Corlie, Tusie and Rugie were with them too.

"Just a quick look girls," Laurana said with a smile. "_But_, maybe it's time for me to get up and show everyone our new baby." Laurana looked at Brulenzia and he grinned at her.

"I better check you over first," Ayla said. Then turning to the new arrivals she continued on. "Just a _quick look_girls, then you'll have to wait like everyone else."

Crisanie and Braydalana held each other's hand as they came forward to see their new little cousin. "Oooo, look at her Bray," Crisanie squealed. "She looks just like Teglodia."

Braydalana smiled and touched the baby's tiny hand. "Look at all that hair. And it's so dark."

"She does have a lot of hair, doesn't she?" Laurana said, looking down at her daughter. "More than I've ever seen on a new baby. _But then_, look at the man of her hearth." She smiled up at Brulenzia, then touched his long dark hair. Everyone grinned.

The other four girls were standing around smiling at the baby, but couldn't really get too close because there were just too many people in the small space. "Okay girls," Ayla said. "Time to let Laurana get herself out of bed. Would you take Ora and Anna to the cooking hearth?" As she spoke, Ayla picked up Ora and handed her to Braydalana, then she reached for Annaliza and gave her to Crisanie. "We will _all_go to the cooking hearth shortly." The girls looked disappointed, but they did as they were told.

Once the girls had cleared out, Grov and Brulenzia dressed and left too so that Ayla could examine Laurana and the baby. "Everything seems good, Laurana," Ayla said. "I'll wait for you while you get dressed."

Laurana put Bruana down and pulled her sleeping tunic over her head, then wiggled into a pair of clean pre-pregnancy leggings. "These didn't used to be so tight."

Ayla smiled. "They won't be for long," she said patting her own once-again-flat tummy.

Laurana looked at her sleeping daughter and nodded. "Ayla, I cannot wait for Jendoza to see her," she exclaimed excitedly. "Will we be leaving for the summer meeting soon?"

Ayla frowned. "I think so. I know everyone is looking forward to going. I am too, but I'm a little nervous . . . about . . . well, you know. _And_, I don't want to leave Darnev too soon."

"It's been five days since Darnev's injury. Is he really going to be okay?"

Ayla nodded. "Yes, he will be fine, just as long as his wounds don't get infected, and they are looking good. I will check him again today, and every day that we are still here." Ayla paused. She looked upset.

"Don't worry, Ayla, Oak Camp will all be there to back you up," Laurana said, changing the subject. "And don't forget we have most of Beech Camp on our side, and probably Pine Camp too," Laurana said reassuringly, then she smiled. "Besides, if we can turn that stubborn brother of mine, then we should be fine." She picked up her tunic and put it on.

Ayla smiled back at her cousin. "I suppose so. How many camps are there anyway?"

Laurana frowned. "Hummmm, let me think. Twelve or thirteen."

"That's a lot." Ayla looked worried. "Are you sure we can convince them?"

"Well, I'm not _sure_, but there will be others that will back us up too. Not just the ones we already know about. Elm Camp is close to Pine Camp, so they should be supportive. Same thing with Hill Camp and Banyan Camp. They both have relatives at Beech Camp, _and_they live nearest Clan territory."

"Couldn't their locations close to the Clan actually make them hate us more?"

"That's possible too," Laurana said sadly. "But most people hate out of fear. Once they meet you and your family, they'll come around. I just know it." Laurana sure sounded positive.

"You are right my dear," came a voice behind the two women. It was Mamut. He had been sitting inside his space, curtain closed, meditating. "Many people hate out of fear, but I have a feeling you will get through this." The old man paused. "_Though_, don't get me wrong Ayla; it will be a difficult path."

"Mamut, are you saying that people _will_accept us, in the end?" Ayla asked.

The man didn't answer her question, but cocked his head instead. "We will talk later, Ayla. I have seen many visions that involve you." He was looking deep into her eyes. "Right now, everyone is waiting for the three of you," he said, shifting his eyes to Laurana as he waved his hand at them. "Go introduce Bruana to Lion Camp," he finished.

Laurana smiled and picked up her baby. Ayla eyed the old man suspiciously, but walked out with her cousin anyway. Mamut followed them.

What is that old man thinking, Ayla wondered silently? What kind of visions had Lion Camp's mamut been having? And what did they have to do with her?

**XxX**

**Another Exam for Darnev  
><strong>  
>Lion Camp was busy with their usual pre-summer meeting routine. Many people were getting his or her pack together for the journey to Amber Camp. They still didn't know when they would be leaving; they were waiting for Darnev's clear from Ayla. She had already guaranteed his survival, but she wanted to give him just a few more days of recovery before she left with her Oak Camp family to attend their own meeting, not to mention before he was out traveling again.<p>

Ayla on the other hand, was torn between wanting to stay with her patient, and wanting to move on to the Sungaean summer meeting. True, Darnev would be fine, and she could even send a runner to check on him if she really wanted to, but she was starting to wonder if there was more to her worry than just her patient. She did want to be reintroduced to her mother's people, but her fear about their possible lack of acceptance of her family and herself, marred whatever joy an introduction _could_bring. Whichever way she looked at it, it could go badly, and she didn't want that.

**xXx**

When Ayla and Laurana appeared, the new mother was instantly surrounded by well wishers. Ayla hovered over her cousin for only moment, then stood off to the side talking to Deegie while all the women cooed at Bruana and congratulated Laurana.

"So, how is Darnev this morning, Deegie?" Ayla asked. "I am going to go see him as soon as I have eaten."

"He seemed good to me, but it is hard to tell with him, because he is so happy all the time." Deegie smiled. "Mother is so serious, so I think it's good for her that he's not."

"Yes, I agree" Ayla said, glancing over at the big headwoman. The woman was fixing a plate of food that Ayla presumed was for Darnev. "Tulie is a very serious woman, and it is good for her that he can find humor in something so frightful. It is good for both of them." Ayla smiled at the headwoman's daughter. "I also think that Darnev's attitude has helped him to heal faster. It is still going to be a while, and he may never have full use of his leg, but he will be fine in the end."

"It would have been awful to have lost him," Deegie said sadly. "That would have been _really_serious, but we were lucky that you were here, Ayla." She smiled appreciatively at her new friend. "Mother would have been a different person if Darnev had died. I know she would still have Barzec, but he is more serious, like her. Let's go get something to eat, so you can go check on him."

Ayla smiled and followed Deegie over to the morning meal that Nezzie, Travie and Dreenie had made. "I can understand that, Deegie. The Clan is very serious too. They do not laugh or smile, and there is no joking with them." Ayla glanced over at her mate. "Grov has brought much happiness to my life that was not there before. I do not know what I would do if I lost him." Ayla paused again, and Deegie waited, knowing the young woman had more to say about the Clan. She liked learning about them and about what Ayla's life had been like before she had been found by her family. "Don't get me wrong though, the Clan does have humor. They are just much more subtle about it."

"They really don't smile, or laugh," Deegie asked, with a frown. "Laughter brings so much joy. I do not know what life would be like without laughing and smiling."

Ayla was shaking her head. "No, they don't, and they did not like it when I smiled." Ayla had a far off look in her eyes. She was obviously thinking back to a time long ago, but she didn't continue on with her thoughts.

Then, when she was ready, she looked up at Deegie again. "To them, the expression that we call a smile, which is done when we are happy about something, is the same expression that they give when they are angry or nervous. That is the only time that the Clan will bare their teeth."

"That must have been very difficult for you, Ayla," Deegie said, piling food onto her plate. "Smiling comes so natural to us. Even new babies smile shortly after they are born."

"Yes, it was difficult. I used to have to try and stop myself from smiling. Many times I forgot and made some of them angry. They just didn't understand." Ayla shook her head. "They still don't understand, but they have learned that it is just my way . . . I wonder what the next Clan gathering will be like. Our clan is much different than it was for the last gathering. We have many new people, some not very clan-like. It could be very hard for us."

"When is the next gathering," Deegie asked.

"They are every seven years. The last one happened the summer after I had Durc. So, the next one will be the summer after next." Ayla smiled. "We caused quite a stir then, but that was nothing compared to what we will do the next time."

Deegie frowned. "Why?"

"The other clans did not like that Brun brought me, one of the Others, to the Clan gathering. Some of them did not even want us to stay, and they didn't want to believe that I was a medicine woman of Iza's line, let alone a medicine woman at all," Ayla said, then took a bite of her morning meal. Then seeing Deegie's confusion she went on. "Iza was the woman that raised me as her own, like Nezzie is to Rydag. She was the Clan's first ranked medicine woman, but she was too old and sick to go to the meeting that year, so I took her place. I think Brun was nervous that they weren't going to let us stay. I was nervous . . . but a man would never show it. They did let us stay, so it was not a problem, but it was quite a trial. I was . . . eleven then, and Durc was a new baby. When they saw my son, they wondered why a child so deformed had been allowed to live. The Clan does not think well of mixed children either, Deegie."

Deegie had not really understood that last part until that moment. Her people had shunned Nezzie for keeping and raising Rydag. They had considered him an abomination of mixed spirits, but being a woman of high status, as well as being mated to Lion Camp's Talut, Nezzie had proudly put her nose up at the stigma she had had to endure. She was a strong woman. However, the name-calling and more had affected Rydag far worse. Nezzie had just ignored the stupidity of the ignorant, but Rydag had had to listen to comments about his own lack of humanity for as long as he had been alive. Many didn't think he understood what they said, but now Lion Camp knew that he did; that he always had. It was embarrassing to know that she, the daughter of a headwoman, had never done anything to stop the prejudice.

_Now_, knowing that the Clan felt relatively the same way about these mixed people, she was even more sad. People had commented on many occasions that they should just find some _flatheads_ to take the boy, but now Deegie knew that _that_option would not have been better for Rydag than staying with them. Basically, there was no place for people like her young cousin.

"How is your clan different now," she finally asked, then scooped the last bite of her meal into her mouth.

"Well, leadership was passed on to Broud about two years ago," she replied. "But, he was not a good leader and we lost our cave in an earthquake, so we had to move. Then, we found Grov's people, or maybe I should say they found us. They lost their cave in that same quake and only ten of them survived. Ora's mother was one that died, so Grov was all alone caring for her. _That_, in itself, was very different for the Clan. Clan men _never_raise children alone."

"That must have been strange for your clan to see," Deegie said smiling.

"Yes, it was. We actually weren't with the rest of our clan when they came upon us, but Brun allowed them to come back with us. He knew Broud wouldn't like it, but also that he would have no choice but to accept them; they were Clan and that is the Clan way." Ayla took a deep breath as she recounted the events that changed her clan.

"Then, when we finally got back to the rest of the clan, we found that there were nine others there too. My son had been promised to a girl named Ura at the previous clan gathering, and her people had journeyed to find us. The earthquake had been far reaching, and they lost many too. So then, our cave of . . . twenty-five, became forty-four, all in a matter of days. _And_, we were caveless. It was a very scary and unsure time."

"I bet it was," Deegie said. "What happened next?"

"Well first, Brun took leadership back from Broud, since he was so terrible," Ayla said with a smile, then she grimaced. "He had just beaten his mate, and Brun had had it. _Then_, we found a huge cave, and Brun gave me to Grov. And since then, we have added many children to the cave; seven new babies in two years. That is a lot for the clan. So now we have . . . fifty-one people; one man that appears to be mostly Others, Grov, one woman that _is_Others, me, two children that appear to be Others, Ora and Anna, and three children that are obviously mixed, or deformed as most clan people think. It will be a difficult gathering for our clan. I am not sure if we will still be rank first when it is over."

"That _will_be hard, but why go with them, Ayla?" Deegie asked her. "I mean, you've found your family now. Why not just stay with them?"

Ayla frowned. "Yes, you are right, I have found my birth people, but I have family with the Clan too. The daughter of the woman who raised me is like my sister. I would not like to miss the growing up of her sons, or other children she may bear later. There are many that I am close to there, including the leader's mate. Ebra has always treated me well; she has even been like a mother in the last few years, and Durc is going to be their leader someday. I may have been born Sungaean, but I am also Clan." Deegie nodded. She knew that if she suddenly found out she belonged to some other people, she would always belong to Lion Camp of the Mamutoi.

Deegie and Ayla continued to talk for a little longer. Deegie learned a great deal about Ayla and her Clan, and her opinion of her new friend went up even more. Ayla was truly an amazing woman.

Finally, they finished up and cleaned their plates. Then both young women headed for the passageway to go check on Darnev. As they walked by, Ayla patted Laurana's arm and smiled. _Then,_she glanced over at Grov. He was, once again, sitting with the people that were working flint. She smiled at him, signaled where she was going, then left the hearth with Deegie.

**xXx**

As the two women approached Aurochs Hearth they could hear a minor argument in the works. "I am _not_going to just lie around all day doing nothing," came Darnev's voice.

"We are not asking you to do _nothing_Darnev," Barzec said. They could hear the frustration in the man's voice. "We just want you to rest so that you will recover."

"I cannot just stay in bed and wait to get better. You know me better than that," Darnev argued.

Ayla and Deegie looked at each other, then back down the passageway; Tulie was coming. Ayla nodded toward the hearth, and the two women entered. "Good morning," Ayla said, trying to sound cheerful. Darnev was sitting completely upright, which caused the medicine woman some concern, but he didn't appear to be in any pain. "How are you both today?" she asked.

"I am feeling great," Darnev said at the same time that Barzec said, "Shouldn't he be lying down?"

Ayla looked from one man to the other, and then up at Tulie as she stepped through the hearth entrance. The headwoman saw immediately that there was a problem. She looked at her co-mates, then put down Darnev's tray of food. "What is going on in here, and why are you sitting up, Darnev?" she asked.

Barzec raised his brow and folded his arms across his chest. "Darnev is refusing to relax."

Darnev smiled at the man who was pouting like a child. "Tulie," he said gently. "You know that I cannot just sit around waiting to get better. That is just not _me_."

The big headwoman looked at her injured mate and then at her other mate. "No Darnev," she began. "We know that it is not like you to just sit around, but you gave us quite a scare." She sat down next to him on the bed, and took his hand. "We are so happy that Ayla saved your life, but we don't want to jeopardize your health. Can't you understand that?"

Still holding onto Tulie's hand, the man looked deep into the woman's eyes, then looked over at Barzec. He still had his arms folded, but he was watching them intently. Darnev sighed. He knew that these two people loved him like no one else did, and now he felt bad for worrying them. "I am sorry," he said, holding out his free hand to his co-mate.

A look of relief crossed Barzec's face, then he came forward and took Darnev's hand. "We are not trying to punish you, Darnev."

Darnev smiled at them. "I know you are not, but this is so hard."

Tulie reached out with _her_free hand and took Barzec's hand from across the bed to form a triangle. "We are lucky that you are still with us," Tulie said. "I do not understand why we have been given this second chance, but I thank Mut that we have." Tulie looked up at Ayla, who was standing with Deegie, watching silently. "We were lucky that Ayla was there, that she is still here to help us."

Ayla smiled, knowing that _that_was her cue to come forward. "I am glad to be here to help out where I can," Ayla said. "Now, if you would not mind, I would like to examine this man that refuses to rest." Everyone in Aurochs Hearth grinned, but Darnev laughed heartily.

Tulie and Barzec stood up and backed away. "By all means," Tulie said. "We will clear out so that you can examine Darnev in peace." She and Barzec smiled, then left the hearth. Deegie smiled at the injured man of her hearth, then followed her mother out.

Darnev watched them go, then turned to Ayla. "Please tell me that I can move around a little. It is getting difficult to sit still."

Ayla smiled at him. "Well Darnev, tell me, how much pain are you in?" she asked.

"I am fine," he replied, causing Ayla to shake her head.

"Darnev, you have to tell me the truth," she scolded. "I come from people that are incapable of telling untruths, so I can see when you say things that are not true."

Darnev sighed. "Okay, it hurt when I sat up, but the pain has subsided, and I feel fine right now."

Ayla eyed him suspiciously, then nodded. "That's better," the medicine woman said with a smile. "Now, let me look you over, so I can see for myself that you _feel_fine."

Darnev held his arms up. "Do your worst."

Ayla then proceeded to take off the man's bandages, and clean his wounds. This time he didn't even wince as she applied pressure. She started with the more serious wounds on his leg and torso, but removal of those bandages only showed injuries that were healing perfectly. She then rewrapped both wounds and moved on.

Ayla looked at his head wound next, and was more than thrilled to see that it was healing very nicely as well. "You head is healing well. I don't think you need this anymore," she said, deciding that the bandaging on his head did not need to be replaced. She left it off, and went on to his face.

Grasping his face gently in her hand, she turned the man's head from left to right, and smiled. His once angry purple bruises, which had turned blue and then a reddish color just a day ago, had now faded to that sickening yellow color that showed up just before they disappeared all together. She smiled again. "How does your face _feel_?

"The swelling has been annoying, but now that it has gone down, I feel nothing," he answered.

"That is good," Ayla said, then the experienced medicine woman removed his arm cast, which had loosened up naturally as the swelling in the man's arm went down, and replaced it with a new one. Finally, she moved on to his leg. The cast still looked good, so she only adjusted it's wrapping. She was extremely pleased with all that she saw. "I think that you are healing with remarkable speed, Darnev."

"That is very good to hear, though I must admit that I already knew that," he said with a huge grin. "I mean, I'm not a healer or anything, but I could just tell that I was going to be fine. And I will tell you this now . . . I will be walking on this leg again," he said, patting his injury. "This will not stop me."

Ayla smiled at him. "Why do I believe you, Darnev?" she questioned with a smile.

Darnev shrugged his shoulders, then looked at her seriously. "Now tell me, is there any _real_reason that would force me to remain in bed? I cannot stand this!"

Ayla looked at him closely. "No Darnev, you do not have to stay in bed, but you still have to be careful. This is not over, and you could still damage yourself on the inside if you do not watch what you do. I will tell Tulie and Barzec that it is okay to sit up, and even to move around the hearth, but you must request help from them, or others." Ayla paused for a moment, then continued. "I am _ordering_ you not to do anything by yourself. It is not good for you, _and_it worries your co-mates." The man nodded.

"Thank the Mother!" came Barzec's voice from behind them. He and Tulie were standing there listening. "And tell him we'll have to restrain him if he doesn't listen to a healer's orders."

Ayla grinned at the man, and excused herself. Tulie was giving Darnev a stern look, but raised a thankful brow at Ayla as she passed by. Ayla could tell that the headwoman was pleased, and that Darnev and Barzec were as well.

**XxX**

**Ayla and Mamut's Chat  
><strong>  
>After leaving Aurochs Hearth, Ayla and Deegie headed back to the cooking hearth. "I think you handled them very well, Ayla," Deegie said.<p>

Ayla smiled. "Darnev is a fighter; he has a will like no other, I am sure."

"That's what mother always says," Deegie replied. "But he can be careless sometimes. Barzec is much more careful."

"I can see that he is, and that he is very concerned about Darnev's health," Ayla said. "He is a good mate; all three of them are."

Deegie smiled. "Yes, the three of them work well together. Not many people can stay mated for so long like they have. I am not sure _I_could deal with two mates." She paused. "But then, I don't even have one mate yet, so what do I know."

"I'm sure you know plenty, Deegie," Ayla said. "You know yourself pretty well, right?"

Deegie nodded. "I think so, yes."

"Well then, if you think you could not have more than one mate, then you should not do it." When they came to Mammoth Hearth, Ayla stopped and looked at Deegie. "Deegie, what is it like to have two men of your hearth?"

Deegie shrugged. "It is normal to me; it is all that I have ever known. It works for mother . . . why?"

"Well, I have not ever heard of a woman having two mates before. In the Clan only a man can have two mates, and even that does not happen often; usually only when there is a woman that has no mate. The Clan believes that if an unmated woman has a baby, then the baby will be unlucky, so every woman is given to a man when she becomes woman. If there are no unmated men available, then one of the mated men will have to take her."

"Is that how you came to be given to Grov?" Deegie asked.

"Well, sort of," Ayla said with a frown. "But, from the moment that I met him, I liked him, and he liked me. I think Brun was happy to give me to someone that I liked, and that liked me. He would never say so, but I'm almost certain of it," Ayla said with a smile. She looked dreamy for a bit, then focused on Deegie. "When I was pregnant with Durc, no one wanted me. And when he was born, they _really_didn't want me. I didn't really care then, but I am happy to have Grov now. I did not know I could be so happy."

As they passed by Mammoth hearth Ayla looked inside to see Mamut sitting alone on his bed platform again. He opened his eyes and saw the two women pass. Something about the man's look made Ayla want to go talk to him.

"Deegie, I think I am going to go talk to Mamut. Do you mind?" Ayla asked.

"No, that's fine," she replied. "I want to go see Laurana's new baby again anyway." Ayla watched Deegie head for the cooking hearth, then she entered Mammoth hearth. Old Mamut had his eyes closed again, and Ayla stood there watching him. She knew that _he_knew she was there, so she just waited patiently.

"I was wondering when you would come see me," the old man said with his eyes still closed.

Ayla smiled and went to sit on the bed platform next to his. "Hello Mamut," she said.

The man shifted his body and looked at the young woman. "How is Darnev today?"

"He is doing very well. I suspect that he will not be needing his casts for too long." She looked at Lion Camp's Mamut, and wondered why she felt so drawn to him. She sat silently, waiting for him to continue.

"And Laurana?" he asked.

"She is good too," Ayla replied. "She will have some tired days and nights, but the baby is healthy and Laurana came through the delivery quite well." Ayla waited. It felt like a long wait.

"You will be leaving us soon," Mamut stated. It was not really a question.

Ayla eyed him strangely. "_Yes_, as soon as we can. I think Darnev is safe now, and everyone wants to get to the Sungaea summer meeting. I'm sure you will be leaving soon too."

Mamut was nodding. "Yes, yes, we too need to leave. How long before it is safe to travel with Darnev?"

"I think you could leave anytime," she replied. "Darnev is such a fighter, and he is ready to go, but it will be up to strong men, _or_ women, to carry him there on a stretcher. Speaking of which, Mamut, you could be carried there the same way. There is no need to walk if you do not have to, _and_it's rather comfortable."

The old man grinned. "Hummm, I suppose that is a good idea." Mamut sat quietly for a moment. "How is Rydag doing?"

Ayla frowned. "He is not good, Mamut," Ayla answered with honesty typical of the Clan. "His medicine keeps him relatively comfortable and lessens the swelling, but it is not a long term fix. It worries me greatly to leave him."

"Well Ayla, staying here won't really _help_him. . . you already said that you'll have to go back to the Clan to ask the other medicine woman to search her memories for something that will work better than what you have given him."

"Yes, Mamut," Ayla said with a worried frown. "But it will be nearly a year before I can return. _That's_what worries me so much. Anything could happen in that amount of time, and I don't even have much of the medicine I have been giving him to leave with Nezzie." Ayla was sounding desperate. "I wish Uba was here."

Mamut got up to sit next to Ayla. "Ayla, your clan's medicine is very strong and powerful. Remember that I spent time with your clan a very long time ago, and I know first hand that you have learned from the best. I have to believe that what you have done for Rydag will hold him until at least next summer. _And_, if it doesn't, then it was meant to be. The Mother can call us back to her at any time. By next summer, _I_could be the one that's returned to her." The old man had put an arm around the young clan medicine woman and was smiling at her.

Ayla smiled back. "You are right, Mamut, but don't go returning to Ursus . . . I mean, the Mother, just yet. I have not had nearly enough conversations with you." Mamut grinned at her, and although Creb had never smiled at her, something in this old man's eyes reminded her of the man of her hearth.

"You are right about that, but I believe there's something else we need to talk about." The old mamut paused, eyeing her shrewdly. "I had a vision about you, Ayla . . . in a valley several days journey from here."

Ayla watched him, waiting for more, but he seemed to be waiting for her. "_And_?"

"Ayla, haven't you had this vision too?" Mamut asked.

She frowned. "What do you mean, Mamut? I have had no vision."

"Yes you have, Ayla. Think hard," Mamut said. "I felt you there while I experienced it. I _know_you had it too."

Ayla's frown deepened and she closed her eyes trying to bring back the vision that Mamut said she had been a part of. After making a connection with the old man during her return trip from the aurochs hunt, she all but forgot about it. Now she searched her memories. For some time, she sat there holding Mamut's hand, trying to retrieve his vision. Then finally, she opened her eyes. They were not just open, they were as wide as can be.

"Mamut, I was sitting on a horse."

**XxX**

**The Chat Continues  
><strong>  
>"Yes, Ayla," Mamut said with a nod. "That is what I saw too."<p>

"But how, Mamut?" Ayla was completely taken aback. "People do not ride horses."

The old man smiled. "No, Ayla, they don't, but apparently _you_are going to. Close your eyes," he said. "What else do you see?" He wanted to see how much she could recall.

Ayla did as she was instructed. For a while she saw nothing else, not even the image of herself on the horse. Then the vision returned. Mamut knew she was seeing more when she smiled broadly.

"It's a dun yellow horse, and she . . . it's a female, Mamut . . . and she's whinnying loudly. I think she's pregnant too. Yes, Mamut, my horse is pregnant. And there are other horses there . . . _many_others . . . some dark, but most of them are light. There's a slightly lighter horse right next to us. I think she is the yellow one's sister. And oh! Grov's sitting on her. How could I not see that before?" Ayla said opening her eyes. Mamut smiled back at her. Ayla closed her eyes again. "Oh Mamut," Ayla exclaimed suddenly, this time not opening her eyes. "Grov almost doesn't look like himself; he doesn't have any hair on his face. He almost looks like a boy." Ayla was getting excited with what she was seeing and was waving her arms around wildly. Mamut, on the other hand, was trembling at the immediate power that he could see in the young woman. He wished she were staying longer so that they could work together.

As Ayla viewed hers and Mamut's vision, the old man continued to watch her carefully. He was becoming more and more pleased with her ability to quickly access her repressed vision. "And there are some men there too . . . men I don't know. They're sort of off in the distance. One is tall and blond. The other is shorter than the blond man, but not short. That man has brownish hair. We're trying to get closer to them, but they're backing away. They look frightened of us," Ayla said with a frown, opening her eyes. "Mamut, why are they so scared?"

"If you saw people on horses, what would you think, Ayla?" Mamut asked her.

Ayla thought about what she was saying and she suddenly realized that she had been seeing everything from outside of herself, as if she were a third person among them. "Mamut, I would think that the people on the horses, that Grov and I, were connected to the horses; some sort of horse-person. Or I might think that we were spirits."

"Yes, Ayla. I think _most_people would think something like that too. Can you understand their fear now?"

Ayla nodded. "Oh yes, I would be terrified," she said, shivering. Then she smiled again. "Mamut, when is this going to happen? Or better yet, when will we find these horses; horses that we can ride?"

"I can't tell you that, Ayla," Mamut said. "I do not recognize anything in the vision except you and Grov. I have not been to that particular valley. _Well_, not for many years anyway, so I don't even recognize the lay of the land. _But_, both you and Grov look perfectly at ease on top of those horses. And the horses do too, for that matter, so I would say that you've had them for a while."

"Yes, I have to agree with that Mamut, but . . ."

"Mamma?" Ora said, coming into Mammoth Hearth. Ayla and Mamut turned to look at the child, both of them smiling.

Ayla got down off the bed platform. "Well hello there, Ora," she said, picking up her daughter and swinging her around. "What are you doing?"

The three-year-old smiled and giggled, then put her arms around Ayla's neck when the swinging came to an end. "I'm looking for you, Mamma. Grov's working on spear points. Do you want to too?"

Ayla's smile widened. "Did Grov send you to find me?" Ora nodded, and Ayla looked back at Mamut.

"We are finished, Ayla. I just wanted to make sure you would remember our vision. There is something very important about you finding _those_horses. I hope that you will make a point of going to that valley sometime this summer, if only to check."

Ayla nodded. "Yes, Mamut, I will go there if Grov will allow it, and thank you for helping me to remember."

"No Ayla, thank you for coming here. You have given me much to think about, and I suspect that when we see you next summer, we will have even more to talk about. And don't worry," Mamut said with a smile. "Grov will let you go . . . we have already seen that he lets you go. You wouldn't be atop a horse in the vision if he didn't, right?"

Ayla leaned over and gave the old man an impulsive hug. "I did not think of it that way, Mamut. You are right!" she said, then she exited with her daughter.

Mamut watched her go, but stayed behind to think more about the vision. The young woman had given him a few more details than he had seen and he wanted to see if he could see them too. She is truly powerful, he thought.

**XxX**

**Unfocused  
><strong>  
>Ayla left Mammoth hearth with Ora, but could not get her mind off the horses. Though she went to the cooking hearth and sat in on the flint knapping, she wasn't really paying attention. She was reliving the vision over and over again in her head, and didn't even have to close her eyes to see it this time.<p>

Staring at the small nodule of flint that Grov had placed in her hand, she was instantly pulled onto the mare again, and was racing across the valley. She could feel the horses muscles bunch as she rode along, and she looked to her side to see Grov on the lighter horse just steps behind her. Ayla suddenly realized that Grov's mare was pregnant too, and she smiled. In her vision, the man smiled back at her, and Ayla's eyes were suddenly drawn to his child-like face.

As the horses slowed and then stopped, the couple slid off of their backs, landing lightly on the ground. Ayla watched as she reached up to caress Grov's bare face; she could feel the sensation in her hand as she sat there. Her hand tingled. Ayla continued to watch; she could see the two of them speaking to one another, but she could not hear them. That frustrated her.

"What do you think, Ayla?" came a voice. She hadn't been listening, and shook her head.

"Wh-what?" she said.

"What do you think?" Vincenzia asked again.

Ayla blushed, feeling bad for not paying attention. Here they were, allowing her to work the flint with them and she was daydreaming. "I am sorry, Vincenzia. My mind is somewhere else. What did you want to know?" She looked guiltily at Grov, thinking that she wasn't being a very good mate. He immediately took up her hand and squeezed it firmly to reassure her.

"I can see that. It's okay, Ayla. We were just saying that we should probably leave tomorrow or the day after at the latest. What do you think?" he repeated.

"Yes, I think so," she said with an odd grin. "Darnev is healing well, and Rydag should be fine with the medicine that I am leaving for Nezzie to give to him. I would like to gather more of the plant that I use for his medicine, but I can only do that if I find some. If I do, then I want to either bring it to her at the Mamutoi summer meeting, or drop if off here on our way back to Oak Camp. There is also somewhere else that I would like to go this summer." She was looking at Grov with an odd expression. Then she added, "If we have some time this summer."

Just by her tone, he could tell that it was important to her, so he nodded. He was extremely curious about where she wanted to go, and he knew that she would tell him if he asked, but he chose not to. Vincenzia sat silently watching the exchange between his daughter and her mate. He too wondered what this was about, but he also did not ask.

Ayla smiled at Grov and handed him back the piece of flint. "Maybe you can teach me how to do this later," she said. "I really need to go feed Anna, and I would like to go check on Laurana again. I think she's gone back to Mammoth hearth." Grov nodded again, then leaned over to kiss her. As his lips brushed hers, she reached up to touch his bearded face, and she couldn't help but smile again.

**xXx**

As Ayla left the flint knappers, they watched her go. "What was _that_all about?" Danug asked. He did not really expect anyone to answer his question, but they all shrugged in answer.

"I guess someone," Travec said, "is going to have to find out." He smiled at Grov.

"OH!" Darvie suddenly said, thinking that maybe Ayla had a secret. She was now the only woman there, and all the men turned to look at her.

"What?" Grov asked, feeling slightly concerned now that everyone was making a big deal out of his mates inattention.

"Well . . . I'm not sure if I should say anything," Darvie said to the small group. But when she saw Grov's _slight concern_become worry, she went on. "Well okay . . . I was thinking that maybe . . . well, it may not be so, since Annaliza is still so young and Ayla is still nursing her, but maybe Ayla is pregnant again," Darvie said. "I mean, I sometimes felt that dreamy when I was pregnant."

Grov looked across the cooking hearth at his mate. She was taking Annaliza out of Braydalana's arms. Did she appear to be thickening, he asked himself? Then he shook his head. He didn't think so, but he would keep an eye on her nonetheless.

**xXx**

Ayla walked with Annaliza through the cooking hearth and into the long passageway that led back to the Mammoth hearth. As she rounded the corner, she came face to face with Ivanolia, Brulenzia and Tornec, and she stopped dead in her tracks, letting out a little scream, and stepping back.

Ivanolia immediately grabbed her arm, as it looked like she might drop Annaliza, and steadied her. Tornec reached for Annaliza, while Brulenzia took her other arm. "Ayla? Are you okay?"

Ayla continued to stare at the three of them, then reached up to stroke Brulenzia's face. "What happened to your face, Brulenzia? What happen to all of your faces?" she asked looking at all of them closely.

The men looked at each other and smiled. "We shaved the hair off. It is getting too hot to have all that hair on our faces. Haven't you seen a man with a shaved face before?"

Ayla shook her head. "Well no, not really." She cocked her head and leaned closer to Brulenzia to inspect him carefully. Then she looked at Tornec's face, and then at Ivanolia too. She tentatively reached her hand up to touch her cousin's face, then became self-conscious and started to pull her hand back.

Ivanolia smiled at her, then taking her hand, he gently placed it on his face so that she could feel his skin. Ayla touch his smooth skin and grinned widely. "You look like boys, not men," she said.

The three men laughed. "You really _haven't_seen a man who has shaved his face before," Ivanolia stated.

"No, Clan men do not shave the hair off their faces, but I have had . . . well, a dream . . . a dream where Grov's face was shaven, but I did not know why he had shaved it," she said.

"Well, we weren't going to shave just yet, but we were complaining about the heat, and Mamut suggested that we shave. It sounded like a good idea."

Ayla suddenly grabbed both Brulenzia and Ivanolia's hands, and started walking toward the cooking hearth again. "Grov has got to see this," she said. The two men allowed themselves to be pulled along, smiling all the way.

When they arrived at the space where the people were working, the workers looked up. Grov too looked up at them and frowned when he saw Ayla and the men. He too was confused by what he saw, but only momentarily. The two men that he had spent so much time with now looked so different. His first reaction was the same as Ayla had been; that they looked like children, but he suddenly remembered another man of the Others that had shaved his face every summer. "I had forgotten that the Others did that to themselves in the summer," Grov stated, then he stood up and smiled at Ayla.

"You have seen this before?" she asked him.

"Yes, I have shaved my face before too. Teglodia showed me how to do it. It is nice when it's so hot, but I have not done it since the summer before the earthquake. Not many men in our clan did it, and some people didn't like it when we did. I figured it would be the same with Brun's clan, since I didn't see his men do it either."

Brulenzia looked sad at the mention of the man of Evenora's hearth, then he smiled, thinking about Donzolnia and Jendoza, and the baby boy that was named after that man. He suddenly wished he could see his brother and his family.

"Would you like to see me shave my face, Ayla?" Grov asked her.

Ayla had still been holding the other men's hands, but she dropped them to reach up and touch her mate's bearded face again. Then she stood on tiptoe and brushed her cheek against his. When she was finished, she looked into his deep set blue eyes, and nodded. "I think so, yes."

**XxX**

**The Things A Man Does  
><strong>  
>Grov waited while Ayla rubbed his face, first with her hands, and then with her own face. She was like a child that had discovered something new. He had always liked that about her; it made him want to do things as unclan like as this.<p>

"I think that I will need to make a sharp blade that will shave this close first," he said.

"You can use one of mine," Ivanolia offered. "I have several of them."

Grov smiled gratefully at his mate's cousin, and took Ayla's hand in his. "Thank you, Ivanolia. It would have taken me a while to make a sharp blade."

"No problem," Ivanolia said. "What is family for?"

Grov raised his eyebrows at the man that was four years his senior and stared. Family? Ivanolia had just said that they were family. Was this the same man that had caused so much trouble only a short time ago? The man that had almost given up his mate, because he wouldn't accept the Clan?

Ivanolia could see what the man was thinking, and put an arm around his shoulder. Grov stiffened for only a second, but he was getting used to all the physical contact that seemed to be part of the Others' way. "Yes, Grov, even a stubborn man like myself can change his beliefs. I would be a fool to think badly of anyone my dear cousin was mated to," he said, then looked down at Ayla. "Or his people for that matter. If Ayla loves you, then so do I."

Grov smiled. Had he not spent his whole life holding back tears, he would not have been capable of doing so now. Even in the relaxed clan where he had lived all of his days, it had not been acceptable to cry. So _now_, when it was okay to shed tears of happiness, he stoically forced himself to just smile his gratitude, but he was unbelievably touched. When his mother had died, he was taken under Teg's wing and treated like family, but this somehow seemed different.

Ayla, on the other hand, who had born the brunt of harsh criticism for her _weak eyes_and had often been the focus of Iza's concern because of them, could not hold her tears back. She reached for Ivanolia and heaved a sob of joy. At that moment, she truly felt like she belonged with the Sungaea. Grov let go of her so that she could hug her cousin properly, and Ivanolia accepted his beautiful cousin's embrace.

"Mamma?" Annaliza said. "You okay?"

Ayla suddenly realized that she had been going back to Mammoth hearth to feed her daughter and pulled herself out of Ivanolia's arms. "Oh! I am sorry, Anna," she said, taking the one year old out of Tornec's arms. "Mama is just fine." Ayla smiled so that her daughter would know she was. "Sometimes I cry when I am happy; happy tears," she explained. Then, she turned to Tornec. "Thank you, Tornec, for helping me while I was in shock," she said, tears still shining in her eyes. She flashed him her most beautiful smile.

"It was not a problem," he replied.

"Well," Grov said. "I guess we better go back to Mammoth hearth, if we are going to get this hair off of my face." The man scratched his full beard, realizing that it was feeling itchy.

"I'm hungry, Mamma," Annaliza stated, having no idea what they were talking about.

"Well, let's go feed you then," Ayla replied, and they headed back to the Mammoth hearth.

**xXx**

Within Mammoth hearth, Danie and Laurana were sitting on their bed platforms, curtains open, talking about the Sungaean summer meeting. Danie had only spent a very short time at the last Sungaean summer meeting, so she was very curious. Laurana was nursing Bruana while they talked.

"At least you were adopted last summer, so you won't have to deal with that this year," Laurana said. "You will be able to just have fun, and not be the focus of everyone's attention."

"That _will_be nice," Danie replied. "It was hard having everyone's eyes on me constantly."

"Well, I'm not saying that you won't get attention," Laurana grinned. "A beautiful, foreign woman always gets lots of attention, not that we have many of those._And_, now that you're pregnant . . . well, we all know what that means."

Danie grinned. "I don't suppose Ivanolia is going to let me just go do anything I want though."

"Probably not. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't let you out of his sight," Laurana said with a laugh. "After all, you are _his_mate, and blessed by Sumata."

Danie unconsciously touched her belly and giggled. "I guess our people aren't so different, Laurana. A newly mated Mamutoi man would not have been so different than Ivan." She paused. "It amazes me that having a different language can create such a barrier between our peoples."

Knowing about the raiding that went back and forth between the Mamutoi and the Sungaea, Laurana nodded. Then, slightly changing the subject, Laurana went on. "And speaking of which, your Sungaea is nearly perfect now."

"I would have to say the same about your Mamutoi."

"Well, I have to admit that I have been working on it for a long time. Every since Darvie came to Oak Camp . . . what . . . almost ten years ago? Wow! I was only five when she came, _that_is why I speak Mamutoi so well, Danie. I think it is much easier to learn a second language as a child."

Danie smiled. "Unless you're Ayla," she came back. "She is amazing! Didn't you tell me that she learned to speak Sungaea in only days?"

"That's what Jendoza and Braydalana told me. Bray said that Ayla was speaking Sungaean before Jendoza even woke up. Not perfectly, of course, but she could communicate."

"And now look at her," Danie said. "Now she speaks Mamutoi too."

"Mamutoi, Sungaea _and_Clan," Laurana went on. "And I think she knows more than one clan language too. We'll have to ask her sometime. Ayla will be happy to tell us."

"Tell you what?" Ayla asked, appearing at the entrance to Mammoth hearth.

Danie and Laurana looked up. "We were just talking about how well we are learning each other's language, and Danie pointed out that you in particular have learned Sungaea and Mamutoi very quickly," Laurana answered.

"And Laurana tells me that you know two different clan languages," Danie said.

"Well, actually three," Ayla replied. "When Grov's clan joined our clan, we did not really know the same signs for many things. We had to learn each others signs, but we had the ancient signs to use until we did learn."

"Five languages then. That's really amazing, Ayla. I don't know anyone that can do that. It's been so difficult for me to just learn Sungaean." Danie frowned with irritation.

Ayla sat down on her own bed platform, and settled down to nurse Annaliza. "Well Danie, you sound fine to me, but I understand what you mean."

Danie had a look of frustration. "It has taken a year, and I am still not perfect." Then she looked up at the ceiling of the earthlodge. "Thank Mut that you all speak Mamutoi better than I speak Sungaean."

Ivanolia sat down next to his mate and hugged her. "I think you speak Sungaean just fine," he said.

"Look at you, with your shaved face," Danie said, taking his face into her hands, and kissing him. "You just say that because you have to," she teased. Ivanolia laughed, as did everyone else.

"Actually, that is why we have come back to Mammoth hearth. Grov is going to shave off his beard, and he needs a blade." Ivanolia picked up his pack and started rummaging through it. "Here it is," he said, handing it to Grov. "You can have that one."

Grov accepted the knife. "Thank you, Ivanolia. I'm going to go get some water," he said.

"Grov, if you wait, I'll get if for you," Ayla offered, starting to get up.

Grov put his hand on her shoulder to prevent her from getting up. "No, no, you take care of Anna. I have to cut this off short before I can shave it. I'll go do that outside, and then come back to let you see what it looks like short. _Then_, you can watch while I shave it, okay?"

Ayla nodded. She was a little disappointed, but she knew she needed to feed her daughter. Grov knew his mate enough to know she wanted to watch all of the process, but he also knew that she would not protest. He leaned over, kissed her on the top of the head, then picked up a leather towel, and left the hearth.

"What was that all about?" Danie asked.

Ivanolia and Brulenzia smiled. "Ayla has not ever seen a man that has shaved his face. You should have see _her_face when she saw Ivan, Tornec and I in the passageway," Brulenzia replied, looking at Ayla.

"Really?" Laurana asked. Ayla shook her head. "Clan men don't do that?"

Ayla shook her head again. "No, not ever. I wonder what they will think when they see Grov."

"They will never know unless he continues to shave it off," Ivanolia said. "It will grow back quickly."

"How quickly?" Ayla asked.

"Well, it is different for every man. Mine does not grow very fast. Neither does Brulenzia's, but it could be just days, depending on the man."

"Oh." Ayla could hardly contain her curiosity, and wished Grov had waited for her. "I wonder how long it will take for Grov's to grow back."

They could all see that she was just dying to be outside with her mate, and they all smiled.

"Patience, Ayla," came the voice of the old man across the hearth. "Soon it will feel normal for your mate to shave his face."

Ayla looked up at Mamut. She had the feeling he was telling her something. But what, she didn't know. She smiled at him.

**xXx**

On his way out, Durc had asked where he was going. The man had had to stop and tell the boy what he was going to do, causing interest to arise in the child. "Shave? What does shave mean?"

Grov thought for a moment. "I'm going to cut off my beard, close to the skin."

"But why?" Durc asked.

"Because your mother wants to see it that way."

"Can I watch you do it?"

Grov smiled at his mate's son; the boy that had become the son of his hearth, the boy that idolized him, and he nodded. "I have to cut it short first. I'm going outside to do that, then I'll go back to Mammoth hearth to shave. Your mother wants to watch too."

Grov took the boy's hand, and they headed out. He decided to go down to the river to wash his face first. Durc settled himself down on a rock to watch. Grov used soap root to make a lather, then scrubbed his face and beard clean, and sat down next to Durc.

Durc had always noticed that Grov treated Ayla just a little differently than the other men had treated her. Not that the other men were so terrible to her. The truth was that the men weren't really very nice to any of the women. Even as a young child, Durc could see that. And Broud; he had never liked how the son of the leader's mate was towards his mother. He had been hateful in years past. Durc was quite aware that Grov's presence had changed that too. That was why the boy liked the man so much. That, and the fact that Grov treated _him_as though he was a valued member of their clan.

"Grov, why do you let Mama tell you what to do?" Durc asked.

Grov frowned. "Do I do that?" he asked. He didn't think that he did. He thought that what he wanted in a mate was just different than what the rest of the clan men wanted, and he knew his mate wasn't _really_ clan, and therefore _needed_something different as well.

"Well, you don't tell _her_what to do?"

"I suppose not," the man replied. "I do not like to tell her what to do. I know that your mother is capable of doing anything, and I know she doesn't like to be told what to do."

"But why do you care what she wants?" Durc asked.

Grov had to think about it for a moment. "I want to make you mother happy, Durc," he replied.

Durc frowned. "But why? The other men don't care if their women are happy or not. Why do you want Mama to be happy?"

Grov smiled at Ayla's young son. He was just as questioning as she was, and he didn't even know it. "If I make your mother happy, then I am much more happy too. Besides, I don't like to get mad at her for being herself."

"But she gets into a lot of trouble for not listening to the men."

"She did, but she is older now, and knows when to keep to herself." Grov smiled. "Well, mostly." Durc smiled too. "But here, with the Others, the women can do everything that the men do, and they are not expected to wait for a man to tell them what they can and cannot do. And they certainly don't keep their mouths shut. Do you understand?" Grov asked, as he took his beard into his hand, and used the sharp knife to cut off a large hunk of hair.

Durc nodded, and watched the man work for a time. "Grov?"

Grov had cut off much of his beard, but stopped and looked at the boy. "What is it?"

"I want to treat Ura like you treat Mama. I don't like it when men are mean to her just because she is different. Norv and Nouz are especially mean to her, but even some of the _good_men are not always nice to her," Durc said.

"I have noticed that, Durc," Grov replied. "If you are good to her, then she will be happy with you, and I think they will all change over time. I know it takes the Clan a long time to change, but they can do it. They will have to. From what I hear, no one liked your mother when she was first found, but almost everyone does now. That is proof that they _can_change."

Durc smiled at the man, and watched him finish his task. At only five years old, the boy was far more mature than a boy of the Others, and he knew that Grov was right.

"Okay," Grov said. "I think this will do for now. What do you think?"

Durc gave him an odd look, and touch the short hairs. "I think it looks strange. You don't look the same. Are you done?"

Grov gave a guttural laugh, and shook his head. "When I'm done, my face will look like yours. Let's go in. You can look at Ivanolia, Brulenzia and Tornec. They just shaved their faces." Grov picked up his knife and leather towel, and took up Durc's hand again.

**xXx**

Back inside the earthlodge, Grov and Durc came across Nezzie first. She was cooking, just like she always was. "Nezzie, have you seen Tornec? I wanted to show Durc what a shaved face looks like."

"Oh yes, he is just there," she said with a smile and pointed in the direction of the man they wanted. "And I see that you are doing the same thing."

"Yes, Ayla wanted to see what I'd look like." Nezzie smiled that him, and he headed for Tornec.

Tronie and Tralie were standing with Tornec and all turned around at the same time. "Oh, Grov," Tronie said. "That looks great. I just love it when Tornec shaves all that hair off." She looked at her mate and smiled.

"Thank you, Tronie. I just wanted to show Durc Tornec's face before I do it too," Grov said.

Durc narrowed his eyes. "You don't look like a man anymore," he said.

Everyone laughed. "That's what your mother said."

"Okay, let's go get this finished," Grov said, and they left the cooking hearth.

**xXx**

In the passageway, Grov as accosted by Ora and Annaliza, who were just coming out of Mammoth hearth and were on their way to find him. The one year old had just finished nursing and was being dragged by her older sister.

"Grov, Mamma said you were outside cutting off your face."

"Beard, Ora. I was cutting my beard short," he corrected her. "Now I'm going to go show Mama. Do you want to come?"

Ora poked her little fingers into the short hairs on his face, then shook her head. "No, we're going to play."

Grov smiled at her. "Well, move along then," he replied and continued to the hearth.

**xXx**

When he entered the hearth, Ayla jumped up to inspect him. She smiled. "It is very short," she said. "But looks good." She handed him a bowl of water. "I have gotten you some water. Ivanolia said you need it." Grov accepted the bowl and smiled at her.

"And you might need some soap root," Brulenzia said. "I'm sure you know that it can hurt to shave without some sort of lather."

Ayla frowned. "This hurts? I don't want you to get hurt, Grov."

"No, Ayla, he said it _can_hurt. I will be careful," Grov said, trying to reassure her. "Actually, do you have any of that special tallow that you make for Ebra? I think that would make it easier."

"Yes, I do," Ayla answered, and started digging through her pack for the small container of scented tallow. Grov took it from her and sat down to shave. The man began by running the blade along his face slowly, and with the grain. Ayla was amazed that with one swipe so much hair came off. She knew the knife was sharp, but she did not realize that this could be done to people, as well as animal hides. She watched him find the next place to shave by touch, then make another long, slow swipe. On the third stroke, a spot of blood appeared and trickled down his neck.

"Oh!" Ayla exclaimed. "You're bleeding." She went for her medicine bag immediately.

"Ayla, I'm fine," Grov said. "Just let me finish, then I'll let you work your magic on me." She stopped in her tracks and returned to her seat beside him. As he continued, she watched him closely, noticing that he cut himself a couple more times before finishing. She frowned each time, wanting to heal him, but she waited as he had told her to do. When he was done, he splashed water on his face, dried it with the towel and put more of her tallow on himself. Then he looked at her. "What do you think?"

_Ayla couldn't resist. She reached for his face to feel the smoothness of his cheek, then, rubbing against the grain, an incipient roughness; scratchy…. She ran her finger along his jaw…._He definitely had a chin like she did, she thought. She wouldn't have known that had he not shaved off his beard. "I think you look the same, but different. Younger . . . but, not as young as a boy." She continued to touch his face with her fingers, then pulled his face to hers and rubbed her cheek on his. When she released him she was smiling. "I think I like it."

Grov smiled widely. He thought that she would like it, and he was glad that he had not been disappointed.

**XxX**

**Another Night of Talut's Bouza  
><strong>  
>For the rest of the day, Ayla's thoughts went from Grov's face to her vision to something else. She still had not told Grov about the vision, and wasn't sure she wanted to just yet. Her thoughts about her vision brought something else to the forefront of her mind; Shriek. She had not seen him in quite a long time, and she was worried about him. She made several trips outside throughout the rest of the day, but he was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he had found birds like him; a family of his own. Maybe he wasn't <em>coming<em>back, she thought. That thought made her sad, so she forced herself to think about the horses.

That evening, while they were eating, Talut brought out his bouza again. He was intent on making them stay at least one more day, and knew that if they drank heartily that night, that no one would be in a mood to travel the next day. Everyone grinned up at the hulk of a man as they readily accepted more of his drink, knowing full well what his intent was.

By the time the night was in full swing, Lion Camp had brought out all of their musical instruments and everyone was dancing and singing. Ayla was still a little self conscious about her dancing, but she allowed herself to be led around by some of the men, as did Grov by the women. After several Mamutoi songs and dances, Darvie suggested a Sungaean dance, knowing that there were a few that should be learning the Sungaean ways before the summer meeting. Laurana handed Bruana to Tralie and showed the musicians the different variations in the music, and then Braydalana and Crisanie sang the sweet tune.

Danie, who was very good at the Mamutoi dances, suddenly felt unable to continue, but with her sister's encouragement and Ivanolia's leading hand, she learned the steps to her new people's dances. Knowing that Grov and Ayla would be feeling similar to Danie, Laurana went to assist Grov and Brulenzia went to Ayla. The steps were not difficult, and it didn't take long to get everyone going. The few present members of Pine Camp had no trouble quickly teaching Lion Camp their dances. Even the smallest children were up learning and having a grand time.

As it got late, people began to go off to bed. As usual, the children just did what they wanted. Being a little older than the rest of the children, Danug, Druwez and Latie spent time watching the happenings around them. They watched the children play their childish games; games they no longer thought fit for themselves, and they wished to be older. They watched the men and women sing and dance, and flirt with each other, and they wondered what that would be like, someday.

As the night went on, they switched back and forth between the two people's music and the people took turns dancing. At one point, Ayla put her hand on Brulenzia's chest and smiled. "I _have_to get a drink." He immediately took her hand and led her to where several were standing around drinking.

"Ayla, you really look good out there. You really learned the steps quickly," Deegie said.

"Thank you, Deegie. These dances are fun, but they are quite different than the women's dances in the clan," Ayla said, then smiled as she felt arms slide around her waist. She leaned sideways and looked up over her shoulder to see Grov's clean shaven face smiling at her. "Hello," she said to him. "I have hardly seen you all evening." She turned to face him. "I thought that maybe I wouldn't see you for the rest of this evening," she gestured so that no one would know what she said to her mate, implying that she thought he might signal some other woman, in the way of the Others of course.

He grinned at her, and said, "That is not going to happen. Not tonight, anyway." Ayla smiled at him. She really wouldn't have minded, but she was glad that he wanted her, especially since she was looking forward to kissing his new, bare face. They turned back to the other young people to see that the conversation had moved along without them.

"Well, I'm going to bed," Laurana said. She had just retrieved Bruana from the person that had been holding the child, and leaned her head on Brulenzia's arm. "Are you coming, or are you staying up?" she asked him.

Brulenzia, who had often taken many women to his bed in years past, as recent as the last summer meeting, turned to look at the woman he would mate that summer, only a short time from now, he thought suddenly. "I am coming with you, Laur." He was having fun flirting with Deegie and Ayla, but he was quite content to go back to the hearth with Laurana, even knowing that she really couldn't do anything so soon after having a baby. He kissed the top of her blond head and put his arm around her as they left.

Ivanolia watched his friend leave with his sister, and shook his head. "That man is not the same man that I knew a year ago," he said. "His brother is going to be thoroughly surprised."

Danie raised her brow. "How do you mean?" she asked.

"I can't remember seeing him with the same girl twice. He was quite a heartbreaker," the man said. "That is why I was so concerned about him being with _my_sister."

"Maybe he's grown up," she said. "Unlike _some_people I know." She elbowed him in the ribs.

"What do you mean? Are you saying that _I_don't act like a man?" he asked with mock surprise.

Danie shook her head and giggled. "Well, all those pranks you two pulled over the winter weren't very manly." She folded her arms across her chest, trying to look annoyed, but the smirk on her face belied the look.

Ivanolia put his arms around her and lifted her up off the ground. "Let's go to bed too," he said, and carried her away. Everyone left standing there watched them go, then the group dispersed to do the same.

**xXx**

Back at the Mammoth hearth, most were asleep when Grov and Ayla returned. They spent some time with their children, getting them settled. Ora was the only one that didn't like Grov's shaven face, and Ayla had had to spend time explaining to her that it would grow back. Ora cried a bit and hiccupped herself to sleep. Annaliza, on the other hand, didn't really care. She was too young to care, and she had been quite comfortable with Ivanolia, Brulenzia and Tornec's new faces. Plus, she was just a little less dramatic than her sister. Durc too, did not care. He had watched the whole process, and was rather pleased that Grov would do such a thing for his mother. Right then and there, Durc promised himself, and though she didn't know it yet, Ura too, that he would do things like that for her as well.

Durc climbed onto the bed platform with his two sisters and smiled. "I like it, Grov," he said. "I hope that you will shave it off again when it comes back." Grov smiled down at Ayla's son and ruffed his hair. Then followed Ayla to bed.

Grov quickly dressed for bed and lay back waiting for and watching his mate. Despite being tired, Ayla was taking her time. Mostly because the bouza had gone to her head and she felt rather tipsy. It wasn't so bad that the room was spinning, but it was making it difficult to change. Grov watched as she clumsily slid out of her leggings, and then laughed when she had to grab onto the bed, giggling at her unsure footing. "Do need some help?" he asked her.

She giggled again, feeling giddy from the drink. "I'm going to have a horrible headache tomorrow, aren't I?" she asked, crawling up beside him, folding her legs under herself and sitting on her feet.

He smiled as he got up to close their curtain, then looked at her. "And probably a stomach ache too."

She pouted. "That's not _really_what I wanted to hear," she said.

"_But_, luckily you are the one that knows how to make the morning after tea," he replied as he helped her pull her tunic over her head. He stared at her beauty for a moment, then leaned over to kiss her.

Ayla smiled. "Well, I feel fine right now, _really_fine, in fact. Except for the fact that I see two of you." She grabbed his bare jaw and giggled, a little too loudly. Grov leaned in to kiss her again, trying to keep her quiet. Ayla kissed him back, then pushed him back down. He allowed himself to be pushed, but pulled her with him so that she was on top of him.

Ayla was enjoying the smoothness of his face on hers, and had to keep pulling back to look at him. It felt so different; a nice change.

**xXx**

It didn't seem like much time had passed when Ayla heard someone scratching on the curtain. When Ayla opened her eyes, she could see that there was some light coming in from outside the hearth. She groaned quietly and looked over at Grov. He was sound asleep. The person scratched again.

"Ayla," came a whisper. It was Danie.

Ayla sat up and peeked out of hers and Grov's space. "Hello, Danie."

"Good morning," Danie said. "Oh, you don't look so good."

"I don't feel so good either," Ayla replied. "Why do we drink so much of something that doesn't taste that good, so that we can feel like _this_in the morning."

Danie giggled. "Well, because it makes us feel good _while_were drinking it," she answered. "I didn't drink any though. This one," she said patting her belly, "makes me feel bad enough as it is some mornings, so I didn't want to make it worse. I made some of your tea. Do you want some?"

Ayla grinned and reached for the cup. "Oh thank you, Danie, and I think that is a good idea; not drinking bouza while pregnant, I mean," Ayla responded. "If I were pregnant, then I wouldn't drink any of it either.

"So you're not pregnant then," Grov asked from behind her.

Ayla turned around to look at her mate. "No, I do not think so. It is too soon for me to be pregnant again. Why, did you think I was?"

"Well, Darvie thought you might be because you were looking a little . . . what did she say . . . oh, I think it was dreamy. I was worried about you being so unfocused while we were flint knapping, and that is what she came up with."

Ayla smiled. "No, I have an entirely different reason for looking _dreamy_, but I would like to talk to you about that at another time, if you do not mind." He shrugged. "But I am not pregnant."

Grov looked a little disappointed, but smiled. Then he looked at Danie. "Is everyone else awake?"

"No, only some people," she replied. "Some children are up, but none of Ayla's, and Nezzie is busy cooking again. My mother and sister are helping her, and I was until I left to bring you people some tea. And Laurana's out there too, nursing Bruana. And I think Tulie's awake. I saw her earlier, but she got some tea and went back to Aurochs hearth.

Ayla pulled her hair back into a thong and got up to get dressed. "I better go check on Laurana and Darnev, and then help the woman cook. I feel bad that I haven't helped very much."

Danie waved her hand at Ayla. "Don't worry about helping, Ayla. Nezzie always asks for help when she needs it, and besides, guests aren't supposed to work." Danie smiled. "I, on the other hand, better get back to help my mother. We may be Sungaean now, but I don't think I qualify as a guest since I'm related to Talut through my mother." Danie handed Grov a cup of tea, set down a bone platter containing four more cups, one for Mamut, Vinceniza, Ivanolia and Brulenzia, then she waved goodbye and left the hearth.

"Oh Grov," Ayla whined, getting out of bed and throwing clothes on. "I feel like an awful woman, lying here sleeping while others are working."

Grov rolled his eyes. "Ayla, this is not the Clan, and you are not expected to jump every time something is going on. Just relax. It won't always be this way."

"I know this is not the Clan, Grov, but I can't stop doing what is expected of me, or I might forget when we get back."

"I hardly believe that _that_is true, do you?" he asked her.

Ayla smiled. "Well, no . . . I guess not, but I'm going to go help anyway."

Grov grinned at her. "I'll be out there soon. I'm going to pack some of our things up, so we'll be ready to leave tomorrow."

"You don't have to do that. I still need to wash our clothes before we pack them. They've gotten pretty filthy. I don't want to arrive at the summer meeting all travel stained, do you?"

He frowned. "I guess not. Okay, I'll wait to pack." Ayla smiled, then rushed out of the hearth to go help the women.

**xXx**

As the morning wore on, people came into the cooking hearth looking for a morning meal, and were greeted by Oak Camp's newest healer and her morning after tea. Nezzie was thrilled to have Ayla's assistance, and put her to work immediately, telling her to fill any cup that needed filling. Ayla didn't feel like she was doing anything, but noticed that her help allowed Danie to spend time cutting up vegetables.

"So Laurana, how are you feeling?" Ayla asked her cousin.

"I feel good. I am very excited about seeing my sister and mother. This summer meeting is going to be so fun," she said.

Ayla smiled, hoping that Laurana was right. "You have a lot to show everyone," Ayla said looking at Bruana.

"I am nervous too," the young woman admitted. "It's not every summer that a girl gets mated."

"No, you are right," Ayla agreed. "I remember when Grov and I were mated. I could hardly believe that I was a mated woman."

"You know, you and Grov _could_redo your matrimonial at the summer meeting. Then we could be mated at the same time," Laurana said.

Ayla frowned. "I do not know, Laurana. I'm not sure how Grov would feel about that, after all, he is clan. _And_, what will everyone say when they find out that he's clan. With Durc there, it's not like we could hide it, even if you couldn't tell that there was some clan in his blood."

Laurana looked sad. "I'm sorry, Ayla. I guess I just want to share this with you, but you're right, it might not work. We'll have to see, maybe it will."

Ayla was hopeful that Laurana was right, but her experience told her that the summer meeting was going to be hard on her family.

**XxX**

**Getting Ready  
><strong>  
>After everyone was up and had eaten their morning meal, Ayla went to check on Darnev. He was, of course, doing wonderfully, and his bruises had nearly vanished. After proclaiming him <em>almost<em>entirely fit, aside from the healing broken bones, the man pulled her into his arms and kissed her. Ayla was so surprised by his actions that she stammered the last of her instructions for him, but realizing that she really wasn't saying anything, she quickly packed up her medicine bag and stumbled out of Aurochs hearth. Darnev found her behavior very funny and laughed heartily, as did Tulie and Barzec. Deegie had come in just in time to see what the man of her hearth had done, and knew Ayla enough to know she was confused, so followed her out.

"Ayla," Deegie said, grabbing her friend's arm. "Are you okay?"

"I am fine," Ayla said. "I just did not know what to say." Then she giggled. "I bet I looked real silly running out of there like that."

"That's okay, Darnev does things like that, but I know that he dearly loves you. I'm sure he always will after what you have done for him. We will _all_love you forever, and not just because of what you did for Darnev."

"Oh, Deegie," Ayla said. "I am going to miss you so much."

Deegie put her arms around her new friend, and smiled. "We haven't even known each other very long, and I feel like we've been friends for our whole lives."

"I feel the same way. It's like we have always lived in the same earthlodge," Ayla said, nodding her head.

"I wish you could be at the summer meeting with me when I find out if Branag really likes me," Deegie went on.

"Oh, me too, Deegie, but I will see you next summer, right?" Ayla asked. "I mean, Grov said we could come back up here. He's supposed to be training Durc to lead our clan, but there's no reason why he can't work on that all fall and winter, and the first part of the spring, right?"

Deegie nodded.

"And, next year we'll probably go to the Mamutoi summer meeting, since that's what Vincenzia and Darvie like to do every other year."

"I know," Deegie said. "It's just that a year is so long."

"I wish that you could come visit me at the clan's cave," Ayla said. "Wouldn't Brun be surprised to see more of my friends and family appear?" She giggled at the mental image that gave her. "I don't suppose there's anyone that could bring you all the way down there though."

"Probably not," Deegie said, shaking her head. Then brightening slightly, she continued. "Except maybe Darnev." She smiled. "So, where were you off to in such a hurry, if not just running from the man of my hearth?"

"Oh, I really have to wash our clothing. I only have three outfits . . . well, four including the one you said I could have, but I would like them to all be clean; and Grov's and the children's as well. We don't own any other outfits, so I don't want them all stained."

"I have clothing to wash too," Deegie said. "You go get yours and I'll get mine, then I'll show you where I like to do my washing, okay?" Ayla nodded and they went their separate ways.

**xXx**

Back at Mammoth hearth, Ayla gathered up the clothing she wanted to wash, and pushed it into her pack, making it easier to carry. Then, as she was leaving, Laurana and Danie walked in. "Where are you going?" they asked in unison.

"Deegie and I are going to wash clothes. I think at the river. Do you want to come with us?" Ayla asked.

"Yes, that's a good idea," Danie said. "Everything is dirty."

"I'm not sure," Laurana said with uncertainty. "Do you think it's okay to bring Bruana out there?"

"Well, she's going to be outside while we travel to the summer meeting, and the weather _is_ beautiful, so I don't see a problem taking her outside now," Ayla said. "I'm more concerned about _you_resting before we travel. I don't mind helping with your clothes, but you should rest."

"Yeah, Laurana," Danie agreed. "But let me wash your clothes; Ayla already has more than enough to wash."

Laurana smiled. "Are you sure?" Laurana asked, feeling guilty.

"Sure I'm sure," Danie replied. "Like Ivan said, what is family for?"

"Great then, pack up. Here comes Deegie," Ayla said.

**xXx**

As it turned out many women liked the young women's idea, and most packed up to go out to wash, work, relax or play. The children made a day out of it, running up and down the length of the area outside the earthlodge, and playing all kinds of games. It was good to see them running around after a winter of being cooped up inside the earthlodge.

Braydalana, Crisanie, Caylie and Corlie spread out a hide and were making bracelets to give to one another. Braydalana and Crisanie were making theirs in the Sungaean way and Caylie and Corlie were making theirs in the Mamutoi way. When they were finished, they planned to exchange them. The four girls promised that every summer they make new ones and exchange them, until they were grew up.

Tronie had joined Laurana on the riverbank to help watch the little ones. Sometimes they could be quite a handful. Annaliza and Nuvie behaved nicely by staying on women's hide. Ora was the only one that kept wanting to run off, but one stern gesture from Grov had her sitting down silently, arms folded. Laurana shook her head, desperately trying to remember her cousin, Evenora, whom everyone said was identical to her daughter, Ora, in every way.

Nezzie and Travie said they'd prepare lunch when the time came and bring it out, but since most everyone was out, they decided to do the same. Nezzie watched the children play with the visitors, and was especially observant of Rydag and how well he seemed to be getting along. Ayla's medicine truly seemed to be miracle cure, even though Ayla had said that it wasn't. The woman watched how well Durc and Rydag got along, and was thankful that Ayla had brought her son, proving to any among them that didn't believe, that the boy _was_human. Nezzie desperately wished that Ayla and her family could stay with them, but knew that the young woman's place was with her people. The older woman's hope was that Ayla would come back the next summer with news of a better treatment for her clan son. Nezzie sighed and went to join Laurana and Tronie.

**xXx**

When it was nearly time to eat, Nezzie and Travie went inside to throw something together. They decided on something light, as Talut wanted to feast again that night. Nezzie warned him about not bringing out his bouza again, and he came back with, "I know, Nezzie," then he secretly pulled out a bladder of it, thinking that everyone could at least have one drink. Nezzie had to smile at her gigantic man, and shook her head as she noticed him pull it out. She too wanted them to stay, but knew it was impossible.

By the time lunch was brought out, everyone's clothing was drying on large rocks, and they were ready to eat. The children acted as though they had not eaten in days, and crowded the food, making the mothers laugh. After the meal, everyone went back to what they were doing, though a few disappeared inside.

As evening approached, many were tired from the day of fresh air. The four youngest children, Ora, Nuvie, Annaliza and Bruana, had fallen asleep, much to the happiness of the watching women. When the time came for everyone to go in, the women needed some assistance with the sleeping children. Brulenzia went to help Laurana with Bruana, Durc carried Annaliza in, Tornec carried Nuvie and Grov came for Ora.

Everyone decided to rest for a while before their last evening meal together. The visitors rested for a bit, then spent time packing. When the packing was done, the four visiting men of Mammoth hearth dragged everything to the entrance area.

Laurana sat nursing her new baby, while Danie and Darvie lay together on Danie's bed, and Ayla on hers. The four women talked. "I am so excited to show Bruana to everyone," Laurana exclaimed. "And I can't wait to see how much Teglodia has grown since we left Oak Camp."

"It's sure going to be an interesting summer meeting," Darvie said. "I sure hope there won't be any trouble." Everyone was silent for a bit.

"But you have your matrimonial to look forward to, Laurana," Danie finally said.

"Yes, I am very happy about that," Laurana said with a smile. "This will sure be a different summer for Brulenzia." She paused for a moment, thinking about the way he used to occupy his time.

"Surely you're not worried about that," Darvie asked, sitting up and looking at the young woman.

Laurana frowned slightly. "Well, no, I don't think I'm worried about it," the new mother replied. "But you've seen him at the summer meetings. You know what he does."

Danie and Ayla didn't have any idea what the other two were talking about, since neither had been part of Oak Camp until after the last summer meeting. Danie had been to the last one, but only the end of it and she hadn't really known anyone yet.

"What does Laurana have to be worried about?" Ayla asked. Danie looked curious too.

"Let's just say that Brulenzia didn't want for the company of women," Darvie said in answer. Ayla was still confused. _Then_, remembering the charming man that had led her around the night before, she got an inkling of what Darvie must mean. Was Laurana really worried about something like that, she thought?

"I have to admit that I have had some worry that he will grow bored of me, and the idea that I was a good winter distraction _has_crossed my mind on occasion," the new mother said.

Then suddenly . . . "how can you say that?" came Brulenzia's voice from the entrance to Mammoth hearth. There was hurt in his voice and Laurana could see it in his eyes. She immediately felt terrible about her thoughts.

"I . . . I'm sorry, Bru," she said, shaking her head. He started to turn away to leave the hearth, but found himself face to face with Ivanolia and Grov. Ivanolia had been worried about this, or rather, that his friend would do exactly what Laurana was worried about. He hadn't considered that his friend would be able to resist all those women. For Ivanolia, it was yet to be seen. They still weren't at the summer meeting; that would be the test, but Brulenzia sure looked hurt that Laurana didn't trust him.

Grov, on the other hand, didn't really know what was going on. I could tell it had something to do with _sharing pleasures_, but the whole idea of sharing mates so often seemed so foreign to him. True, he had taken Oga, but only when Ayla was not available, and Ayla never seemed to mind; she even encouraged it. To Grov, there was something going on here that just didn't make much sense to him; a contradiction of sorts. Their whole openness with pleasures seemed to be contradicted with an underlying jealousy at certain times. He didn't understand. It made him think of Broud, who had been insanely upset with him using Oga, when Broud himself hadn't really been mated to her anymore.

When Ivanolia and Grov didn't move out of his way, Brulenzia knew he was going to have to talk about his past. He had feared that it was coming, but thought that it would have to be talked about during the summer meeting. He looked at Ivanolia and turned around. Laurana was standing just behind him waiting.

Brulenzia looked down at her, and saw tears in her eyes. He could tell that she had been worried, and didn't know why he had not seen it before. "I'm sorry," she began, but he put a finger over her lips to hush her.

"No, Laurana, let me talk. I know I've told you that I love you, but I am sorry for not making it clear to you that you are what I want . . . _forever_. All those years of searching for that someone to find that she lived at my camp the whole time just makes me crazy, but I am happy with you and your daughter . . ."

"Our daughter," Laurana said.

"Our daughter," he corrected. "You are _not_ a distraction, and I will _not_tire of you, okay?" She nodded and he leaned to kiss away her tears. When he was done, she wrapped her arms around his neck and they held each other tenderly.

"Okay!" Ivanolia said, clapping his hands. "Now that _that_is settled, let's all go to the cooking hearth."

Darvie rolled her eyes. "Do you ever think of anything but food?"

"I can remember a winter where he thought of nothing but tormenting the rest of the earthlodge with his very unfunny jokes," Danie replied.

"Hummm, me too," Laurana said, turning toward her older brother with a look of irritation. "I guess I'll take the _hungry_Ivan, over that other one." She laughed and ducked behind Brulenzia as Ivanolia moved to grab her. Glad that Laurana was no longer feeling unsure, Brulenzia picked up his sleeping daughter and followed his soon-to-be mate, who was now slung over her brother's shoulder, out of the hearth.

**xXx**

When they got to the cooking hearth, it was obvious that Nezzie had outdone herself, _again_. There was every food imaginable, making everyone wonder how she had pulled it off. She had even cleaned up the entire area and swept the floor. Ayla looked around, feeling as though she had been gone for at least a day. How could one woman do some much? And when, Ayla asked herself? She had been outside nearly as long as everyone else, yet the cooking hearth had been transformed.

The meal was wonderful, with quiet conversation, no one even mentioning Oak Camp's impending departure. Much to Nezzie's frustration, Talut did pass around his bouza, but he kept it to just one bladder so that everyone could enjoy the evening and not suffer the next day.

The night came to a close rather quickly, with all in bed early. Most were looking forward to traveling again. Even Lion Camp would be leaving for their summer meeting shortly after Oak Camp left. Talut had decided on three more days for them, so they had some work to do before they could go, but they too were looking forward to the summer, and all that each summer brought.

**XxX**

**One Last Morning Meal With Lion Camp**

Ayla woke up to see Grov standing next to their bed platform, bare-chested, but holding his tunic. She reached out to touch him, and noticed that everyone's curtains were already open. Grov smiled down at her, and pulled his tunic over his head. "We're leaving after we eat, but Talut wants us in the cooking hearth as soon as we're ready."

Ayla rubbed her eyes sleepily, but nodded and threw the leather blanket off of her so she could get up. Then, in ran Annaliza with Ora chasing her. "Mamma," Annaliza screamed. "Ora hit me." She was crying.

Grov immediately descended upon Ora, grabbing her by the arm and taking her out of the hearth. Ayla was left to deal with Annaliza. "What happened, Anna?" Ayla asked, not understanding why her daughters would strike each other.

"She took my doll . . . I took it back, then she hit me," Annaliza replied with a hiccup. Ayla held her as she cried, and when she calmed down Ayla looked into her sad blue eyes.

"Anna, next time she, or anyone else, takes something of yours, you need to come ask me or Grov to help you get it back. There will be _no_hitting. Do you understand?" She nodded and hiccupped again.

xXx

Outside the hearth, Grov was kneeling down in front of the little girl and gesturing angrily at her. She was cowering beneath his anger, and tears were sliding down her cheeks. "That will not happen again, Ora!" he finished, then picked her up and carried her back to the Mammoth hearth.

Ayla had put Annaliza down on the spare sleeping place, and she was still red eyed and teary when Grov returned with Ora, who looked nearly identical. He set her down next to her sister, and turned to see what else needed to be done.

"I think we are finished here," Ivanolia said, looking around.

"I still need to get dressed," Ayla said, seeing that only she and Laurana weren't ready to go. "We can meet you out there." The others nodded and left.

While Laurana fed the baby, Ayla got dressed. She chose to dress slowly, because she wanted to give the girls some time to calm down, but she purposely kept her back to them, wanting them to know she wasn't very happy with their behavior. That was part of the way of the Clan; to ignore children that misbehaved.

When she was finished, she sat down across from Laurana, who was just closing up her tunic. Laurana made a gesture with her head, wanting Ayla to look at her daughters. When Ayla turned around, she saw that the girls had their arms around each other, and they were crying quietly. Ayla smiled and sighed.

"I have never actually seen children hit each other. It is not acceptable in the Clan, and it worries me about taking them back there," Ayla said.

"Well, _no one_not allowed to hit among the Sungaea," Laurana said. "And are severely punished if they do. It is good that you stopped it right away." Laurana paused. "Are only children stopped from hitting in the Clan?"

Ayla blushed. "Mostly, yes. A man is allowed to cuff a woman if she is lazy or disobedient, but most clan women don't give reason for that to happen."

Laurana eyed Ayla, then asked what was on her mind. "Have you been _cuffed_, Ayla?

Ayla's pink face turned red. "Yes."

"_Grov_has hit you?" Laurana said in a whisper.

Ayla shook her head. "No, not Grov. There is a man there that used to hate me, and when I was young I gave him reasons to hit me."

"There is no good reason for a man to hit a woman, Ayla." Laurana said angrily. She was horrified.

"It is different in the Clan, Laurana," Ayla said gently. "And don't worry," she said taking her cousin's hand. "He has not hit me since Grov came, the leader has forbidden him to, _and_he has even been decent to me. Don't worry."

Laurana frowned, but tried to push the thought of someone hurting Ayla to the back of her mind. "Okay," she said. "Are you ready?" Ayla nodded and they gathered the children and left Mammoth hearth.

**xXx**

Out with the others, Talut called everyone's attention with his booming voice as soon as the two women appeared, and everyone settled down knowing the headman wanted to talk. Ayla noticed that Darnev was sitting on one of the benches, looking rather comfortable, and not at all in pain. Barzec was sitting next to him; hovering, just in case. Ayla smiled over at them.

"This has been quite a visit," he began. "One that we will not forget, I am sure." Everyone applauded. Ayla noticed, as she had before, that these people were seldom quiet. "Three of you are family by birth," he went on, looking from Travie to Darvie to Danie. "But you are _all_family in our hearts. Nezzie has, once again, made us a fine morning meal, but several of us have things we would like to give to a few of you."

Nezzie came forward, carrying four bundles of varying sizes. "This is just some food, that will help make your trip easier," she said, handing each couple a bundle of the appropriate size according to their family's size.

Darvie opened hers, and smiled at the wide variety of traveling foods that Lion Camp had given to them. "Oh thank you, Nezzie," Darvie exclaimed. "These will definitely come in handy on the way." Everyone nodded, and the woman received a hug of gratitude from each man and woman of Oak Camp, including Grov and Ayla.

Tronie got up next, and went to Danie and Laurana. "No new baby should be without new outfits," she said, handing each woman two tiny outfits each, which she had been working on in secret. "I know you still have some time left, Danie, but now you can make less when the time comes." Each woman hugged her, and held up the outfits for everyone to see.

Dreenie and Deegie stood up, and handed Ayla a wrapped package. Ayla was greatly surprised, and wished she had thought to have something for them. Untying the sinew that held the package closed, Ayla's breath caught in her throat. The hide, from which the outfit had been made, had been stripped clean of all hairs, and lightened to its lightest natural color; a very pale yellowish white. Then, someone had used a dye, made from the tiny blue flowers that grew on the prairies in the spring, making a color that was the palest blue-green that Ayla had ever seen. And finally, the tunic was decorated with little shells, which had been gleaned from the river.

"Oh, this is so beautiful. I cannot accept this," she said, trying to hand it back to Dreenie. "This must have taken _forever_to make. And how did you know my size?"

Dreenie smiled and held her hands up, refusing to accept the gift back. "Ayla, for what you have given us, there is nothing that we would not do for you," she said, and kissed Ayla on the cheek. Everyone was nodding their heads. Ayla felt tears spring to her eyes, and they burned as she tried to hold them back.

"And besides, I could not just give you one of my _old_ outfits, Ayla," Deegie said. "When Dreenie suggested that we make you a new one, I thought it was a wonderful idea. All the women had a hand in it, and we used _me_to make it to fit you." Ayla's blush of pleasure turned an even deeper shade as she fell into Deegie's arms.

Tulie and Tralie stood up next, and walked over to Grov. The man was shocked to see them standing there. Tulie handed him a similar looking package and waited for him to open it. Inside, there was a handsome, yet modestly decorated outfit, befitting a man of his stature. The headwoman was not known as a woman to sew things for people, so she had given one of her largest and best pieces of leather to Tralie, who expertly made the part clan man something he could be proud of. "I hope you will accept this. We wanted to let you how grateful we are that you brought Ayla to see us." Then, not waiting for him to accept or decline, both women leaned in and gave the man a hug. Grov was rendered speechless.

"Okay then, let's eat!" Talut boomed again. "These people need to be on their way."

**XxX**

**They Depart  
><strong>  
>The sun was at its highest point in the sky when the group of Oak Camp people finally got themselves outside and loaded up, but the goodbyes were still coming. Ayla was standing with Nezzie, giving one last set of instructions about Rydag's medicine, and then had to drop her pack to kneel down and hug the boy. Then she had to hug each of the children, including Danug, Druwez and Latie, who were standing back a bit, so didn't pick it up again for a while.<p>

When she came to Tulie and Barzec, she saw that they were supporting Darnev, and she smiled. "No one's going to keep you down, are they?" she asked him. He shook his head and laughed. Then, with spontaneity quite unlike herself, Ayla stood on tiptoe and kissed him, hoping to elicit the same shock in him that he had given her. When she stepped back, she saw that she had accomplished her goal; the man was speechless. Tulie and Barzec, however, were not. They were both laughing so hard that their sides hurt. Almost everyone was.

"Well, _that's_a first," Barzec said. "No one every surprises this one."

Ayla smiled smugly, then trying to be serious, she looked at Tulie. "Check his stitches before you leave for your summer meeting. Try to pull one out. You'll have to cut the knot, and yank pretty hard. The sinew has probably attached itself to the skin so it will bleed some . . . and hurt. If it bleeds a lot, give it another three or so days, but get them out as soon as possible, and have someone check his broken arm and leg at your meeting." Tulie nodded, and gave the young woman a hug, as did Barzec and Darnev.

All around her, everyone was saying goodbye, and Ayla went through several more before she got to Mamut. The old man gave her a firm hug, so firm that Ayla could hardly believe that it came from someone so old. "I hope you will not forget our vision," he said to her.

"Oh no, Mamut," she replied. "I have thought of not much else."

"Have you had time to try to find out when exactly you should go looking for them?" he asked.

Ayla frowned. "Yes, Mamut, but I didn't understand what I saw. It seemed so strange to me. I think I am supposed to leave for the valley on a day where black clouds cover the sky. But how can I do that in summer, Mamut? There will be no storms like that, will there?"

The old man smiled. "I guess you will have to wait and see. I'm sure you will know if and when the time comes, but I am pleased that you went searching for more. I hope you will continue to do that."

"I will, Mamut," she said. "I promise."

The old man kissed her forehead. "I look forward to next summer, and to seeing you again."

Ayla smiled into the man's tattooed, craggy old face, seeing the other old man that she had loved dearly. "Until next time," she said.

"Safe journey," he replied, and started to turn away. Then, he looked back at her. "It will be a day within a night and a night within a day," he said, and then walked away. Ayla frowned at his back, having no idea what he meant. Was he still talking about when she would have to leave to find the horses in that valley? After thinking hard, she decided that he was, but what he said made no more sense to her than her vision of storm clouds blacking out the sky in the dead of summer. Ayla knew that there could be summer storms, but nothing like what she had envisioned.

Travie, who had been close enough to hear the last thing Mamut had said, shook her head, and smiled at the confused woman. "I sometimes wonder about those that serve the Mother. Do you think that _they_ even know what they're saying?" the older woman asked. Ayla shrugged her shoulders, and pulled on her pack. She noticed that Grov had taken a lot out of hers to carry himself, and she smiled. That was one huge difference between him and the clan men; they'd never do what was considered women's work. Ayla looked at her mate, who was talking to Vincenzia, then scooped up Annaliza, and went to join them.

**End of Part FIVE!**

(yay for half being transferred)

* * *

><p><strong>Post Script<strong>

As stated at the top of this page, there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is **unfinished**...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an **"in progress"** story...which has very little hope of ever _being_ completed. Continue at your own risk!

Okay. It took me over two hours to transfer part five from the site where I originally posted it to this site (copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste...and so on), so it might be a while before I transfer parts six through ten. I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over—I do NOT, however, promise to finish the story.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	6. Part 6

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – this fic is **UNFINISHED**...so when you get to (and through) part ten, don't bitch at me that you weren't warned! In fact, you are being warned at both the top AND bottom of each and every part, so...yeah!

So...I've put up two parts today...which is, let me just _tell_ you, NOT an easy feat...because of the way I'm having to do this copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste...rinse...repeat...rinse...repeat. Total pain in the rse! *sigh*

Anyway, I worked _really_ hard to make sure all the scene breaks are there...but again, I apologize if some are still missing. They were definitely there when I uploaded this document...I swear! But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write (especially if the breaks aren't the exact characters that the site wants). So VERY aggravating! *sigh*

And further...**sorry** about the typographical errors (spelling, grammar, and the like). This was written _years_ ago, when I was new to writing and just didn't know any better. I have, since learned A LOT! However, not all the errors are mine, as this site seems to make changes without my knowledge and/or consent. It's WEIRD!

* * *

><p><strong>After the Death Curse – Part Six (of ten)<strong>

**Travelers on their way to the Sungaea summer meeting at Maple Camp**

**Vincenzia** (37) – man of Ayla's hearth, mated to Darvie  
><strong>Darvie<strong> (26) – Vincenzia's second woman, born to the Mamutoi, mother of Crisana and Brenevia  
>-~- <strong>Crisana<strong> (8) – Darvie's daughter  
>-~- <strong>Brenevia<strong> (5) – Darvie's son  
>-~-~- <strong>Travie<strong> (44) – Darvie and Danie's mother

**Ivanolia** (22) – brother of Laurana, cousin to Ayla, man of Braydalana's hearth  
><strong>Danie<strong> (21) – mated to Ivanolia, newly pregnant  
>-~- <strong>Braydalana<strong> (8) – daughter of Ivanolia's hearth

**Brulenzia** (20) – man of Bruana's hearth  
><strong>Laurana<strong> (15) – mother of Bruana  
>-~- <strong>Bruana<strong> (newborn) – Laurana's daughter

**Grov** (18) – mixed man, man of Ora's hearth, mated to Ayla, man of Annaliza's hearth  
><strong>Ayla<strong> (16) – mother of Durc and Annaliza  
>-~- <strong>Durc<strong> (5) – Ayla's son  
>-~- <strong>Ora<strong> (3) – daughter of Grov's hearth  
>-~- <strong>Annaliza<strong> (1) – Ayla's daughter

**XxX**

**Traveling Again – Day One**

The traveling people started out, knowing that they wouldn't get very far that day. The meal had lasted far longer than it should have, bringing them all the way to midday, but they didn't care, because they had truly enjoyed their stay at Lion Camp. And besides, the journey to Maple Camp, which was deeply embedded in Mamutoi territory, was at most two and half days away. The hardest part would be crossing the three rivers, but thankfully Talut and Barzec had helped them across the first, Lev River. The second river, Skritiy River, would pose no problem either, since it was more of a large stream and had a habit of disappearing into the ground and then reappearing a short distance along, most probably due to the many caves that dotted the valley area between the two large hills where they would pass. And finally, Klyen River, which was larger than many of the others in the area, would not cause a problem, as they knew that Maple Camp would have boats waiting for arriving camps to use.

After crossing Lev River, they all watched as Talut and Barzec returned to the other side. Then, as a group, they all waved their final farewell, then turned to go.

As they traveled south, Ayla felt a huge sense of loss, unlike any she had ever felt, except maybe for the loss of Iza and then Creb, but that was somehow different, because they had died and she had had no choice in their leaving. In this case, she could have stayed, but painfully chose not to, instead following her family to her own people.

She realized that she had not felt so sad leaving the cave of the clan, and she had lived there for nearly her whole life. She did miss her family there; especially Uba, Oga and Ebra, but she also knew that she would be back at the Clan's cave at end of the summer, and wouldn't see those from Lion Camp for an entire year. She didn't really understand why, but for some reason she felt tremendously connected to Lion Camp. It was even different than leaving Oak Camp, though she didn't really know what to feel about being there, since she hadn't even been _there_ for two full days.

As she walked with the others, she kept glancing back. When the people of Lion Camp were no longer in view, she let silent tears fall.

Grov, who had always been extremely in tune with his mate's feelings, noticed her tears immediately, and went to talk to her.

"You will see them again, Ayla," he said, trying to comfort her. He too had felt comfortable there.

"I know, Grov, but I felt . . . I don't know . . . right about being there," she said.

Grov took Annaliza out of her arms and walked silently next to her for a while. Then, thinking about old Mamut, he spoke again. "What was it that Mamut was talking about? I know that you two discussed something, but you never told me what."

Ayla sighed, trying to think about her wording. She really didn't want to talk about her vision at the moment, but she was compelled to do so by her strict clan upbringing. "While we were staying with Lion Camp . . . I had a vision," she said quickly, and waited.

"A vision?" he repeated with a question in his voice. "Like one that Mog-ur would have?"

Ayla blushed, always concerned about doing something unclan-like, but she nodded. "Yes," she said. "Like one the Mog-ur would have."

Grov silently walked for a while thinking, wondering what her vision could have been. He wanted to ask her, and knew she would tell him if he did, but thought that if she had kept it to herself, it might not be something he didn't wanted to hear. Then, he decided he had to know. "Ayla, I'm not sure if it's going to be something terrible, something that I might not want to know, but I want you to tell me what you saw anyway."

Ayla frowned. "It is not terrible," she said. "It is exciting actually. I just haven't really understood it, or what Mamut said when we left, so I have been trying to figure it out on my own."

"Oh," he replied, and waited for her to continue.

"I would rather tell you when we can be alone. Can you wait until tonight?"

He was now dying to know, and felt like demanding that she tell him right then and there, but he decided to trust her, knowing that he could, and knowing that she said it was not terrible.

**xXx**

The rest of the day went too slowly for the man, but eventually it did finally come to an end. Vincenzia decided that they would stop just south of Skritiy River, which they had crossed at one of her hidden places, and just inside a small outcrop of rocks to keep the evening breeze off of them.

As daylight disappeared, a fire was built, tents were constructed and a meal was made. The two nursing mothers fed their babies, and older children were tucked into their furs as soon as the meal was completed.

Laurana went to bed with her daughter, but most sat by the fire talking for a while. They had all slept in, and weren't very tired just yet.

"Aren't you even the least bit nervous about your matrimonial this summer," Ivanolia asked Brulenzia. He was still fishing around to see if his friend might not be ready to be mated.

"Ivan!" Brulenzia said, looking annoyed. "Lay off! I'm mating your sister this summer because I _want_ to. I have no interest in spending this summer, or any future summers, the way I have spent summers in the past."

"Well, if you're sure," Ivanolia said, drawing out his voice. "Because, if you change your mind, you know that there'll be more of a demand for her now that she's had a baby."

"I said . . . ," Brulenzia started to say, flashing Ivanolia a dirty look, then he stopped, noticing the smirk on his friend's face. With a quick flip of his wrist, the man flung his cup of now cool tea at Ivanolia. "You know, you're a real trouble maker," he said, laughing heartily.

Ivanolia got up to retaliate, but was prevented from doing some when Danie and Darvie stepped in front of him. "Okay, enough of that," Danie said. "I'm not going to deal with you two pulling childish tricks on each other all summer." She was talking to both of them, but staring hard at her mate. "Don't you remember the misunderstandings that we had this last winter? I don't want that again."

Ivanolia was going to argue with her, but he remembered all too well that she had almost left him for his stupidity, and he didn't want that.

"I think I will go join Laurana in bed," Brulenzia said. "It's late and we have a full day ahead of us tomorrow."

"I think _that's_ a good idea," Darvie said. Vincenzia nodded and stood up. He first went to Ayla and hugged her, then kissed her forehead. Then he waved goodnight to everyone and left with Darvie.

"Well, I guess we'll go too," Ivanolia said, taking Danie's hand, which left Grov and Ayla by the fire.

"Do you want to talk out here?" she asked her mate.

Grov shook his head. "It's getting sort of chilly. Wouldn't you rather go in where it's warmer?"

"Yes, I just didn't know what you wanted to do."

Ayla cleaned up their things while Grov added some more wood to the fire, and banked it so that it would burn as long as possible, then they took each other's hand, and went into their tent.

**xXx**

Inside their tent, Grov stripped down, and crawled into the furs. It was extremely dark inside so Ayla couldn't really see him. She too took off her day clothing and changed into her only sleeping tunic, then crawled in beside him.

"I sure am grateful that we can speak with words," she said. "If we couldn't then we'd have had to stay outside to talk."

"Hummm, I guess you're right," he said, putting his arms around her and smiling in the darkness. "I'd rather be in here like this than out there in the cold." He nuzzled her neck, then, searching for her lips, he kissed her.

Ayla moved so that she could receive his kisses better, and kissed him back firmly. He didn't seem like he wanted to hear about her vision, but she knew that he did. "Do you want me to . . . tell you?" she asked, kissing him some more.

Grov hadn't forgotten her promise to tell him more, and pulled back slightly. "Are you sure it's not terrible?" he asked. She thought he sounded like a boy, afraid of some unknown evil.

"What could be so terrible about my vision?" she countered.

He considered her question and answered carefully. "Well, you could have seen that we wouldn't be together anymore," he finally said, unable to make it sound any less desperate than he felt.

She knew that he was serious and pulled back slightly. She wished that she could see him, but it was too dark. "Would you _really_ be that upset if that was the case?" she asked him.

"Ayla," he said, taking her face in the dark. "You are everything to me. Of course I would be upset."

Ayla frowned slightly. "But Grov, I am only a woman. Surely you don't need me," Ayla went on."

"Ayla, are you saying that in your vision we aren't together?" he asked, obviously upset.

"No, Grov, I did not see that. I did see us together. I saw other men there as well, but we were not _not_ together," she said. "But _that_ is not the part of my vision that I need to tell you about."

Grov lay there in the dark for a moment. "Well, what is it, Ayla?"

She was quiet for a time too. He was waiting, not so patiently, but he was waiting. Then, she finally went on. "Grov, I saw horses."

"Horses? What was so special about horses?" he asked.

Ayla smiled in the darkness. "We were sitting on their backs," she finally said.

**xXx**

Here are some translations (as far as I can translate myself…which isn't really saying much):

English pronunciation = Word using Russian alphabet = English word

**Lev** = Лев = lion  
><strong>Skritiy<strong> = скрытый = hidden  
><strong>Klyen<strong> = Клен = maple

**XxX**

**Grov Hears About Ayla's Vision**

Grov frowned in the darkness. "We were sitting on _what_?"

Ayla smiled, and had to sit up. Feeling her movement, Grov sat up too. "Horses. I saw us, and Mamut did too, on the backs of horses. We were riding them; they were our _friends_."

"But Ayla, no one rides horses. How can this be?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"That is what I said, but Mamut said that if we saw it, then it would come to be. That is why I have been so absent-minded; that is why I knew we had to leave Lion Camp. Otherwise I would have wanted to stay there longer."

Grov's mind was reeling. Ride a horse. That was the oddest thing he had ever heard, but then, Ayla did have a hawk, so why not a horse, he wondered? He shook his head. But a horse is so much bigger than a hawk, and the hawk was hardly ever around anymore. Would a horse stay with them? "What else did you see?" he asked his mate.

"I saw us riding along the valley where we will find them, but I think I've seen us there at more than one time."

Grov frowned again. "Why do you think that?"

It was Ayla's turn to frown. "Well, because the two horses are hugely pregnant in one vision and not in the other."

Grov thought for a moment, wishing Mog-ur was there to hear all of this, then wondered if that would even help. The Clan's mog-ur would likely not believe that a woman could even _have_ a vision. Mamut then, he thought. He wished the old man was there to explain the vision. "Have you tried to see it again?"

Ayla smiled. "Yes, many times," she said. "I first saw us on them when they are very pregnant. The one that I was on whinnied very loudly, and then I saw us trying to get close to the men in my vision, but the men were scared. They must think was are spirits."

"That is what _I_ would think," Grov said.

"Then I saw just the two of us racing across the valley on the horses, and they did not appear to be pregnant." Ayla paused, and giggled slightly. "That was where I saw you with no beard. I looked back at you, Grov, and was shocked to see you without hair on your face."

"So you already knew that I would be shaving it off," he grinned.

"Well, no, not really. I saw it in my vision, but I did not know what _shaving_ was until I saw Brulenzia, Ivanolia and Tornec, and it was explained to me. I have to admit that you looked strange in my vision." They were still sitting up, but Ayla reached to touch his face, which had already become stubbly, and she smiled. "But I really do like it, Grov. I hope you will shave it again when it grows back." She leaned to kiss him.

"Hummmm, if you'll continue to do _this_, then I'll shave any time you want," he replied. They kissed a bit more, but then he directed them back to the conversation. "What else?"

She sat up again, and thought for a moment. "The only other part that I saw was a day with black clouds blocking the sun. Mamut says that will be our sign to go looking for the horses, but I do not understand why there will be black clouds in the middle of summer. Don't you think that is strange?"

Grov nodded, then realizing that she could not see him, he said, "What did Mamut say about that part?"

"Well, that part is strange too," she said. "Just before we were about to leave Lion Camp, he said, _It will be a day within a night and a night within a day._ What could _that_ mean?"

Grov's brow furrowed as he tried to imagine what the old man had meant, but he could not figure it out. "I don't know Ayla, but I'm sure the sign will be obvious when it comes."

Ayla thought about it and agreed with him. She let out a sigh of relief. "Then I guess I don't have to think about it until the time comes." She smiled. "Thank you for listening to my vision," she said.

"I am glad that you told me about it. I do not like not knowing what my mate is thinking," he leaned to kiss her again, and she kissed back. "Or seeing, in this case."

"I will always tell you what I am thinking or seeing, Grov. You just have to ask."

Grov gently eased her back down. He was happy that she had told him. He had feared that she had had some vision that didn't include him. Just the thought had been painful. He would do whatever he had to so that he didn't lose her. Though many in their cave were glad that someone had finally taken Ayla as a mate, no one else had wanted her. Even now, years later, Grov could not believe his good fortune to have been given this woman of the Others, and he didn't want to lose her.

**XxX**

**Traveling – Day Two**

As the summer sun rose in the east, the morning light shone brightly into the eyes of the lone woman sitting outside drinking her tea. She had tossed and turned for what seemed like all night, _then_, as daylight began to creep in and her visions woke her yet again, she had risen to watch the splendor of the Mother break upon their small camp. She sat silently, considering all that had gone through her mind that night.

During the night, as she had lain awake, Ayla's mind had jumped back and forth, from Mamut's riddle to the horses, back to the riddle again, and every time that she had been able to doze off, she would suddenly jerk awake again, seeing more of what was to come. The strangest part about the whole vision was that Ayla seemed to be someone else, looking in from the outside. She could see herself, as well as most everything else around her, but it just seemed like she was looking at some other woman. She could even feel what the vision of herself was feeling. It was very odd.

_The woman was sitting with some people from Oak Camp, along with others she had met on their journey, and also a group of people that she did not recognize. That final group of people was the largest. They were in a large conical tent, which seemed to be made up of many large hides sewn together. The hides had been draped over, and secured to, many stripped tree limbs that were resting on even larger branches from trees, whose trunks had been driven into the ground for the purpose of holding up the heavy construction._

Ayla saw herself surreptitiously inspecting the building, but she could also feel her own nervousness, which made her blood pump faster. She forced herself focus on the vision again. Something was going on here, she thought, but what?

_Feeling hands resting on her shoulders, she glanced up and back to see Grov kneeling behind her. He smiled and squeezed her shoulders firmly._

_"I have no question in my mind that Grov . . .," Vincenzia was saying, before a scream could be heard from a short distance away. The woman suddenly stood up, jarred into action by the scream, and fled the tent._

Ayla wanted so badly to get up and run after herself, and tried desperately to see beyond the woman in the vision, but it was as if she was only being allowed to see certain parts at a time; like someone was controlling the whole experience.

_Arriving outside only an instant later, she stopped short to see another woman lying on the ground, a few small bowls scattered about, and water running out of a skin that the woman had been holding. She quickly went to the woman, and knelt down beside her. A quick check told her that the woman was not harmed in any way; she had fainted. She then looked at the man that was also kneeling beside the downed woman. "What happened to her?" she asked him._

_The man shook his head. "She went out only a short time ago, to get some fresh water. I was coming out to help her, then she screamed." Her frown deepened; she wondered what was going on. Both she and the man looked at the woman again as she groaned and opened her eyes. The eyes of the woman lying on the ground immediately looked fearful and she pointed up at he sky._

At that point Ayla fought hard to focus on what was going on in the vision. It seemed to be fading away, and fast. She did notice that many people were standing around looking up at the sky too. Then, fighting hard, she was able to look there too. What she saw made a shiver go up her spine.

Ayla sat drinking her tea and thinking. It had been this vision that had jerked her awake so early that morning. Ayla had sighed, then carefully pulled off her blanket, dressed quietly and left the tent. It was her fear of waking her mate that drove her out of bed so early in the morning. _That_, and the fact that she wanted to think about the new piece to the puzzle that would lead her to the horses.

Finishing her usual morning tea, Ayla decided to do something helpful and began to fix a quick meal. First she went through the traveling food that Lion Camp had prepared for them, and pulled out the only piece of fresh aurochs meat, sliced off enough to cook for all present, then pulled out a bowl to make a morning stew. She cut up vegetables, which had also been part of the gift from Lion Camp, and added water. Then, using salt and other herbs, she seasoned it up, and set another bowl of water on the fire to start a morning tea for everyone.

As she worked, her mind never strayed far from her visions. For the moment, she turned her thoughts toward the horses, wishing that she could figure out how she would come to be sitting upon them; how they would eventually become her friends. The thought of them brought a smile to her face.

_The woman stood out in front of the dun yellow mare. She was standing completely still, but she was holding out a small apple and making quiet horse sounding nickers, trying to gently coax the large animal to come the extra few steps to come within her reach. The horse whinnied loudly and pranced away._

Ayla shook her head, as the vision evaporated from view. She fought hard to make it return. She squinted hard, then closed her eyes, and was surprised to see Grov standing there, behind herself, holding a rope that was slung around the neck of a smaller horse. "There's a third horse," Ayla said aloud. She smiled and tried to focus on the vision again.

_As the yellow horse tossed her head and galloped a short distance away, the lighter horse came into view, stomping her hooves on the ground in front of the woman. She could tell that the horses wanted them to release the smaller horse, but they were not relinquishing their prize._

Again, Ayla smiled and saw herself hold out the small apple.

_The light horse roughly pawed the ground again, which caused the yellow horse to whinny again, but she didn't come back. Then the lighter horse came close enough to snatch the apple out of the woman's hand, and exuberantly trotted away, happy that she had gotten the treat. The woman giggled as the horse's lips gently nibbled the palm of her hand, then she reached into her pack to get another apple, hoping to lure in the other horse._

_The yellow horse went to sniff her sister's muzzle, then whinnied and went looking for a treat from the human. This time she braved her fear of them, and took the apple like her sister had done._

"What _are_ you thinking about, cousin?" a voice sounded.

Ayla shook her head and looked up. "Wh-what?" she said, looking up into the smiling eyes of Ivanolia.

"Well, with _that_ grin, I'm thinking you have some sort of secret."

Ayla shook her head and blushed. She hoped he wouldn't ask her what she was thinking, not directly anyway. If he did, she would have to tell him. "Do you want some tea," she asked, hurriedly getting up. "I could not sleep, so I got up and made a meal for us."

Ivanolia eyed her, then nodded. "I didn't sleep well either. I keep dreaming about horses. Isn't that a strange thing to dream about," he asked, picking up his cup, but not looking at her.

She had just taken a sip of her tea and coughed it up. "Ah-ha," was all she could manage.

"Hey, what are you two doing up so early?" Brulenzia asked, coming out of his and Laurana's tent.

"I've been cooking," Ayla stated plainly, handing him a cup of tea, and smiling.

Brulenzia took the cup and looked around. "And cleaning up, I see."

"Yes, I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd start getting us ready to leave," she went on.

Brulenzia sat down next to Ivanolia. "Hey did either of you notice how full the moon was last night?" he asked.

"It was not full last night," Ayla corrected. "The full moon is tonight."

"How can you tell?" Ivanolia asked her. "We couldn't even really see it, being stuck between these two canyons and all."

"You are right, it was hard to see last night, especially with the clouds that rolled in last night, but it was very bright out, _and_ I like to keep track of the moon's cycles, so that is how I know." She paused, then repeated. "Tonight is the full moon."

**xXx**

Slowly, but surely, everyone else rose, and the day's trek began. As the day wore on, Ayla's thoughts kept drifting around. She listened to the travel conversation, and enjoyed the view. She chatted with people, and made time to care for her children. She even thought about her vision and the new parts that had been added that morning. She knew that there was something else to see, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what that something was, and was nagged by it nearly all day. As she walked, she kept trying to figure it out, but it was just out of reach. Grov noticed that there was something was going on, but he decided to wait for the right moment to ask. He knew she'd tell him, but he wanted to give her more time, since it didn't look like she was quite sure about it just yet.

It took them the entire day to pass between the two hills, and evening was upon them as they exited the valley area on the other side. Since they really weren't in much of a hurry, camp was set up early; early enough to allow time to do a little small game hunting, which was taken care of my Ayla and her sling.

Ayla had helped to set up camp, nursed her daughter, and then trotted off after spotting some of her favorite feathered friends, flying around near a small cluster of bushes. She returned shortly with two dead ptarmigan, which dangled by the feet from her left hand, while her right hand held several of the bird's small tasty eggs.

"Ayla, you are just amazing with that thing," Darvie said, pointing at the sling that Ayla had tucked back into her belt. "Are all Clan people _that_ proficient with it?"

Ayla frowned. "Well, no, actually. Most people of the Clan are not good with the sling at all. They have limited arm movement that makes hunting with the sling very difficult. Except for Grov. He is just as good with it as I."

"Humpf," Grov snorted. "Don't let her fool you," he said working to make the fire a decent one. "She's the only person that _I_ know of that can use it like that."

Ayla blushed crimson. She knew he was right; maybe he couldn't match her, but he _was_ able to use the weapon with some skill. She wondered if she would ever get used to his praise.

Darvie smiled. "Well, here," she said, holding out her hands. "Let me take those. You made the morning meal, let me do the evening meal." Ayla relinquished her kill to the mate of the man of her hearth, and sat down to relax, and to watch everyone.

Durc and Brenevia were off to the side a bit, playing at hunting. They had been watching Ayla with her sling and now Durc was trying to show Brenevia how it was done. Ayla could tell that her son would be more than proficient with the weapon someday, but that would be a while. Brenevia, on the other hand, was going to have to work at it, if he wanted to do well. Ayla watched her son, instructing her brother, and it made her smile.

Ora and Annaliza were sitting down on a blanket, watching Laurana nurse Bruana. Annaliza looked up when Ayla sat down with them. "Mamma, I am not a baby," she said, shaking her head. "I don't need to nurse anymore." Ayla smiled at her one year old daughter and nodded, knowing that the instant her daughter was hungry or tired, she'd want to nurse again.

Crisana and Braydalana were also sitting nearby, working on more bracelets. They had decided to continue to make them, so that they would have something to trade when they got to the summer meeting. They also decided to add in some Mamutoi variations, just to make them different, and to add value, since no one else would be offering Mamutoi style bracelets. Ayla had spent some time inspecting them, and thought the girls were doing a wonderful work, and had even asked them to make one or two for her to wear, agreeing to help them learn how to use her sling. Both girls were thrilled to make something for their sister/cousin, and readily got to work on what Ayla wanted.

**xXx**

That evening while they ate, they sat by their fire for warmth, because it was still rather chilly after the sun was gone. The sat up talking for quite some time, laughing and sharing stories, and learning more about each other's people. The children stayed with their mothers, enjoying the night and joining in when they could.

During a lull in the conversation, Braydalana exclaimed. "Look Ivan! I can still see the river. The moon is so bright tonight."

Ivanolia nodded and looked back at the river, which was glimmering brightly in the light of the full moon. "You're right, Bray. I don't think I've seen a brighter night," he said. "_Ever_."

"Mama, it's almost like day," Durc said.

Ayla had been lying back on her blanket, cuddling Annaliza and Ora, who had both just dozed off, when her son said what he did. "What did you say?" she asked, popping up quickly, trying not to disturb her two daughters.

"I said it looks like day," he repeated.

"Hummmm, I do believe you are right, young man," Travie commented, staring at the young woman who was the boy's mother. Ayla suddenly remembered that Travie had heard Mamut's last words before they left.

Ayla looked over at Grov, who was sitting with Brulenzia. Their eyes locked for a moment. Each gave a clipped nod. The first part of Mamut's proclamation, _a day within a night_, had come to be. Ayla hadn't thought that she would recognize the sign when it came, and she might not have, had Durc not said anything, but she sighed with relief, hoping the next part would reveal itself so easily.

**XxX**

**Traveling – Day Three**

Ayla had woken up several times during the night, so when the sun finally rose, she was thoroughly exhausted. One thing that gave her a reason to get up and move on that morning was the fact that she was one step closer to figuring out when to leave on her horse hunt. She knew that the day's hike would be consumed with thoughts about the horses, and knowing that more visions _might_ come, she welcomed them.

Another reason to rise was fact that they _should_ arrive at the Sungaea summer meeting by the end of that day. Although frightening, it would still be the end of a chapter in her life; she was no longer a missing child, but a young woman, finally found. She hoped that she would be able to find peace with her birth people.

Now, those were both huge reasons to get up and move on that morning, but they were not what made her throw back her furs and rise. That, of course, was accomplished by an incredibly loud shriek; a sound that everyone knew had to have come from none other than Shriek himself. Ayla's eyes had been closed as she thought about her vision and the upcoming meeting, but when the silence of the morning was broken by the sound of her beloved hawk, she jumped up happily.

As the people packed up and breakfasted on traveling food, Ayla fed Shriek, and watched him preen his feathers. It had been quite a while since she had seen him and he appeared to have filled out somewhat. She was so happy to have him back, and so were the children. Though they had all seen him before, he had not stayed with them for very long, and all were curious about the large bird that would only land on the blond woman's arm. Ayla let them all come near, and after eyeing them all suspiciously, Shriek accepted a piece of meat from each, making them just as happy to see him as his human mother was.

Once they were on their way, the large bird lifted off once again. Ayla hoped he would stay close, and was pleased to see that he did. When she no longer feared that he was going to disappear, she relaxed and let her mind wonder off to her other concerns: horses and the summer meeting.

Though very excited to be reunited with her people, their arrival at the summer meeting was also tinged with worry for the young woman, who was Clan at heart. She knew full well how her true people, the Others, felt about her clan, and she was very nervous. She was so filled with nervous energy, but didn't know how to release it at the moment.

Grov could tell she was upset; he was too, but he was trying to hide those emotions, as any good clan man would. To the average eye, no one could tell that he was the least bit worried about the meeting and introductions, but to Ayla, a woman that could see the subtle nuances that affected his speech, movement and stance, he appeared to be totally on edge, and that made her worry all the more. Grov was aware that his anxiety was completely transparent to Ayla, but there was nothing he could do about it. He just had to soldier on.

Ayla carried her pack, which seemed to be getting heavier and heavier with each step, with a struggling Annaliza in hand, and trying to stay as near to her mate as possible. Grov was also aware of that. He kept glancing at her, as she was plodding along beside him, then finally lifted the child from her arm and took up her hand as they walked. _That_, would have been unspeakable if they had been with the clan, but it was obvious that some tension immediately evaporated from both of them upon contact. At least we have each other and the children, they both thought simultaneously.

As the day wore on, most everyone was starting to get antsy about their arrival at Maple Camp. They knew they were close. As they walked, Vincenzia made a point of pointing out landmarks, and telling them stories about this hunt or that journey, and many other things. Grov and Ayla couldn't help but get excited as well, despite their nervousness. The young couple did their best to keep up with the man of Ayla's hearth just so that they could hear every little bit of information he had for them, _and_ so that they could keep their minds off their nervousness.

Everyone, at some point or another during the day, commented that the stop at Lion Camp had made the journey seem much shorter. True, they had actually traveled farther, a lot farther including the aurochs hunt that they went on with the Mamutoi, but it had been a welcome diversion, and with the final leg only taking them three days, it truly felt like less. Most had already pushed the length of time it had taken to get from Oak Camp to Lion Camp out of his or her brain.

**xXx**

As evening was approaching, they decided to stop at a small stream to splash water on their faces, change their clothes, and to have a short bite to eat. They had no way of knowing whether the rest of Oak Camp had already arrived at the summer meeting, giving them a place to rest and freshen up, or if _they_ would be the first to get there, and would have to camp out in their traveling tents until the rest of their camp arrived. That uncertainty was extremely nerve-racking to Ayla, as she was already unsure of so many things.

Ayla had heard the stories about previous summer meetings, and had a good idea of what to expect, _and_ she had even been to one . . . through her visions, anyway. In her mind she could see the large space that was to house all her people for the duration of the summer, and had tried to explain it to her mate. He seemed astonished that so many people would be in the vicinity at the same time. She was too, but since she had _seen_ it in her vision, she was a little more ready . . . a little.

Then, when the comments about whether or not Oak Camp would be there first began to circulate, she and Grov exchanged looks. It was clear to each that the other had not thought about that; both had just assumed that they would be. Ayla dearly hoped that Oak Camp's space was already set up, so that she could hide if she had to. Just the short vision of the summer meeting that she had had, and her brief encounters with the Others, both Sungaea and Mamutoi, were enough to show her the differences between the ones that had raised her, and those to which she had been born. She knew that people were going to stare, and that they would all be talking at once. That raised her tension level even more.

On the other side of the stone, she also knew that there would be several people at this gathering that she could depend on to back them up, including most from Beech Camp, probably some from Pine Camp, since they were related to Oak Camp through Gredenzia. At least there were some, Ayla thought, trying to relax.

**xXx**

After washing the faces of her children, Ayla dried them off and dressed them in clean outfits. Then, using the teasel brush that Deegie had given her, she combed their hair. Durc's stubborn cowlick, a gift from Broud, was once again not cooperating. Ayla frowned in frustration, thinking of the man that had created her son, then moved on to Ora.

Ora's hair, which had turned nearly white in the summer sun, was rather wispy, but growing quite long; nearly to the middle of her back. Ayla brushed it back and tied it high on her head with a strip of leather to keep it out of the child's eyes.

Annaliza's hair, though not very long yet, only about to the bottom of her neck and turning up in the back, was rather thick and also very light. Vincenzia commented that the child looked identical to what Ayla looked like at her age. Ayla saw tears in the eyes of the man of her hearth as he thought about his loss, and it brought tears to hers. Though she tried desperately, she still hadn't been able to recall much from her past. She thought it interesting that she could have visions of the future, but she couldn't remember what life had been like before she went to live with the Clan. She didn't understand that most people couldn't remember back that far.

After finishing the children, Ayla washed her own face, and then reached down to splash water on her arms. Then, looking at her filthy arms, she changed her mind; she immediately stood up, slipped her leggings off, then her tunic and went into the stream. It was still very cold, but she wanted to be really clean when she met the whole of her people.

Grov watched his mate, and smiled when several others joined her. She always seemed to do everything first, he thought.

"What a great idea, Ayla," Darvie said, as she too took off her tunic and stepped into the water. "I always hate arriving at a summer meeting all dirty and travel stained."

Ayla smiled. "I want to make a good impression," she stated, then finishing, stood up and dried herself.

Laurana frowned. She could see how worried her cousin was. The two of them had grown incredibly close over the last moon cycle. "Don't worry, Ayla," she said. "You have all of us to back you up."

"Ayla, we will just leave if there are too many problems," Travie said.

"Yeah," Danie chimed in. "That's right . . . but I'm sure it will be okay. Maybe not in the beginning, but it will get worked out.

Ayla looked at the other four women, three of which weren't really Sungaean. It might be easy for them to leave the summer meeting, but would the rest of Oak Camp _really_ want to leave for her? She knew she couldn't ask them to do that. She looked over at her mate. He was standing with the men, but hadn't taken his eyes off of her. His posture changed just slightly to let her know that he was there for her. At least I'm not alone, she thought.

Ayla then looked at her son. Durc had already gone back to playing with Brenevia. It was amazing how accepting a child could be. Brenevia didn't even seem to notice how different Durc looked. She smiled. Would her people be able to accept her son, she wondered? Would they be able to accept her mate, and _her_ for having them?

Laurana put her arm around Ayla, bringing the woman out of her thoughts. "Really, Ayla, don't worry about it too much. Vincenzia will do whatever it takes to smooth things out . . . _all_ of Oak Camp will."

Ayla smiled again. "I know, Laurana. I just don't want to cause trouble."

**xXx**

The small group of travelers finished up quickly and pushed on. They did not have very far to go. Within a short period of time, they could hear the buzz of activity in the distance, and see light, which could only come from many people and many fires burning in the area ahead of them.

Just as daylight was fading, they reached Klyen River, where they encountered several people standing on a well lit up dock, and a line of boats to cross the river, which were tied to the dock.

"Vincenzia," called out a voice. "We have been waiting for you."

Vincenzia smiled. "Bolo," he said, taking the man into his arms. "It's been a long time."

Bolodenkia laughed. "A year at least," he replied, hugging his friend back. "We wondered if you were coming this year." The man looked around at the small group of people, and quickly spotted the strangers that he had already heard much about through gossip.

"Now why wouldn't we be here?" Vincenzia asked, knowing full well why. "Last year was our trip to the Mamutoi, so this year is our Sungaea year."

The Maple Camp man was silent for a moment. He didn't know what to say. He wanted to ask about the proud young woman that stood beside and just behind Vincenzia with a defiant look in her eyes, but when Bolodenkia really looked at her, he was nearly mesmerized by her beauty, and had to shake his head to return himself to the present. He then shifted his eyes to the tall man who was standing beside the woman, one hand on her shoulder, the other holding a child of perhaps a year. A momentary thought of disgust crossed the man's mind as he thought about what he had heard. Was the gossip true, he wondered? This man doesn't appear to be a flathead. He squinted in the fading light trying to see what he could not.

"I . . . umm . . . well . . . . We heard that . . . Andreyta has been returned to you," Bolodenkia finished lamely.

Vincenzia smiled and glanced at his daughter and her mate. "Why yes," he affirmed, "_Ayla_ has been found, and I would like you meet her and her family." Vincenzia held his hand out toward the daughter of his hearth, and she took it and stepped forward. "This is Ayla. She is the first daughter of my hearth, born to Annalisa of Oak Camp of the Sungaea, found and raised by the first healer of the Clan of the Cave Bear, protected by the spirit of the cave lion, trained to serve as a healer of the Clan, mated to Grov, mother of Durc, Ora and Annaliza, and friend to the meat-eater Shriek."

Ayla held out her hands, which the man accepted without question. "That is sure a long list of ties," he said. "I wish I knew what they all meant."

Vincenzia smiled. "Oh, you will, Bolo. I'm sure of it." Vincenzia then signaled Grov forward. "And this is Grov, born to the Clan of the Cave Bear, protected by the spirit of the Leopard, master hunter among his people, previously mated to Evenora, and now mated to Ayla."

Bolodenkia's eyes widened. Evenora too, he wondered? Numbly, he offered his hands to the flathead man. He hadn't believed the rumors were true. When Beech Camp arrived and Balana began gossiping with her kin from Cedar Camp, he had completely discounted the woman's talk. But now, he had actually met them. It was real, and he was shocked.

He quickly introduced the rest of the boatmen, and shuttled everyone across Klyen River, thinking about how interesting this meeting was going to be.

**XxX**

**They Finally Arrive**

The sun was pretty much gone as the boatmen helped the travelers onto the dock at the other side Klyen River. No one would stay at the river all night, because camps did not usually arrive after it became dark. As the group left, all but four torches were extinguished and they headed toward the huge encampment of people.

As they were escorted the last few hundred feet, Vincenzia and Bolodenkia talked amiably. However, both avoided certain topics. "So, when did Oak Camp get here?" Vincenzia asked.

"They have been here for four days, and Serana is beside herself with worry over Laurana," the man said. He glanced back at the new mother, who looked to be doing very well.

"Yes, it is a good thing that she did not stay behind, since she delivered early," Vincenzia said. "Ayla is an excellent healer, so she was in good hands."

Ayla had been listening to them. "I did not really do much, Vincenzia. She could have given birth on her own."

"You know what I mean. A woman does not like to give birth without a healer there to help if necessary. And we all know how badly it can go sometimes." He looked back at Ivanolia. The man was at the rear of the group and had not been paying attention to the conversation. Vincenzia was glad.

"Yes, that is true," Bolodenkia said. "I'm sure Galina was happy that our healer was available when Bodana was born. Now _that_ birth was difficult." The man paused for moment, thinking about the birth of the daughter of his hearth, then he looked at Ayla. "Who taught you all that you know about healing, Ayla?"

"The woman that raised me . . . " she began, then changed her wording with a touch of defiance. "My _mother_, Iza, was the first ranked medicine woman of the Clan. She taught me from the time that I was very young, and I memorized as much as I could," Ayla said, then continued with a sad expression. "But then she died, and I had to take over." The man frowned in the darkness, wondering how this young woman could learn healing from flatheads. He wondered how they had even raised her, and why she considered them her family. Then he blushed, thinking that this young woman, whose background seemed so vile, was still the daughter of his good friend's dead mate.

As they approached the large tents, Ayla could see that the area was aglow with many, many fires, and the area crowded with many, many tents. Bolodenkia took them around the outside of the tent space, where the light was dimmer than at the center. The torches lit their path well, but as they walked, the men one by one put their torches into tall stands that created a path behind the tents. Ayla and Grov inspected them as they walked, interested in their purpose.

Also, one by one, the men disappeared into this tent or that, or just into the fray of people in the center. As they passed tents, and looked through the open spaces between the tents, they could see much activity. At some fires people were playing instruments, while others danced. At other fires people were having a meal and talking quietly. There were children and adults alike and everyone appeared to be having a good time. A few people glanced their way, but for the most part, they passed unseen.

By the time they reached Oak Camp's summer construction, only Bolodenkia remained from the group of men from the dock. The people from Oak Camp followed the man between two tents, then they stopped at the one that belonged to them.

"Well, I'm glad you made it," he said, grabbing his good friend in a hug. Ayla frowned. Something about his words didn't seem right. It wasn't that the man was speaking an untruth. She would definitely have known if he was, but it just might be that he didn't know what he was feeling at the time, and she could sense it. Then he turned and looked at her. "And it has been . . . interesting, meeting you, Ayla," he continued, looking down at her. She did not sense anything wrong with that statement. She nodded, but did not say anything. Promising to come by the next day, the man bid them all good night, and left.

"Well," Vincenzia said. "We're finally here. Should we go in?" he asked his group.

"What in the Mother's name are asking _that_ for," came Vilognia's voice from behind him. The man grabbed his brother and hugged him. "I'm so glad you finally showed up. We were starting to think you were going to summer with the Mamutoi instead."

Vincenzia returned his brother's hug, and smiled. "Nope! We were just delayed a bit. There was an injury at Lion Camp, _and_ a birth," he said, nodding toward Laurana.

Serana, who had been drying her hands, immediately appeared at the word 'birth.' "Has my daughter had her baby? Did I missed _another_ birth?" she wailed. "Boy or girl?" she demanded.

Laurana laughed, as did everyone else. "Mother, please," she said, handing her mother her tightly wrapped bundle. "_This_ is Bruana, and she's sleeping, so be quiet."

Suddenly, Jendoza appeared. "You're here! And oh Mother, you had a girl. She is so beautiful. Look at all that hair." Jendoza reached out to touch the long, dark brown hair of her sister's child, then turned toward Laurana.

Laurana hugged her sister tightly, and looked around. "Well, are you people going to make us stand outside all night, or can we come in and sit down? My legs are killing me."

Vilognia held the curtain open, allowing his people to enter. Everyone looked healthy, and not _too_ drained from their travels. He was pleased to see a happier Ivanolia. The son of his mate had obviously come to terms with the _Clan_, which pleased him. Now, he thought, if only we can get the rest of our people to see the error of our ways. He thought about the troubles that were ahead of them, then pushed them away. Not tonight, he told himself.

Ivanolia stopped at his mother and leaned down to hug her. "Hello, son," she said. "I see peace in your eyes, yes?"

The young man nodded. "Yes, mother," he said, then smiled at Danie. Unseen communication went between them, and he looked back at his mother. "Mother," he started with a smile, "Danie is blessed. We will have another baby at our lodge in the fall."

Serana searched her son's eyes for the pain that once seemed to dominate his whole being, but it seemed to be gone. She smiled up at him. "I am so happy for you both," she said and hugged Danie. "And where is my Bray?"

"I am here, Grandmother," Braydalana said, as she and Crisana came into view.

Serana sighed. "Well now," she said, as she put her free arm around her oldest grandchild, "You are going to have to tell me all about your trip to Lion Camp. This old woman wants to hear it all."

**xXx**

Once inside the tent, Ayla and Grov marveled at its size. It had seemed large from the outside, but now that they were inside, it seemed even bigger. Ayla noted to herself that the tent was made the same way as the one in her vision, but that it was perhaps smaller, or maybe it just appeared to be so. She looked around more and noticed curtained off areas, which she assumed were their sleeping places. She was right.

"Let me show you where you can put your things," Vilognia said, looking at Grov and Ayla. He pushed a curtain aside to reveal yet another space. "You can drop most of your things here." He pointed to the area that seemed to house the majority of the camp's packs and weapons. Everyone dropped their heavy belongings, and followed the man. Then, speaking to all the arriving people. "We put you three couples here, next to Donzolnia and Jendoza. And Vincenzia, you, Darvie, and Travie are at the other end with us."

They opened the curtains that would make their space more private, and all sat down. "Where's Donzolnia and Tinozia?" Brulenzia asked.

"They're still out," Jendoza said. "There's lots to do and see, but I had to come back. I was exhausted, and I had to feed Teg. He's _always_ hungry."

"Did you want to go find them, Bru?" Laurana asked, trying to keep her face expressionless.

The man shook his head. "I'm much too tired to go out gallivanting. Besides, it's not likely that I'd find them in this mad camp."

Laurana smiled up at him. He could see that she was still just a little nervous about him wanting to be out with others, instead of with her. He leaned over to kiss her. "Does your mother still have Bruana?" Then, without waiting for the young woman's answer, he continued on. "And why isn't _my_ mother here wanting to see our baby?"

Jendoza smiled. "Yes, my mother is _still_ holding the baby, and _your_ mother is already sleeping. Zarina outdid herself today. There was a small, informal, sort of impromptu, cooking contest, which she won, of course. She was in bed long before the sun went down."

Brulenzia nodded and lay back on the bed. "Hummmm, I'd like to fall asleep right now and not wake up for days. Two, at least."

"Me too," Laurana agreed, lying down beside her man.

"Laur-_ana_" cried a voice. Laurana opened her eyes to see her younger sister, Serlona, who had jumped onto their makeshift bed, and positioned herself between Laurana and Brulenzia.

"Hi there," she said, sitting up.

"Hi yourself!" Serlona said, flinging her arms around her sister. "Hey, I just saw your daughter, she is _sooooo_ adorable." Serlona smiled at Brulenzia and then hugged him too. He laughed at her exuberance, fondly remembering that Laurana had not been much different a few years back.

Just then, Donzolnia, Tinozia, Fürlasa and Tabita came in through the entrance. Brulenzia got up to hug his brother and friend, then they turned around to see Jendoza coming forward with a baby in each arm. "Look what I have," she said.

"Oh," Laurana squealed. "Give me that little boy." Jendoza smiled and handed her son to her sister. "Oh my, he has grown so much and I have missed it." Laurana pouted.

"But you're back now," Jendoza said. "You will not miss anything else."

Laurana sighed. "I suppose not," she said. "But I guess I won't be able to go off hunting with everyone as much now that I have Bruana."

Danie sat up. "Ayla always manages to go on the hunts Laurana. Don't worry, we won't leave you behind."

"What is this _we_ stuff," Ivanolia cut in. "Now that you're blessed, Danie, you're the one that won't be doing any hunting."

Jendoza, who hadn't heard before that Danie was blessed, frowned and looked at her brother. He seemed only to have a natural concern for his pregnant mate, which made her relax. "Oh, Danie, I did not know that the Mother has blessed you," she said. "I am so happy for you. When are you due?"

Danie's light gray eyes sparkled as she smiled at her mate's sister. "Sometime this fall, just before winter."

"Wow, so much has happened since we saw you, and it hasn't even been that long," Tabita said. She hugged her friends, happy that they were back.

"So, what matrimonial will you two be joining in," Donzolnia asked his brother.

Brulenzia frowned. "Is there still room in the first one?" he asked. Everyone shrugged. No one else in their camp was getting mated, so no one could answer the man's question. Brulenzia then looked at Laurana. "Which one would you prefer, Laurana?"

She too shrugged. "I guess we'll have to go over there tomorrow to find out if there's still room for us in the first one. I know we've arrived a little late, so we may have to wait until the second one." She smiled at her mate to be. "Wherever there's space available is fine with me." Brulenzia grinned, then kissed her.

"How does the matrimonial work?" Ayla asked, with a tone of curiosity that made Grov open his eyes and look at her.

Jendoza smiled. "Oh Ayla, I keep forgetting that you haven't been with us very long." Getting up from where she sat with her brother, she moved to sit next to her cousin. "There are usually three of them throughout the summer meeting. The first is just shortly after most camps have arrived. The second is about a month later, and the last is just before the meeting ends. Donzolnia and I were mated in the first one two summers ago."

"And Danie and I were mated at the last one, last summer," Ivanolia said.

Ayla was nodding. "So, what happens?"

"Well, there is a ceremony just before sunset, and then a big celebration, which the newly mated couple misses altogether, because they go into isolation," Donzolnia said, then laughed. "Unless of course you get mated in the final matrimonial. "Then sometimes you don't have to, because of the journey home."

Ivanolia laughed. "We did not plan it that way. We ended up isolating ourselves anyway though, when we got to Oak Camp that is."

"You didn't isolate yourself nearly long enough," Brulenzia said to his friend as he rolled his eyes. "I seem to remember that you were very annoying after we got back to the lodge."

Ivanolia took a mock swing at the man, but laughed again. "Okay, okay, so I had a little fun. I seem to remember that it was mutual."

"Hummm, I wouldn't really call it _mutual_," Laurana said, looking at Ayla. "I'm certain Brulenzia wouldn't have bothered with my brother if he hadn't been such a pain."

Ayla was enjoying the exchange between the two men, and Laurana's input, but she wanted to hear more about matrimonials. "In the Clan, couples are isolated too. How long do the Sungaea require new couples to be isolated?" Grov looked from Ayla to the others. He too was interested.

"Oh, it's not long; two days and three nights," Jendoza replied. "It begins after the mating ceremony and goes until the morning of the third day."

"The Clan has an isolation too?" Ivanolia asked.

"Yes, but it is much longer," Ayla said. "The newly mated couple must remain confined to the hearth for fourteen days, during which time they sleep separately. At the end of the isolation, a ceremony is held by the men in the men's ceremonial cave to cement the union.

"That is so long," Laurana said with a frown. "What did you do with your children?"

Ayla smiled. "The children were allowed to come and go as they needed to, but everyone else was to stay away."

"It was a little different when we were mated though," Grov interjected. "We had just found our cave, so Brun, our _headman_, allowed us two days to hunt and gather, then we were isolated for twelve days."

"That's still a long time," Ivanolia said. "But, it's interesting that the Clan has similar rituals as we do."

Jendoza watched her brother closely, and was nearly satisfied with his apparent change. She still harbored some doubts about his new attitude, and decided that she would have to wait until he was put to the test, which she was sure would be very shortly. She knew they would get through this summer meeting without some kind of trouble, and she desperately hoped her brother would _really_ be there to back up Ayla and her family.

"Well, tomorrow's a new day," Jendoza said. "I think I'm going to turn in so that I can enjoy everything."

Brulenzia, who was still lying down, closed his eyes. "Yeah, Laur, we have to get over to the matrimonial tent early." Laurana exchanged babies with her sister, and hugged each of her friends, then crawled into the furs with Brulenzia.

As everyone went off to bed, Ayla and Grov closed their curtain and lay down. "Well, at least the journey is done," Ayla said with a sigh.

"Let's just hope we don't have to turn around and leave," Grov retorted.

"Don't even talk like that, you two," came Brulenzia's voice from right next to them. "You're not going anywhere just yet."

"Yeah, you have to be here for our matrimonial," Laurana chimed in.

Ivanolia was on the other side of Grov and Ayla, and heard the exchange between the four people. He didn't say anything, and hoped it wasn't going to be so hard. However, deep down he knew there was going to be a problem. He himself had caused considerable trouble for his cousin already, but he wasn't the most prejudiced person of the Sungaea. That distinction belonged to the people of Sumac Camp. Their camp was like a poison, and had infected the camps nearest them; Dogwood Camp and Cedar Camp.

The young man sighed, trying to clear his thoughts, then rolled over to hold his mate. Danie had similar thoughts running through her head, but she didn't really know the Sungaea yet, so she was thinking about Rydag and all that he and Lion Camp had faced over the years. Finally, before drifting off to sleep, she sent a plea to Mut, asking the Mother to watch over Ayla and her family, and to bring peace to her new people.

**XxX**

**The First Morning Meal**

Rustlings in the communal tent brought some of the travelers out of sleep. Ayla woke up to the dead weight of Grov's leg draped over her, which she gently pushed aside, and rolled over to see Annaliza lying next to her, eyes open and a thumb in her mouth. The one year old smiled and signed a quiet good morning.

"Good morning, my daughter," Ayla signed back. "Where is Ora?" Ayla gestured, noticing that Anna's older sister was not with them. Annaliza only pointed, worrying Ayla that her oldest daughter was off getting into things again. Ayla sat up and carefully climbed out of her furs, picking up Annaliza as she left her sleeping space.

Outside the space that was designated for sleeping, the area was buzzing with activity. She could see Zarina and Fraylora scurrying around making a morning tea for everyone, and others sitting in conversation. She could see children playing, and noticed that Durc was among them. Then she looked around for Ora. At first she did not see the child and frowned, but then Braydalana and Crisana appeared carrying the child and she relaxed. Ayla yawned and stretched, and continued to watch the movement of her people.

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" said Jendoza from behind her.

Ayla turned toward her cousin and smiled. The young woman stood there, blond hair tousled, with her young son at her breast. "Yes, it is," Ayla admitted. "But I had to get up, I am so hungry."

"Yes, me too," Jendoza said. "_But_, for the most part, you won't get food here. We make some things, but we'll need to go out to the fires to cook. That's how they get us to really mingle with everyone." Ayla frowned. "You're still worried, aren't you, Ayla?"

Ayla nodded. "We've come a long way, just to be rejected."

"I know, but you have us, remember? _And_, they can't make you _leave_," Jendoza tried to reassure. "Vincenzia won't let them."

"Are you still going on about this, Ayla?" Laurana asked. She too had just appeared from her sleeping place, Bruana in her arms.

Ayla smiled. "I guess I am, but I can't help . . ."

Suddenly Vincenzia appeared and pulled Ayla into his arms. "Daughter! You are finally awake." Then he looked at the other two women. "Where are your men?"

The three women smiled. "They are still sleeping, of course," Laurana said, as if the older man should know.

"Well, well, come along," he continued. "Everyone wants to see the newest member of Oak Camp." He kept one arm about Ayla's waist, but took up Laurana with the other and started walking them toward the place where everyone sat.

Serana looked up when they arrived and tapped a busy Zarina, who dropped everything to come see the child of her son's chosen woman. "My, my, she has a lot of hair," the woman said. Everyone laughed.

"That is what _everyone_ says," Laurana giggled, handing her daughter to Brulenzia's mother.

"How did the birth go?" Zarina asked as she cuddled her granddaughter.

"It went very well," Laurana said. "Ayla was amazing." Ayla blushed at the compliment.

"And my son? Was he helpful?"

"He was there, and yes, he was," Laurana answered. "And mother," she said, looking at her own mother. "Ivanolia was of great help too. He was much more encouraging that I thought possible."

Serana, a woman of average height, smiled at her second daughter. "See, I told you that he'd come around. He is a good man, you know?"

Laurana hugged her mother. "I know mother, but he was so awful before. It was hard to see that he might change." Jendoza watched her sister and mother, dissimilar as they were. Laurana was slightly taller than her mother, with very pale blond hair and blue eyes, while her mother had brown hair and hazel eyes, _and_ a completely different look about her. It was obvious that Laurana, along with Ivanolia and herself, had been created by the spirit of Vilognia, since the three looked just like him. Jendoza looked up as a sleepy eyed Ivanolia walked into the space where everyone was sitting, and still wondered about her brother. She hoped he had truly changed.

"Are you talking about me?" he asked innocently.

Laurana smiled. "_About_ you, Ivan. Not _to_ you." The man laughed and poured himself a cup of tea.

"Ayla, Danie is sick again," he finally said with a frown. "I think she might like some of your tea."

"She won't be like this much longer, Ivan," Ayla said, patting his arm and handing him Annaliza. "I will go get my medicine bag, so I can make her some tea."

"Thank you, Ayla," he said, giving her a hug.

Jendoza was again stunned by her brother's seemingly miraculous transformation, and watched Ayla leave the space to retrieve her medicinal herbs. She then looked at Ivanolia, who was bouncing Annaliza up and down, trying to make her laugh. The child gurgled with laughter causing Jendoza to grin; she was nearly certain she could trust her brother.

**xXx**

It was not long before the entire tent had risen. Some dressed quickly and left the area, while others lingered. Though she was hungry, Ayla was one that hung back. She was not sure what she was waiting for, except that she was very nervous about leaving the tent. Grov understood her nervousness, and though he wanted to get it over with, he waited patiently.

"Okay, Ayla," Laurana finally said. "We're going out there now. Are you ready?"

"As ready as I ever will be, I guess." Grov grabbed Ayla's hand and squeezed it tightly, causing Ayla to look at him. She could see that he too was just a bit tense. Ayla held out her hand to her young son and they headed toward the tent's entrance.

**xXx**

Outside the opening to Oak Camp's tent the morning sun shone brightly. Ayla clutched her youngest daughter to her breast, and blinked hard several times to repel the sun's brilliant light. Squinting, she could see that there was much more activity going on than she had first realized. All around her people were bustling, sitting and eating, laughing and talking. And still others were walking from one place to another. The air was charged with an energy the young woman had never seen before.

At first, no one even noticed their appearance. Well, except for Zarina. As soon as their eyes had adjusted to the bright light, Zarina came up to them with a bone platter filled with meat. "Find a seat, or you're going to have to eat standing up," she said quietly, exchanging her platter for Bruana so that the baby's mother could eat.

Ayla put Annaliza down next to Ora, then selected some meat and a piece of bread for each of her children, then sat down next to Grov. "Aren't you going to eat, Ayla?" he asked. She did not answer, and he did not need her to; he could see that she could not.

Instead, Ayla was looking around at the many faces, which were now staring directly at them. It had been quite loud when they had first come out, but now the noise level had dropped to a dull whisper, and she was having a hard time concentrating. "Wha-what?" she said, turning to look at her mate.

He pushed a tendril of hair, which had fallen loose from its tie, out of her eyes. "You have to eat, Ayla," he went on. She frowned and finally responded with a shake of her head, then went back to trying to busy herself with her children. She could not ignore the fact that people were staring.

Brulenzia sat down next to Grov, as did Ivanolia and Donzolnia. "Where's Tinozia?" he asked.

"Gredenzia took him to see the other Shogurs. He is hoping to take him on as acolyte. I'm sure they will accept him," Donzolnia said. "He's been pretty serious about this for a while, we just didn't know it."

"Hummm, that's good," Brulenzia sighed. He suddenly noticed that someone was pointing at them, and turned to Grov and Ayla. "_So_, that's Spruce Camp's tent," the man said, changing the subject and trying to get their minds away from those who thought it alright to stare. He was indicating the tent just north of their own Ayla noticed. "And that's Poplar Camp. They are the two northern most Sungaean camps, and they have great furs to trade. It is much colder there, so the animals tend to have thicker fur."

"That's where my mother got the hide to make Bruana's birthing blanket," Laurana chimed in.

Grov was looking around the space. He too could not miss the visual intrusion of the surrounding people. They did not even try to hide their looks of disgust, or comments, which could be heard every now and then. "What is this construction for?" he asked, trying to focus on the people sitting down with him, and not those around him. He was referring to a very large platform, made of many large planks of wood, which was the center of where most of the camp tents stood.

"Oh, this is mainly for the Matrimonials," Donzolnia said. "It's different every summer, depending on which camp you summer with, but Maple Camp always uses the best materials, and are always able to accommodate the most couples at one time."

"And what is _that_ tent for?" Ayla asked, pointing at the largest tent construction that was just west of Spruce Camp's space. Danie was nodding as if she wanted to know as well.

"That's where the Council of Sisters reside," Ivanolia said, as if that should explain everything. Then he took a bite out of a large hunk of meat and smiled at his mate.

"Oh," Danie said. "It is always good to have them close by."

"Yes, they are always at the center of all summer meetings," Jendoza put in. "Just as the Mother is the center of all."

Danie smiled. "I like that. It's not always so at Mamutoi meetings, but I can see the benefit."

Grov waited for the women to finish speaking, then asked _his_ question. "What is the Council of Sisters?" He did not understand, but he wanted to.

"They are the women of the Sungaea that make decisions on important topics," Zarina answered. "Should problems arise between people, or camps of people . . . " She paused for a moment, flashed a dirty look at some nearby people, then went on. " . . . the problem is brought to the Council of Brothers first, to see if a solution can be found, but then, if no solution arises, the Brothers bring the problem to the Sisters."

"Why don't the men just handle the problem?" Ayla asked, still thinking it strange that the Sungaea relied more on women for such important decisions.

"That's just the way it's always been, Ayla," Brulenzia stated simply. "Women are closer to the Mother, and the Sisters always find a way to end the trouble." Brulenzia smirked and looked at Ivanolia. "And besides, we all know that sometimes men cause more trouble than they resolve." Everyone laughed, including Ivanolia.

"Hummm. In the Clan . . ." Ayla started to say, but was quickly interrupted by a shadow which fell across her face.

"Sorry to interrupt." It was Bolodenkia. Everyone looked up at the man. "Ah . . . where can I find Tagnolia?" he asked, looking at Zarina and swallowing hard.

The middle-aged woman glanced down at Ayla and Grov first, then eyed her long time friend, knowing that trouble had already found them. "Well hello to you too, Bolo," she said. The man blushed. "Actually, I don't know," she responded calmly when it was clear that he didn't know where to go from there. "I haven't seen him _all_ morning." She paused. "But if you find him, be sure to tell him that I will be at the womanhood camp for most of the day." Then she smiled at him sweetly and turned back to the younger people sitting there.

Bolodenkia smiled and nodded, and excused himself. Though she was normally a quiet woman, and one that he liked considerably, he could read her meaning well. Basically she was saying that he should not come looking for her if he wanted to cause trouble. She knew that he did not want to _cause trouble_, but she wanted it known that Oak Camp would stand up to any who opposed them, even friends or family.

When Bolodenkia was nearly out of earshot, he turned back around. "And what about Tifl . . ."

"Womanhood Camp," Zarina said sarcastically, never looking back at the man.

Everyone, and not just those sitting at their fire, had heard the exchange, and heard the irritation in Zarina's voice; irritation that rarely came out of that particular woman. In fact, having never heard their mother even _seem_ upset before, her sons both raised an eyebrow at one another, and finished eating in silence.

**xXx**

"Well, if you're all set, I need to join Tiflona at Womanhood Camp," Zarina said. "We have two new women again."

"We're all good, Mother," Brulenzia said, giving his brother another look. "Laurana and I will be going to make the Council of Sisters aware of our intention to join."

"Hummmm, you better find Serana. You know the Sisters won't let you declare anything without her consent," Zarina said as she started walking away.

"Yes, yes, we'll find them," Brulenzia said. Then, turning back to the others. "So, what are you doing today, Donzolnia?"

"I thought I'd do a little trading. We brought a sizable amount of salt, and Jendoza wants some good furs for Teglodia. _And_, you know Hill Camp always makes the best spears. I could trade with them too," he replied.

"But Hill Camp probably won't need any salt," Jendoza said. "They're already very close the Beran Sea."

"I know, I'll just trade salt for furs with Spruce Camp first, then take some of my furs to Hill Camp," Donzolnia went on. "Do you want to come with me?"

Jendoza smiled. "As much as I like trading, I promised Seriana that I'd bring Ayla by when she arrived. She's having a little trouble with her pregnancy," she said, turning to her cousin. "and wanted to see you. Do you mind going over to Beech Camp to see her, Ayla?"

"No, I do not mind," Ayla replied. She thought for a moment about the young woman she had met while traveling to Lion Camp. It will be nice to see a friendly face, she thought to herself, hoping that Seriana's mother, Belana, wouldn't be there.

"Danie, do you want to come too?" Jendoza asked.

"Sure," she said. She also didn't really know anyone, but remembered Seriana and her sister from their journey, and had liked them. "What will you do Ivan?" she asked.

"I guess I'll go with Donzolnia."

"Grov?" Ayla asked, feeling uncertain about everything; where they were going, who they'd be seeing; everything.

"Well, he's coming with us of course," Ivanolia said with a grin, seeing his cousin's worry. Grov shrugged, then nodded assent.

"What about the children?" Ayla asked, glancing at Durc and Ora, who were eating their morning meal.

"We can take them with," Jendoza said.

"Oh no, don't do that," Darvie said, coming up behind them. "At least leave Durc with me, or Brenevia's going to be so bored."

"Yes, Mama, I want to stay with Brenevia," Durc said, totally oblivious to the mean spirited people around him.

Ayla thought for a moment. She could hear whispers around her as she contemplated the situation. "Look at them talking about that abomination . . . I can't believe it can talk to them." Ayla frowned and looked around for the people that had made the comments. Darvie and everyone else looked around as well, but the voices had been too indistinct to recognize. Grov stood up quickly, his face flushed with anger, but as he scanned the crowd, he too could not see where the comment had come from.

"Don't worry, Ayla, Vincenzia and Vilognia will be right back," Darvie tried to reassure her. "Let me keep Ora too, or the girls will never forgive me. Crisana, Braydalana and Serlona will coming back with the men. What do you think?"

Ayla stood up and put her hand on Grov's arm, both of them swept the crowd with their eyes, but now neither could find a single person looking at them. "Maybe I should stay," Ayla said.

"No, Ayla, you can't do _that_," Laurana whined. "You'll miss everything."

"I know, but I guess I'm going to have to miss _things_," she said, then lowered her voice so Durc and Ora could not hear her. "I can't leave my children here with people that don't like them."

Darvie frowned and shook her head. "It's always the same, no matter where you go. Nezzie had to face this years ago when she decided to keep Rydag, and Lion Camp has to listen to stupid people all the time. I just don't understand it . . . "

"Understand what?" Vincenzia interrupted.

"Oh, Vinc, someone is making rude comments, and Ayla doesn't feel like she can leave the children in camp."

"I don't blame you, Ayla, but it is okay," Vincenzia said. "I will stay with them, and I would wager that no one would be so bold as to comment with this old man caring for them."

Ayla smiled at the man of her hearth. "Thank you, Vincenzia. I promise not to stay away long. I just want to go see Seriana. Jendoza tells me that her pregnancy is not going well. I'll come right back, I promise."

Vincenzia hugged his daughter and smiled down at her. "Go on, and don't rush back. Go see Seriana, and ignore her mother. That woman can be very stubborn, and that's putting it nicely." The man's grin made Ayla relax. "When you finish there, go see some more of this place. It really is beautiful around here. Maple Camp does a great job fixing up the area for a summer meeting. And don't worry, we'll be just fine here . . . go on," he finished up, giving her a little shove.

Ayla searched the crowd one more time, then smiled at the man of her hearth. Though she didn't like the comments and the unbelievable stupidity, she knew that she did not have to worry. She looked at Grov again. His look of anger was still there, but he did not look worried either. Finally, she knelt down next to Durc and Ora, as did Grov. "We will be back later. Listen to Vincenzia and Darvie, okay?"

"Yes, Mama, we will be good," Durc promised, and Ora nodded her head.

**XxX**

**Their First Turn Through the Summer Meeting**

Though Beech Camp's space was so near to that of Oak Camp, only three tents south to be exact, the walk seemed to take forever. Ayla surreptitiously looked at everything and everyone around her, even as she clutched Annaliza to her breast and followed Jendoza and Danie. The two women in front of her chatted as they went, but Ayla didn't really have anything to contribute so she kept silent, preferring instead to take in as much as she could.

When they reached the tent of Beech Camp, Ayla noticed that they had situated themselves back just a bit, so that they had space in front of their tent to just relax. She liked the idea. As they approached, she saw that there were some people sitting there, and that Balana was among them. Though most probably hadn't seen it, Ayla saw the woman quickly hide a scowl. She excused herself and went inside the tent. Tarana was lounging in the space as well and got up to greet them.

"I'm so glad you finally made it to the meeting," she said to Danie and Ayla. Ayla could tell that she was being honest. "There was talk that you wouldn't make it."

Jendoza smiled. "They stopped off at Lion Camp to visit with Danie's kin," she said.

Tarana held out her hands, wanting to hold Teglodia. "I cannot believe how much he looks like Donzolnia already. He must be of his spirit."

"You will have to come see Laurana's daughter," Jendoza smiled. "She has hair just like Brulenzia."

"Hummmm, I'm sure there will be plenty of women with empty furs this summer that will be disappointed he's finally joining. _No one_ saw _that_ coming."

Jendoza laughed. "Least of all _him_. I'm surprised that his spirit hasn't gotten around, considering all the _furs_ he's managed to disappear into in years past." She frowned for a moment, then smiled, glad for her sister.

"So, have you come to see Seriana?" the headwoman asked.

"Uh-huh," Jendoza said with a nod. "I promised that I'd bring Ayla as soon as she arrived, and she's here, so here _we_ are."

"I'm sure she will be happy to see you," Tarana said, handing Teglodia back to his mother. "Well, go on in. I need to go join the Sisters. Something about some trouble," she said winking at the three young Oak Camp women, and noticed that Ayla's daughter was remarkably beautiful; just like her mother. She gave them one last wave and left the area.

Jendoza smiled, but looked nervously at Ayla. "It's going to be alright, Ayla." Ayla nodded. She wasn't sure she believed her cousin, but at least no one had asked them to leave yet.

The three women pushed aside the outer windbreak of Beech Camp's tent flap, and stepped inside. It only took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the dim light, and it was in time to see Balana standing in front of her daughter, arms crossed over her chest. They couldn't help but hear what they were saying either. "And what does your future mate have to say about this?" she demanded.

"Mother, I have already explained this to you," Seriana said with a sigh. "Dima does not care."

"That's right, he doesn't care," her mother said angrily. "What kind of man is he, that he doesn't care?"

Seriana had been lying down, but she struggled to get up. "_Mother_, that's not what I meant and you know it." The young pregnant woman was standing with one hand on the small of her back and the other supporting the underside of her belly. "Dimia doesn't _mind_. Some people aren't so . . . so impossible." Seriana paused. "Would you _please_ just let me rest? Please just give it a rest." Seriana glanced over at the visitors, tried to smile and waved them over. Balana stood there for another moment, then pushed past them and left.

"I am sorry about that, Ayla," she said after her mother had gone. She smiled and hugged her newest friend. "It is good to see you . . . all of you," she went on, kissing the cheek of each woman, and reaching for Annaliza.

Ayla visually assessed the woman. "You need to sit down, Seriana," she said with a worried frown. "You should not even be out of bed." Ayla took her daughter back, set her down, then helped the young woman to sit down again. She then looked into her eyes and felt her skin. "Seriana, I do not want you to get up anymore, except to pass water. I do not want you to lose your baby." Then, turning to Jendoza she continued. "Would you please get me some hot water?" Jendoza nodded and went to get what her cousin wanted.

Seriana sighed and lay back. "Oh, Ayla, I am so glad that you are here," she said as she rolled her eyes. "I didn't think that I was going to make the trek here . . . that hill was horrendous."

Danie nodded. "I remember. Grov had to carry Laurana up it."

Seriana smiled. "Where is Grov, anyway?"

"He went with Donzolnia and Ivan to do some trading," Jendoza interjected.

"Oh, that will be good for him. To get out, see things and meet people," the young woman sighed, then threw her head back. "I am so bored. I've hardly been out of this bed since we got here. How am I ever going to get mated?" she whined.

"Don't worry," Ayla said. "We will do whatever we have to, to make you comfortable. And maybe you can rest outside too. The sun and fresh air will be good for you, but you can only go if someone helps you." Ayla felt the young woman's belly, causing her to groan at Ayla's probing hands.

"But what about my matrimonial?" she asked.

Ayla frowned. "You should be able to go through with it, if you rest a lot beforehand."

"I can't believe how hard this is," she said.

"Do the Sungaea ever have private ceremonies?" Danie asked. "The Mamutoi sometimes do that, if a couple does not want to wait for an entire winter. It doesn't happen much though . . . more often with First Rites. If a girl becomes a woman just after a summer meeting, we don't like for her to go unprotected all winter, so we send for someone who can make her a woman."

"That's a great idea, Danie," Jendoza said as she waited by the fire for the water to heat. "It could happen here, or even within the isolation tent. That way you do not have to spend all that preparation time with the Sisters, or wait on the platform with everyone. What do you think, Ayla?"

"Well, actually, I don't know anything about Sungaean matings," Ayla said. "So, I am not sure. I suppose it would be better to do it with as little movement as possible." Ayla looked around the tent. "Where is your sister?" she asked, thinking that someone should be here helping at all times.

"Oh, she and Mirra went to join the musicians for a while. I told them to go. They can't stay here with me all the time, and my mother _was_ here."

"Here's the hot water, Ayla," Jendoza said, handing her a large cup.

Ayla took the cup and thanked her cousin, then proceeded to make her patient some tea. "Well, you should not be left alone. What if you went into labor and no one was here to help you?"

Seriana frowned. "But, Ayla, it's too soon for me to have the baby," she said. Her eyes filled with tears as she thought about it.

"Let's just try to relax, okay? It is not good for the baby when the mother worries," Ayla said. "Where is . . . did you call him Dimia?"

Seriana nodded and smiled. "He went to the Council of Sisters to ask one of them to come visit me here, since I've been too tired to go over there. I haven't really been alone, Ayla, he's been here with me the whole time, or someone else was."

"That's good . . . here's some tea. It will help you to be stronger, to not get sick so much, but you still have to rest."

"Ayla's teas are so helpful, Seriana," Danie added. "I can hardly keep anything down in the morning, but as long as I have her morning tea, I don't get sick. This one," she said, touching her own, only slightly poochy tummy, "likes to reject everything I consume."

Seriana smiled. "I did not have so much trouble in the beginning," she said. "It's only been since . . . , " she paused as someone entered the tent. "Oh, Dima, come meet Ayla and Danie."

The two new Sungaean women turned to see Seriana's intended. He was tall and thin; he hardly looked like a man. Ayla guessed that he just young looking, because he carried himself as though he was older. Dimia had shoulder length, nearly black hair and not a bit of stubble on his tanned face, another feature that made him look younger. When he got close to them, Ayla noticed that he had blue eyes and that he resembled Tagnolia, though he seemed somewhat different.

The young man hesitated a moment, then came forward. "Hello, it is nice to meet you both. Seriana has talked about you non-stop since she arrived." He smiled widely at his pregnant woman, who giggled.

"I guess I have mentioned you a few times," Seriana continued to laugh. "Let me introduce you. Dimia, this is Danie of the Mamutoi, daughter of Travie, sister to Darvie, mate of Ivanolia, blessed by Sumata."

"Welcome, Danie," he said, taking her hands. "I am Temina's son. She is Tagnolia's sister, but I don't suppose you know her yet, do you?"

Danie shook her head. "No, but thank you for your welcome."

Seriana smiled again. "And this is Ayla, daughter of Vincenzia's hearth, missing for a time, protected by the Cave Lion, mother of Durc, Ora and Annaliza, and mated to Grov of the Clan of the Cave Bear." Her grin widened when she saw Ayla's surprise that she had remembered so much.

"Greetings Ayla, I have heard of not much else except for you and yours," he said with a smile. "I am so happy to finally meet you. I am Dimia, but please call me Dima, everyone always does."

They talked for a while longer, then Ayla explained to the young man that he and Seriana were going to have to be careful until the baby was born. They talked about delaying their mating until at least the second matrimonial or even the last one, and Ayla suggested having a private ceremony. She also mentioned that they should probably hold off on honoring the Mother until after the baby was born. She explained that the baby was probably going to come early, but that it could not survive if it came too early. That scared them both enough to agree to whatever precautions the young healer advised.

Ayla noticed that the young man didn't seem to have any of the preconceptions that many other Sungaeans had, and she liked him more and more with each passing moment. Apparently Seriana had told him everything, or as much as she knew, and he did not have any objections to them. Ayla mentally noted that they had one more ally, and continued the conversation.

**xXx**

Brulenzia and Laurana held hands as they walked determinedly toward the entrance of the tent of the Council of Sisters. It was not a long walk, but there were many distractions along the way. Laurana had her daughter tucked under her tunic and strapped to her waist, making it easier to walk with her man, but she was aware of the many eyes of women that watched them pass. Several even snickered at the couple as they went by, making the young mother more nervous.

Brulenzia, having become very sensitive to his mate-to-be's worries, squeezed her hand, trying to reassure her, but before they entered to see the Sisters, he stopped and pulled her to the side. "Laurana, you're shaking," he said. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, but he could see that her eyes were welling up. "No," she finally cried.

"What is wrong?" he asked her. He was staring down at her, suddenly worried that it was she that didn't want _him_.

Laurana wiped at the tear that fell from her eye, and glanced around. Her eyes were drawn to a small group of women who were sitting at a nearby fire, giggling and looking at them. Laurana recognized them as women that had previously hung around Brulenzia, trying to get his attention. She wondered if they had ever gained it. She then looked at the ground.

Brulenzia watched her, and followed her eyes. He saw where and who she was looking at, and frowned. He could not take back that he had honored the Mother with so many in the past. It hadn't meant anything to him then. As recent as the beginning of the summer before, he had found pleasure in all, but not since he had been swept away by her.

The man looked down at the top of her blond head, which was all that he could see with her looking at the ground. "Laurana," he said, placing his hand on her chin and gently tilting her face up so that he could see the tears that were now streaming down her cheeks. "You need to tell me what's wrong. Do you still want to join with _me_?" His voice cracked.

Laurana suddenly frowned. "Of course I do, Brulenzia," she said. "I am just still afraid that you will become bored with me and . . . and look . . . for others," she sniffled. "I mean, almost _everyone_ finds someone at summer meetings to spice things up," she said with a slight smile. "But, what if you find someone else that you'd rather spend the rest of your time with . . . you wintertime?" The pout that he loved so much was back.

Brulenzia smiled. "That's _not_ going to happen," he protested. "I cannot explain why I was the way I used to be, except that maybe I was bored and lonely all year and the summer meetings were a way have some fun. Or maybe I was searching. I didn't know that the one I was searching for was right under my own earthlodge." The tall, dark and handsome man led her to a log and sat her down. Then sitting beside her, he leaned in and kissed away each tear.

"Laurana, it would break my heart not to have you in my life. I want to join with you, and only you. Sure, we might look for someone else's furs to roll in now and then, but not for a long time, and it would _never_ be something that would last, because I love you with all the pieces of my heart. _You_ are what I've been looking for. _You_!" Brulenzia was looking deeply into her blue eyes and she stared back into his. Suddenly, she didn't see anything but him. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. It was only Bruana's squirming that made her back off and smile up at him.

"That is how I feel too," she responded, taking Bruana out of her tunic. "I just did not want you to be sorry. I was worried that you might want to . . ."

"Laurana, I already told you that I want this," he cut in and gestured at her and her daughter. "_This_ makes me happy." He reached out and took the baby from her and smiled at the miniature replica of them both. "Yes it does," he said to the baby in the silly baby voice he had been using for the last few moons.

Laurana rolled her eyes and giggled, thinking he sounded like a child, but she was happy.

**xXx**

Completely unnoticed by the happy couple, the women that were watching also rolled their eyes. There was no mistaking that Brulenzia was permanently off their hunt list. Some were disappointed, but all of them liked Laurana. True, she was young and they had completely discounted her as competition, but she was perfect for the gorgeous man that had had a way with them all.

**xXx**

Donzolnia, Ivanolia and Grov spent some time at Spruce Camp, trading salt for furs, and talking to some of the hunters. Grov did not say much, nor did many talk to him. People seemed to know who he was, even without introduction, but no one made any open objections to his presence.

One woman did ask about the small bag that he wore around his neck, and he answered simply. "This is my amulet; it holds the Spirit of the Leopard, of the Clan, and of me."

The woman smiled and nodded, noticing his decidedly foreign accent, which didn't seem to fit his face. She knew that he was part flathead; part Clan as he said, and she was intrigued. She wanted to ask more, but an older man came out of their tent and gave her a dirty look. When she looked back at Grov, he had turned to leave with Donzolnia and Ivanolia.

Next, the men had to go around the Council of Sisters' tent to get to Hill Camp. Grov noticed that Ivanolia got a bit strange as they passed an area where several men were hanging out drinking what Grov could only guess was bouza. As they walked by, Ivanolia's pace quickened, and he tried to stay out of their line of sight. It didn't work.

"Hey Ivan!" a man yelled. Grov could see his friend blush and look up. "Co'mere," the man slurred.

"Later," the young blond man called. "I have a few things to do, then I'll come by."

"_Hey_, we'eard that . . ." the man went on.

"Later!" Ivanolia said, as he kept walking, noticeably speeding up.

Donzolnia knew that some of Ivanolia's friends weren't very respectable, and had never liked them. He knew that they drank too much and often caused trouble, but he hadn't actually spent much time with them. He had never wanted to, and had never understood why Ivanolia had.

Grov heard the word flathead come out of the man's mouth, but didn't say anything and didn't ask. He was well aware that every camp, even Clan camps, had men that most wouldn't spend time with. Of course the Clan didn't sit around and consume the liquid that these Others called bouza, but he knew that there were low-lifes everywhere.

When they arrived at Hill Camp, he received more stares, but his friends made their trades, and they were invited to eat an evening meal. For the most part, Grov felt rather comfortable. He knew that people were curious about him and his mate and her children. Some looked on and didn't know what to say. Others commented in a not-so-quiet manner, but for the most part, everyone was pleasant.

Grov knew, as did the others, that people were inviting them over just so that they could gawk, and though that was the hardest part, the young mixed man thought it might be the best way to show some of these people that they were no different. He was sure Ayla would be uncomfortable, but she would go and she would not complain.

**XxX**

**? (didn't come up with a chapter name, I guess) ?**

Most of the rest of that day passed quickly. The men finished trading, and Ivanolia managed to avoid the men that wanted to _talk_ to him; the men whom up until this summer he would have called friends; sorry as they were. Ivanolia had no doubts as to what they wanted to discuss, or rather, badger him about. They were just never going to understand his change of opinion. In fact, it was going to be downright serious trouble. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that things were going to get ugly.

Donzolnia had watched and he too knew what Ivanolia's _friends_ could be like. He wanted his friend, and brother through Jendoza, to steer clear of the ugly confrontation that was bound to occur when they finally did meet up again. He wondered if Ivanolia was going to be able to stand up to them, being that he had previously harbored the same convictions as they. Later, he thought, after we are a little more settled. After we have a few more supporters.

**xXx**

Jendoza, Danie and Ayla spent a considerable part of the morning with Seriana and Dimia, but also managed to walk about a bit after leaving the happy young couple. They ran into Kristana, Seriana's sister, and Mirra somewhere near the musician's tent, but they didn't actually go in. Jendoza wanted to wait for Laurana, who loved to listen to the music, before she brought them inside. Ayla was very curious about the sounds that emanated from the large roundish tent, but was happy to wait for her cousin. Danie was interested too, but she knew of music from her own people, so was not as eager.

Jendoza did bring them by Womanhood Camp, which was of great interest to Ayla, _and_ just a bit beyond her scope of understanding. "But why?" she asked with a confused frown. They had just been at the makeshift yet sturdy fence that surrounded the area in which the new young women waited, talking to Frala and Fräubita about their upcoming First Rites, and Ayla did not understand its purpose.

"It is what makes a woman, _a woman_," Jendoza answered simply, as if that explained it all. Then, seeing that Ayla was still confused, she went on. "A young woman must be made ready to accept the spirit of a man, so that she can have a baby. It is the same with the Mamutoi, right?" She turned to Danie, looking for confirmation.

Danie nodded. "Yes, and with all other people that I've heard of."

Ayla frowned. "Not with the Clan," she said, thinking of _her_ first time, and Broud. She shook her head. That's over now, she thought. He's not so bad anymore, she told herself. "I have had no such _ceremony_, and I am still a woman. _And_, I have children."

Jendoza frowned as well, thinking that is was not right for Ayla to have children and a mate, and not to have had First Rites. Technically, she _wasn't_ a woman . . . in the eyes of the Sungaea. But then, Jendoza thought, the Sungaea didn't know much about how Ayla grew up. "It's just our way, Ayla. You could go through First Rites, you know? If you _want_ to, that is."

Ayla thought for a moment. "No, I don't think so. I know that I am a woman. I do not need a ceremony to tell me, or anyone else, that I am." Of course not, Jendoza thought, blushing slightly.

The three women talked as they walked through the Sungaea summer meeting, and stopped several times to talk to other people. Many were interested in meeting the two unfamiliar women. Danie was the beautiful younger sister of the Mamutoi woman, Darvie, whom everyone liked so much. No one had learned much about Danie since only a few had had the privilege of meeting her the previous summer due to their late arrival, but they did know that she was the one to bring Ivanolia out of his miserable existence, and that made her just as likable as Darvie.

Ayla, on the other hand, was infamous. _All_ had heard of her return and most knew at least something about where she had been for all those years. There were many people that gave them uneasy looks. Jendoza quickly filed the names of those people in her brain as ones that may be hard to convince. And there were others that looked disgusted at the mere thought of a civilized woman growing up with and mating a flathead male, normal as he seemed to appear. Those people made Jendoza nervous. She did not think many of them could be convinced, and worried about the trouble they could cause.

_But_, that was not all that was out there. There were also numerous looks of curiosity, and people that seemed more interested in learning before judging. Those were the people that Jendoza introduced her cousin to, and most of them walked away questioning the beliefs that they had grown up with.

For the most part, Jendoza was feeling a sense of relief. She knew that it was not over. Far from it, but it seemed to be going pretty good. That is, until they rounded the space that belonged to the Shogurs. Jendoza grimaced and tried to hurry the other two along . . . but not before they were spotted.

"Hey! Thereths that woman," someone said loudly. "The one that birth'd that abomination."

"Come on, Ayla, we don't need to listen . . . " Jendoza started to say, but Ayla stopped to take in her surroundings. There was a decidedly different air to the space they were now in. There were flies buzzing around, landing on dead animal carcasses, which were strewn about, and the smell was nearly enough to make one vomit. Ayla grimaced as she scanned the area. She saw that the dwellings were so tattered that they could hardly be called tents, and that the people were just as dirty as the space, maybe even more so. Ayla saw some children playing and noticed that they were covered in filth, and that many appeared to be sickly. An old woman let out a gurgling cough and eyed the three intruders.

After taking in the area and swallowing hard, she noticed that the man that had spoken was approaching them and that he was staggering drunk. There was no doubt in her mind that he had consumed too much bouza. She could not mistake his look of disgust and wanted to run, but something made her stay put. That something was a small child that happened to be lying on the ground nearby; a child that looked to be very ill.

Ayla glanced back at the man that was advancing on them, but she could not help but kneel down and to assess the child's condition. The child was filthy; Ayla could not even tell what color the child's hair was, but she appeared no worse than any of the other people of this camp. She extremely thin, slightly dehydrated and smelled of bouza. She also had a bump on her head. Apparently she had fallen, and no one had even noticed.

"Whas you doin' wit that grl," the man shouted. "Get 'way from er!"

"Where is this child's mother?" Ayla demanded angrily, standing up and looking the man square in the face. "Do you allow the children to drink bouza?"

The man looked around nervously. _No_, he thought to himself. Even he knew that the children shouldn't be drinking, but he had been busy, and where _was_ the girl's mother anyway. He squinted down at the child to see who it was, then hollered. "DANTA! Come git yer daughtr." He then turned to glare at Ayla. Within moments, a woman came out and scooped up the child, then scurried away.

"An you, woman!" he said, looking at Jendoza and scowling. "Git that abomination woman outta 'ere." The man turned around and swaggered back to where he had been sitting. No one else said anything.

Ayla was aghast at the treatment, or lack there of, of the little girl. She was about to refuse to leave, but she felt Jendoza's hand gently pulling on her arm. "There's nothing we can do right now, Ayla," Jendoza whispered. "We'll have to go talk to the Sisters. But first, I think we should go talk to Tagnolia or Tiflona, and tell them what happened." Reluctantly, Ayla allowed herself to be pulled, but she kept glancing over her shoulder as the walked away.

**xXx**

"It is always good to know where they are," Tagnolia said. He shook his head.

"We have them within the Mamutoi too, Tagnolia," Darvie said shaking her head and handing Annaliza to Ayla. "It really is best to just know where they are and stay away.

"Actually, Darvie," Vincenzia cut in. "I'm surprised that that's the stand that the Mamutoi take on the mistreatment of human beings."

Darvie frowned at her mate. "What do you mean?"

"Well, with how outspoken most of your people are, I would have assumed that they would put an end to these kinds of abuses." Vincenzia was worried that he'd upset his mate, but it had long been something he had wondered about. "And I don't just mean camps like Dogwood, Ash, Cedar and Sumac."

"Are you referring to Nezzie and Rydag?" she asked. She had never understood this aspect of her people either. It seemed so contradictory to their ways.

"Yeah," he said. "I guess I never paid much attention to it either, until I learned from my daughter that the Clan are people too." He glanced at Ayla and smiled. "But, we need to do something. We cannot continue on like this." He gestured toward the offending camps, while placing his other hand on Grov's shoulder.

"I do not understand it either," Darvie said. "And I agree, we need to do something, but what? I mean, people don't like it when things change too quickly. We're going to have to take it slowly. One person at a time, one camp at a time, one people at a time."

Grov smiled. "But at least your people are _capable_ of change. I'm afraid my people could never overcome such a huge obstacle."

"I'm not so sure about that, Grov," Vincenzia said. "Look at what Brun did for my daughter, and then he took in your people. The Clan may struggle at it, but they do adapt and change. They have to, or they wouldn't still be around."

Ayla was watching the exchange, but she was getting anxious. "Excuse me," she said. "All this talk of change is good, but what about that little girl?" Ayla asked, hugging her daughter to her lovingly. She had been listening to everyone discuss the problem, but no one was actually really doing anything. "Someone has to get her out of there. She was hurt."

"Not to worry, Ayla," Tagnolia said patting the young woman reassuringly. "Jendoza has already gone to find Tiflona, and I'm sure the Council of Sisters will remove the child, and place her in one of the healer's tents." He paused for a moment. "But, I think that . . . it might be best if you let others handle it for now," he said, seeing how badly the woman wanted to rush to the aid of the child. "Do you understand?"

Ayla frowned, but nodded. "Yes, I do understand, but I do not like it." Grov hugged his mate and kissed the top of her head. He knew that it was nearly killing her to not be allowed to assist.

**xXx**

Toward evening, Ayla and Grov were lying on their bed platform, resting before their first evening out. Brulenzia and Laurana had returned and were also resting, as were several other people.

"Well? What happened?" Laurana demanded, as soon as Jendoza got back to the tent.

Jendoza smiled. "Well, it was quite a scene. Zadneetsia had to be restrained. _He_ will be spending a few nights within the tent of the Council of Brothers." Jendoza looked at Ayla. "I wouldn't go over there if I were you, Ayla. He was carrying on about how this was all your fault."

Ayla blushed. "I did not mean to cause trouble. I was only worried about that little girl."

"Danara is going to be fine. Her mother went with her to see the healers, and she didn't appear to be angry. She was definitely worried, but not angry."

Ayla sighed. "I am glad for that."

"Now, before we go over to Hill Camp," Jendoza said. "I need to rest." She flopped down next to Donzolnia and closed her eyes.

**xXx**

Ivanolia lay silently, listening to the conversation. Hearing that Zadneetsia would be _away_ for a few days made him relax slightly. At the very least, he wouldn't have to deal with him for a little while, and it would give him a chance to organize his thoughts.

Ivanolia glanced at his mate, who had fallen asleep, then looked at his family and friends. Jendoza's eyes were closed and he could see that she was about to drift off as well. Donzolnia was sitting on the edge of the platform, talking to Brulenzia and Grov. And Laurana had moved to Grov's bed platform, where she was talking animatedly with Ayla. Ivanolia could see how happy everyone seemed; he just hoped they stayed that way.

**xXx**

When Tinozia entered the tent with Tabita and Fürlasa a little while later, he noticed his friend was lost in thought and sat down with him. "What's up?"

Ivanolia smiled. "I'm just observing how happy everyone looks."

Tinozia glanced at his age mates and nodded. "Yes, they seem to be," he agreed. "Hey, let's go outside and talk," he went on, nodding toward the tent entrance. Ivanolia shrugged and followed his friend.

"So, do you have a problem with everyone being happy?" Tinozia continued, once they were seated outside.

"No, no, of course not," Ivanolia sighed. "But it was so much easier back at Oak Camp . . . when we didn't have so much to deal with." Ivanolia looked at the activity all around them and put his head in his hands.

Tinozia gave his friend an amused smile, then laughed. "Yes, _you_ were more than enough to deal with there, Ivan."

Ivanolia looked up and frowned. "I know I was bad; terrible even," he said. "But this could get ugly. You know Zadneetsia isn't going to just drop this whole flathead thing. For me it took almost losing Danie to see how ridiculous I was being. Zadneetsia has _no_ reason to change his view.

Tinozia could see tears glistening in the man's eyes and knew there must be more to it than he was aware of. After all, Ivanolia was three years older than he was. Could there be things about his friend that he didn't have knowledge of? _Probably._

"What is bothering you so much, Ivan?" Tinozia asked. "So you blow him off; just totally ignore him. What could he possibly do to you if you completely disassociate with him.

"You really don't know what you're talking about, Tin." The man had his head in his hands again and was shaking it.

Tinozia could see droplets of water falling on the dirt between his friend's feet. He didn't know what to say or do, but he was becoming frustrated. "You know, maybe I don't, but I can't help you if you don't talk to me."

Ivanolia sighed. He knew his friend was right, but did he really want to tell Tinozia about the activities he used to engage in with his so-called friends. Only Donzolnia knew, and only because he had been unfortunate enough come along on one of their outings.

"You're right, you can't help me if I don't tell you . . . I'm just not ready to yet, Tin. Let's just say that there are some things that I did while hanging around with Zadneetsia that I'd rather people not know about, and that I'm sure they won't be a secret much longer."

Now it was Tinozia's turn to sigh. "Well, I'll listen if you're ever ready," he said, putting his arm around his friend. "But don't forget that it may be easier on you if we know before hand, so that we can back you up." Ivanolia tried to smile and wondered if Tinozia, or anyone else for that matter, would _back him up_, once they knew the extent of his evil.

"Hey, we better go freshen up; here comes Donzolnia." Tinozia stood up and left. Ivanolia sat there watching the younger man leave, and wiped away his tears. When Donzolnia neared, Ivanolia looked up at him, and tried to smile.

"So, brooding over past events?" Donzolnia said. Ivanolia just stared at him, and heaved a sigh. Donzolnia sat down.

"You know, I never approved of those _friends_ of yours. Even back then I thought you guys did terrible things. _But_, I think our people will surprise you, if you give them a chance. They will take into consideration that you were in a bad way. I mean, losing a mate can make a person crazy . . . but you have to say something before they here it from someone else, because they _will_ heard it from someone else at some point, Ivan."

"I know, I know, it's just so hard to believe that I . . . that I . . ."

"Ivan!" Danie called from the tent opening. "Are you going to come in and get ready? Or am I going out without you?"

Ivanolia and Donzolnia turned and looked at her, and both forced a smile. "We're coming," Ivanolia said. The woman smiled and disappeared back inside. "I guess this will have to wait a little longer."

"But not too long, I hope," Donzolnia said.

Ivanolia shook his head. "No, not too long." As they went back inside, he looked over at his cousin and her mate. They had both changed their outfits and looked very good in traditional Sungaean garb. It was hard for the man to believe that he had objected to them so intensely only a short time ago. They already seemed as if they had always been a part of his family; he only hoped they could find it in their hearts to forgive him when they found out about his past.

**XxX**

**Just A Little Excitement**

Ayla was standing next to Grov, and immediately noticed Ivanolia's reappearance. He had an odd look on his face, and the unmistakable hint of tears in his eyes. Squeezing Grov's arm, Ayla made her way over to the other man that had just sat down on his bed platform.

"Is everything okay," she whispered as she sat down next to her cousin. She was sure that something was not okay, but she needed to ask.

Ivanolia looked at her, and tried to smile. "Of course, Ayla. Why do you ask?"

"Hummm, maybe because I can see that you're upset." The man looked away. His eyes fell on Danie, who was standing with Grov. The man said something that made her giggle.

"There is something bothering me, but . . . well, I can't talk about it now," he said, looking back at her. Ayla's eyes went to where his had been, and she wondered if her cousin still harbored ill feelings for Grov. However, when she looked back at the man, she didn't think that was the case. Instead, he appeared to be pleading with her.

The young woman continued to look at him. She searched his blue eyes, trying to figure out if she should press, but hugged him instead. "I don't know what it is, Ivan, but you can talk to me anytime. You know that, don't you?"

Ivanolia's eyes filled again, and spilled over. Opening his eyes as wide as possible, and brushing them quickly, he managed to clear away the evidence of upset before anyone else looked over. "I hope you will be so willing to listen after you hear what I have to tell you, Ayla."

"I guess we won't know until you do, but I can be very forgiving," she said with a smile. She instantly thought about Broud. It was not hard to know what she was thinking. The man knew all about the man that had taken his cousin when she was barely a woman and nodded, hoping that she could forgive _him_ as well.

**xXx**

The young couples hung around Oak Camp's tent for a while longer, then finally decided it was time to go. Though he wanted to, Tinozia had decided not to attend the evening meal with the young couples. He had been invited to join the Shogurs, which was a great opportunity for him, considering that he was about to devote his life to serving.

Fürlasa was disappointed that Tinozia wouldn't be going to Hill Camp with the others, and pouted for a bit. _Then_, seeing that her friend was not happy made it easy for Tabita to convince her to go out and about instead, making Tinozia wonder where he wanted to be more. The quiet man didn't want to lose the young woman now that he knew she liked him, but he knew where he needed to be on that night; with the Shogurs.

Knowing that they had to walk around the Council of Sisters to get to Hill Camp made Ivanolia worry. Though he was aware that Zadneetsia wouldn't be around to make trouble, that particular man was not the only problem of the group; not the only man present during their escapades. That route was just too close to the camps that knew him best.

"Uh," he stammered, as everyone was heading toward the tent flap. "I think I'm going to meet you over there," he said as everyone was leaving. "I have to . . . find something."

Ayla and Grov heard him, looked at each other, then frowned. They could hear the untruth even with their backs turned, but when their eyes fell upon him, it was as if he just finished with, "_That_ was a lie." The couple looked at each other, wondering what was going on. No one else seemed to notice. Danie just nodded and hugged him. Ayla gave her cousin a look that told him she wasn't fooled, and then followed the others out.

Ivanolia sighed after they left. He knew he needed to get up the strength to talk to them; to talk to everyone in Oak Camp. They all needed to know.

**xXx**

Once outside, Grov and Ayla stopped at Oak Camp's fire to talk to Darvie. "Are you sure you don't mind us leaving the children with you?" Ayla asked with uncertainty.

"Gosh no," the woman replied. "I had no intention of going out tonight, and besides, you need to get out and meet people." Darvie hugged her, and smiled. "Are the girls already asleep?"

"I think so. I put them down earlier, and left Braydalana and Crisana to watch them. Maybe I should go check on them before we go," Ayla said, feeling strange about just going out without her children.

"No, no," Darvie cut in. "Grov, take her away before she decides to stay all night."

The man smiled, but it was Jendoza, Laurana and Danie who came to escort the woman away.

"Come on Ayla," Jendoza said. "We don't get many nights to do this when we have little ones, so let's enjoy."

"Yah, Ayla," Laurana chimed in. "I'll have to come back early to feed Bruana, so you can come back then too, if you want to check on them." Ayla sighed, then followed everyone.

**xXx**

As the young couples walked around the encampment toward Hill Camp, Grov and Ayla tried to melt into the group, and watch the goings on surreptitiously. The night was full of activity, and nearly every fire had something going on.

As they approached Spruce Camp, a man came out. "Donzolnia," he called. "Here's that fur you said you wanted. I was just bringing it to you."

Donzolnia, who'd had his arm around Grov's shoulder and was talking about the summer hunt, turned to look at the man who had addressed him.

"Jondaria," Donzolnia said, removing his arm from Grov and taking the fur that was being held out to him. "Look at this Jendoza. Isn't it exquisite?" Jendoza smiled and nodded.

As they stood there talking, a young woman came out of the tent and smiled. Grov recognized her as the woman that had been interested in his amulet earlier that day.

"This is my sister, Janika," Jondaria said. He looked at his sister. "And this is Grov and Ayla, and Ivanolia's mate, Danie."

"Yes, I remember Grov from this afternoon," she said, taking the man's hands in greeting and smiling up into his eyes, completely ignoring the two women. She had heard so much about these people, especially the flathead man, and had wanted to continue her talk with him. Unfortunately, her mother's mate had put an end to that during the day, but now that he was gone, she decided to jump for the opportunity.

"This is my mate, Ayla," Grov said, disentangling his hands from the young woman's. Janika frowned, then looked at the woman that stood next to him.

Ayla smiled. "Hello," she said, as she took the woman's reluctant hands.

Janika looked at the flathead's mate. She had heard the woman was strikingly beautiful, but she was even more beautiful than the young woman had thought possible. She wondered how they had come to be together. Stories, or rather, gossip, which had openly torn through the meeting prior to their arrival, were now much more secretive. That didn't, however, stop the young woman from wondering.

"Greetings," Janika stated flatly. "Welcome to Spruce Camp's space."

Ayla glanced at Grov. He looked uncomfortable. This woman obviously wanted to get to know _him_ better, but not her. Ayla smiled. "And this is Danie, Darvie's sister."

"It's nice to meet you, Danie," Janika said. "I have met your sister. She is very nice."

"Thank you," Danie said politely, noting to herself that the young woman was a bit rude. "My sister is mated to the man of Ayla's hearth, so I guess you could say that I am Ayla's aunt," Danie said, showing the woman where her loyalties lay.

Janika frowned again, and was about to say something else, when her brother cut in. "You'll have to excuse my sister, Ayla . . . our mother's mate doesn't let her out much," he said, putting his arm around her, and giving his sister a silencing grin. She flashed him an angry look, then spun on her heel, leaving everyone staring after her.

Ayla, who had not been upset by the woman's advances on her mate, nervously smiled at the man. Grov looked relieved that Janika was gone, but suddenly became aware that Jondaria was looking at Ayla the same way in which Janika had been looking at him. He didn't know what to think.

Noticing the new couple's discomfiture, Brulenzia decided to rescue them. "Well, we need to get over to Hill Camp," he said, taking Ayla's hand and helping to lead her away. Both Grov and Ayla gave him an appreciative look, and they continued on.

**xXx**

Ivanolia stayed in the tent, waiting for them to leave. He stepped outside once to see that they were talking to Jondaria, so he continued to wait.

"Ivanolia," came a voice behind him. "Why are you still here?" The man had been peeking out of the tent flap, but turned to see his mother.

"I . . . um . . . well, I was looking for something. I told them that I'd meet them there," he stammered.

Serana narrowed her eyes at her son. "Did you find what you were looking for?" She obviously didn't buy his lie.

Looking down at his empty hands. "No."

"Well then, you'll have to look later." The man stared at her for a moment, then nodded, and left.

**xXx**

Outside, he could see everyone had left Spruce Camp. He decided to make his way towards Hill Camp by way of the outer path. It would take longer, but that way he could get there without passing the camps that could give him trouble.

**xXx**

Brulenzia continued to hold Ayla's hand as they walked along, and Grov took up the other one. Ayla smiled gratefully at the two men. As they walked, she looked around, recognizing where they had been earlier in the day. As they rounded the tent of the Council of Sisters, she glanced toward the area where Zadneetsia resided.

"Don't worry, Ayla," Brulenzia said. "He's not there, remember?" She nodded.

They continued their course, finally arriving in front of Hill Camp, the only camp not named after some sort of tree or plant. Several young couples were sitting outside by their fire, obviously waiting for them, and others were lingering around, wanting to see the flathead man for themselves.

Donzolnia stood in the lead, Jendoza right next to him, both had smiles on their faces, as they looked at the people standing there to greet them. "Greetings, Lenora," Jendoza said, taking the hands that were being offered.

"Welcome to our fire," the woman said with a grin. "It is so good to have you, _and_ your missing family among us." Lenora looked at the new faces. She had figured that Ayla would be beautiful, all the Oak Camp women were, but she was surprised that the flathead was good looking as well. Her eyes traveled over the couple; they looked good together.

"Well, we thought you might not come," a man sneered from off to the side and slightly behind.

Donzolnia squinted down at the man that had not gotten up to greet them. He was hard to see, as he was just out of the fire's light. Donzolnia realized that it was someone he didn't like; someone from Sumac Camp. "Why wouldn't we come, Igorvia?" Donzolnia asked. "We were invited, weren't we? What are you doing here?"

"I too was invited," the man said, taking a gulp of his drink and getting up. "Where's Ivanolia?" he asked, looking around. "I figured I would find him here."

Donzolnia was about to speak up, but Danie opened her mouth first. "He's coming," she said as she eyed the man shrewdly. She already didn't like the man.

Igorvia hadn't met old friend's new mate, though he'd heard a lot about her. He wondered if she was the cause of his change in attitude. He'd heard she was related to some flathead boy that her Mamutoi relatives had taken in. She sure was pretty, with her short dark hair. "Darvie's sister, right?" he said, as he swaggered over to her.

Danie squared her shoulders, and stood as tall as she could. "Sure am," she said with a smile. She tried to look strong.

Igorvia slipped his arm around her. She had to hide her grimace. He smelled dirty and his breath reeked of bouza.

Everyone watched, not sure what to do. Igorvia wasn't exactly _hurting_ Danie, but she was clearly uncomfortable. Seeing that Danie had had enough, Donzolnia was about to intervene, but again, someone got there first.

Ayla could not control herself and stepped forward. "Greetings," she said, offering her hands to the foul smelling man.

"Well, you must be the _other_ woman I've heard so much about," he continued, arm still draped over Danie's shoulder. "The one mated to the flathead."

Grov was nearly ready to step in, but Brulenzia and Donzolnia put a hand on each of his shoulders. "Just wait," Brulenzia whispered. "We don't want a fight, and he hasn't really done anything yet." Grov stood down, but stayed ready.

Then suddenly, another man was there. He had come from behind, but was now standing next to Ayla. It was Ivanolia and he looked angry. Igorvia release Danie and took a step back. "Well, well, well, look who decided to show up." Everyone was pretty quiet, but many were staring over at Hill Camp's fire from other fires. "I thought I'd have to track you down," the man continued.

"Nope, I'm right here," Ivanolia said.

"Well then, maybe you could tell me why you didn't come see us today? Or maybe you could tell me why you're hanging around with the flathead," Igorvia sneered, gesturing toward Grov, but not looking at him. "_Or maybe_, you could let me know why Zadneetsia is being held by the Council of Brothers, because I'm sure you know more than you're saying . . . or not saying, as the case may be."

Ivanolia blushed. "Igorvia, couldn't we talk about this somewhere else. People are trying to enjoy an evening meal here."

"I was thinking that it might be better to talk about it right here, in front of _everyone_."

Ivanolia eyes flashed with anger, and he stepped forward, getting right up into the man's face, and grabbing his tunic. Igorvia took another step back, but didn't back down. "Look, Igorvia, we don't want trouble. If you want to talk to me, then I'll go with you, but don't come in here and threaten me." Donzolnia, Brulenzia and a few men of Hill Camp were standing there, waiting to see what they'd have to do.

Igorvia finally held up his hands and shrugged. When Ivanolia let go he took a few steps backward. "Okay then, I expect to see you . . . sometime soon." The man downed his drink, set the cup down, then sauntered off.

Ivanolia watched him go, and sighed heavily. When he turned around everyone was staring at him. He tried to avoid Danie's eyes, but her penetrating stare was fixed on her mate, and he could not _not_ look at her.

"Ivan, what was _that_ all about?" she demanded. He mumbled something, not wanting to get into it at that moment, and looked to Donzolnia for assistance.

"Okay, now that that's over, let's visit," Donzolnia said. Jendoza looked at her mate, wondering what he was covering up. She could tell that he knew something that he wasn't saying. Danie thought the same.

Laurana looked from her brother, to her sister, to Brulenzia, trying to figure it out. Then she glanced at Grov; he looked angry, and Ayla was frowning as well. What was going on here, she wondered? She knew Ayla had been worried that something like this might happen, but what did her brother have to do with it? She thought this evening was going to be fun. What had happened?

**XxX**

**More Trouble**

Donzolnia did his best to get things to a more relaxed state, but the evening meal continued to be tense. No more mention was made about Ivanolia's _friend_, or why the man had been there in the first place, but the subject was not far from anyone's mind.

Many members of Hill Camp appeared to be extremely embarrassed about the incident. However, there were plenty of others that hadn't bothered to come to the defense of Oak Camp, but instead stayed silent, or even worse, they left before the Sumac Camp man had sauntered off.

The evening meal, however, was a delicious meat dish and several sides, all made by the young headwoman, and several cups of some kind of wine, which was stronger than any Grov or Ayla had tried before. It was not long before most were intoxicated, including the young clan couple.

For the most part, Grov had hovered close to his mate, thinking that he needed to protect her from these stupidly prejudiced people, but when Janika showed up, he seemed to get himself cornered by the young, yet awfully persistent woman. The woman seemed determined to keep him to herself, despite his attempts to dash away. The man didn't understand why she was acting the way she was, especially after all the bad attention their presence seemed to draw. Grov hadn't forgotten the look she had received from the man of her hearth earlier that day. It made him nervous.

As the man conversed with her, she kept taking steps closer, causing him to back away further. Grov glanced over the woman's head, searching for Ayla, but she was busy standing with and talking to Ivanolia, Danie, and some others he hadn't met.

Janika smiled up at him, and giggled, brushing her hand on his arm. Had he said something funny, he wondered? He frowned and took another step back, and looked for Ayla again. For a moment, he couldn't find her, then he saw that she was talking to Jondaria again. When had he arrived? Ayla seemed fine, but where was Ivanolia, he thought, looking around for his mate's cousin? At a touch on his arm, Grov glanced down at Janika again. She was holding his arm and leaning into him, _and_ talking about something. His head sure seemed to be whirling.

"Umm . . . Janika, I . . . I need to go find . . . Ayla," he finally stammered, gently pushing her back.

The woman frowned. She was not used to being pushed away, and she didn't like it one bit. "But why?" she asked. "Don't you want to have some fun?"

"Well . . . yes," he answered. "But I would like to share it with my mate . . . Ayla."

"But Ayla's over there with my brother," she said, tipping her head in the direction of the other two. Grov glanced over at them, and frowned. Did Ayla look as distressed as he felt?

"Yes, you are right. Maybe we should join them." He started to walk away, but Janika caught his hand, and pulled him into the nearest tent.

"Or maybe they want to be alone," she said, pulling him in close and kissing him. "Maybe we could be alone too." She put her arms around him, and pressed herself up against him.

Grov accepted her kiss, but suddenly pushed her away. He liked it when, on occasion, Ayla was demanding, but this woman was not Ayla, and he didn't like her manhandling him. It didn't feel right. "No Janika!" he finally said. "I don't even know you."

For a moment, an angry look flashed through Janika's dark eyes, but just as quickly as it had come, it disappeared, and she smiled. "Okay," she said. "Suit yourself." The woman walked out of the tent, leaving a bewildered Grov standing in the opening, staring out after her. She didn't go back to the gathering, but instead went the other way, presumably back to Spruce Camp. Grov ran a hand through the stubble on his chin and shook his head.

**xXx**

On the other side of the gathering, Jondaria was talking to Ayla. They were sitting at one of the fires and were discussing different ways to cure and tan hides.

"That's fascinating, Ayla," the man was saying. "I wouldn't have guessed that the _Clan_?" She nodded. "That the Clan was so skilled. Truly fascinating," he said again. "And I've heard that you have a language, which uses signs only, and no sounds. What is it like, to talk that way."

Ayla shrugged. "It is the same as talking out loud, except that you cannot talk when it is dark."

"But oh, not the same at all. If you can talk without sound, then you can have private conversations, and no one will know what you're saying."

"Well, I guess so, as long as people don't know the signs," she replied.

Ayla was smiling, but her smile broadened when Grov came up beside them. Then suddenly, her smile faded, when she saw her mates face. "What is it, Grov?" she asked, standing up.

"Ahh, nothing, I'm fine," he said. She knew that he was not _fine_, and touched his arm questioningly.

Jondaria stood up then as well, and looked around for his sister. He had seen her flirting with the strangely handsome and interesting flathead man, and had even had a fleeting thought that if his sister was successful, then he might have a chance to tempt the man's beautiful, blond mate into _his_ furs, but now he could tell that wouldn't happen. Janika was not likely to be in a good mood, if she's just been turned down. That thought made him smile a bit. Well, can't always have what you want, he reasoned.

When the man looked back at the couple, it was as if he didn't even exist. He and Ayla had just been talking about the way the Clan communicated, but now he was witnessing it. He had no idea what they were saying, but it was beautiful.

**xXx**

It was not long afterward that the gathering started to break up. As they were walking back to Oak Camp, Ayla noticed that Laurana and Danie had already left. Ivanolia and Brulenzia were carrying on loudly, which caused several people to shush them. When Jendoza, who had wanted to retire early, tripped over some unseen obstacle and started giggling loudly herself, Donzolnia picked her up and carried her.

"Ayla, this was so fun," she said. "I'm so glad you decided to come out with us." She wasn't aware of Grov's run in with Janika, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves after their initial problem with Igorvia.

Ayla and Grov were mostly happy. Grov had told her about Janika, which made her laugh. "Well, it could have been worse," she gestured. "She could have caused a scene."

"I'm not sure it could have been _worse_," he gesticulated angrily. "It was pretty bad."

Ayla frowned at him. She hadn't seen him so angry since Ivanolia had accidentally punched her, causing her to go into labor. "I just mean that . . ."

"Oh, never mind, Ayla," he gestured, seeing that he'd hurt her feelings. "I didn't mean to seem so angry. I just don't understand these Others. Do they hate us, or not?" Ayla shrugged.

"Hey you two," Jendoza said, squinting over at them from Donzolnia's arms. "I've had too much wine to see what you're saying."

**XxX**

**An Early Morning**

Ayla lay still on her sleeping platform, but was aware that her head hurt badly. Why did I drink so much of that wine last night, she questioned herself? She turned her head slightly to see that Grov had already awakened and had gotten up. The woman frowned, knowing that she'd have to get up, make some painkilling tea, then nurse her daughter.

After gathering all her strength, she sat up and sighed. The tent seemed to be rather quiet. Either people were still sleeping, or they were gone. She could hear some shuffling, but not much. Pulling on her leggings, she got up, and went to find her children. She found Ora first. The child was with Serana, who was drinking a cup of tea in the main space of the tent.

"Mamma, I thought you would sleep all day," Ora said with a smile.

Ayla grinned back, and tickled her daughter. "Of course I wouldn't sleep all day."

"Well good morning, Ayla," Serana said when the young woman turned to look at her. "I have some tea for you." The woman was holding a steaming cup of tea, and Ayla could tell immediately that it was the tea she needed.

"Thank you, Serana," Ayla replied, after she took a sip. "I am sorry to have slept so long. I didn't mean for you to have to take care of Ora for me."

The older woman smiled. "Not to worry. It is my pleasure. And it isn't really late. The sun has only just come over the horizon. Many are still asleep, actually. Only the very young and old rise with the sun." The woman thought for a moment. "Anyway, it is so nice to have so many little ones around again." She looked at Ora, who had just put a piece of dried meat in her mouth, and smiled. "After Braydalana was born . . . well, I didn't think there'd be another birth in our family, but you have been there to welcome each new birth, haven't you?"

Ayla smiled that the woman. "It was little."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "Well, little or not, I am grateful to you . . . and your mate."

"Thank you, Serana," Ayla replied. "And speaking of my mate, where is he?"

Serana put her cup down. "Well, you know, I haven't actually been outside yet, but I did see him leave with Durc and Annaliza. He might be outside by the fire."

"I guess I will go check. Do you want to come with me, Ora?" Ayla asked, looking at her middle child. The girl shook her head.

"You can leave her, Ayla. I'm not going anywhere today, at least not right now." Ayla gave the woman an appreciative look, and excused herself.

**xXx**

At the tent's entrance, Ayla pushed the tent flap aside and stepped out. Outside, the morning air was still crisp, and a light summer fog was blanketing the area. It wouldn't last long; the sun would burn it off quickly, but it was nice for the morning.

Ayla immediately saw Grov sitting there by the fire, with his back to the tent. She could tell by the way he sat that he wasn't very happy. He had Annaliza on his lap and Durc was sitting there eating.

"Mama," her son called. "Come sit with us. Grov has made me something to eat," the boy said with a smile.

The woman went over to her family, and frowned down at what her son was eating. "And what did Grov _make_ for you," she asked, unable to tell what it was.

"I don't know, but it's good," the boy said. Ayla leaned down to kiss her mate's head, and picked up Annaliza who had reached up to her mother.

Grov smiled at her as he released their daughter. "Well, the boy had to eat, didn't he?"

Ayla giggled, then scrutinized her mate further. "You did not look very happy when I came out. It wasn't about cooking was it?" she asked, sure that it wasn't.

The man frowned again. "No . . . that woman . . . Janika was here this morning," he replied. "I do not like the way she pushes herself on me. Something about it feels wrong."

"How do you mean?" Ayla asked.

"I can't say, exactly, it just doesn't feel right." He paused. "But, I have no experience with this."

Ayla smiled. "Well, neither do I. No one has ever wanted me before, until you."

"And Broud," the man reminded her.

She grimaced. "Broud did _not_ want me. He only wanted to _hurt_ me. Besides, that is in the past."

"I'm sure you will have to get used to people wanting you here, Ayla. I think Jondaria wanted you last night."

Ayla frowned. "Do you think so? Or was he just being nice?"

The man grinned at his mate. "Come on, Ayla, if I had gone with Janika, he would surely have tried harder with you. Don't forget that among the Others, you are a very beautiful woman. They see you the way I do, not the way the Clan does."

Ayla smiled. She still could not get used to thinking of herself as anything but big and ugly, despite how many people had told her otherwise. To others, she was clearly one of the most beautiful Sungaean women, if not one of the most beautiful women anywhere.

"So, what happened this morning with Janika?" she asked her mate.

The man sighed, squinting into the fog toward Spruce Camp's fire. "She saw me sitting here, though I can't tell how with all the fog, and brought me some tea." The man paused to look at Durc. "And she kept staring at Durc," he gestured when he was sure the boy wasn't watching. "She had an odd look about her, and it bothered me." Then going back to speaking. "Then she picked up Annaliza, and asked where you were."

"Well, that _seems_ harmless," Ayla said.

"No Ayla, it wasn't," the man said.

**xXx**

_"Ayla's still asleep," Grov replied to the nosey young woman._

_Janika smiled slyly, put the child down, then sat down beside the man. "Oh good. Now I can have you all to myself." She reached up and ran her fingers through his short dark hair._

_The man's eyes opened wide. Was she really suggesting what she seemed to be. "No Janika," Grov said to her, leaning back. "I do not want to make you feel bad, but I am not interested. This is not how I was raised."_

_The young woman's eyes flashed angrily, just as they had the night before, but this time she did not hide it. "Feel bad?" she said. "Do you think I cannot get whomever I want?" she demanded, standing up suddenly._

_The man stared at her. "Ah . . . no, that is not what I meant, Janika. I said that I'm just not intere . . . ."_

_"I heard you!" she spat. "Do you think Ayla will stay with you after she meets a_ real _man? Not some mixed up perversion, such as yourself."_

_Grov continued to stare at her for a moment, then he looked at Durc. The boy had stopped eating, and was frowning up at the woman. Only Broud had been so mean in his short past._

_Grov looked around the encampment, hoping someone from Oak Camp could save him from this angry woman, but no one seemed to be around; it was too early. "I think that you should probably go, Janika. I do not want trouble; Oak Camp does not want trouble."_

_"Humph," she said, hands on her hips. "Then why'd they bring you here, if they don't want any trouble?" She waited for a response, but he was speechless. "And don't think_ you _will be able to spend a whole summer meeting with the Sungaea, and not encounter trouble. I'm sure there's going to be some." With that, the woman stomped off. _

**xXx**

"Ayla, it seemed like a threat." The man frowned at his mate. "I do not understand these Others. They act like they hate _flatheads_, yet . . . ." His voice trailed off. Ayla could tell he was extremely upset, and not just by Janika's advances.

The woman put her arms around the man, and kissed him tenderly. "Well, we can tell Tagnolia and Tiflona. That way, if there is trouble, at least someone will know about it beforehand." The man nodded, the whole thing just felt so uncomfortable to him. Ayla sat down next to him, and began nursing her daughter in silence.

**XxX**

**Ivanolia's Misery**

After Grov told Ayla about Janika's visit, they tried to relax. Though the incident was not completely erased from his mind, he was able to enjoy the peaceful time with his mate and her children without dwelling on the other woman's unpleasant visit.

As they sat there together the fog burned away, gradually extending their vision across the encampment. Soon they could see that several camps were rising and making ready to begin a brand new day. Women came out to stoke fires and begin meals as children played quiet morning games. Some men walked by, on their way somewhere, perhaps an early morning hunt, or off to do some trading. A few of them offered a morning greeting to the young couple that no one knew very well, but for the most part people kept to themselves. Grov and Ayla gave polite greetings in return, but mainly averted their eyes from the goings on around them, so as not to intrude upon the other people's quiet morning. This is how they would have acted within the Clan. They were quite aware that looking directly at other people was not considered rude among the Others, but they both had a hard time breaking their lifetime of conditioning. Even Grov, who had lived a much more relaxed life than his mate, could not overcome his upbringing.

However, despite their attempt to shut out the private conversations of others, people were talking all around them, and they could not close their ears. They could hear people talking about this and that, making quiet morning jokes, and laughing about the previous night's happenings. They even heard their own names mentioned once or twice, but still they did not look around to see who was talking. No one seemed to be gossiping, or talking about them with malice. People were just conversing. Everything seemed to be fine.

The young foreign couple sat by the warm morning fire for quite some time, talking quietly with one another and the children, waiting for others to join them.

**xXx**

Due to the large quantity of bouza he had taken in at Hill Camp, Ivanolia slept through the night. It was not, however, without disturbance. Though the man seemed to be sleeping deeply, he was plagued with terrifying dreams about losing everything that had meaning to him: his newly found cousin, his mate and her unborn child, the daughter of his hearth, and the rest of his people.

As he began to come out of sleep, he became aware of the dull pain that had been residing in his head for some time. Before opening his eyes the man slid his hand out, searching for his mate. He was pleased to find her there, and smiled as she snuggled up to him in her sleep.

Opening his eyes, he stared over his sleeping woman's frame toward Grov and Ayla's bed platform. Their coverings were tossed aside. The couple was already up. Seeing them gone brought his mind back to his dreams, causing him to frown. He needed to talk to them.

The man lay there for what seemed like a long time, considering the different reactions he could get from his cousin and her mate when he told them about what he had done. Then, when he felt Danie stirring, his mind went to what _she_ might think of him. There was no doubt in his mind that she would be angry. He was sure she would explode in fury; that was just her way. A single tear slid down his cheek as he considered his actions. He squeezed her tight, hoping that it would not be the last time he held her.

"Morning," she said sleepily, waking up and hugging him back. He didn't respond with words, but hugged her tighter.

"Danie?" he began.

"Hummmm?" she responded, eyes still closed. The woman lay there for a moment, waiting for him to continue. When he didn't she opened her eyes and pushed back a little so that she could look at him. "Ivan? Is everything okay?" she asked worriedly. She could see that his eyes were wet. Something was most definitely wrong.

"I hope so," he replied. "I need to tell you something. . . something. . . not good."

The woman sat up. She knew this was serious, but she had no idea what he was thinking. Maybe he had changed his mind about being with her. She frowned and her eyes started to fill. "Ivan? Are you unhappy with me?"

Ivanolia stared at her for a moment, then smiled and took her into his arms again. "Of course I'm happy with you, Danie. I have never been so happy. It's something else." He paused, holding her tight. "A long time ago I did something very bad. I've needed to tell everyone for a long time, but I haven't known how, and for so long I didn't even think that I had done anything wrong. Now I know that I have."

Danie was still holding him, but wanted to see his face. She sat up again and waited. He went on. "I know I should have told you before, but I really _need_ to tell you now, Danie," his voice was pleading with her. She waited. He started in.

**xXx**

Grov and Ayla were sitting outside relaxing when Vincenzia and Darvie came out of Oak Camp's tent. Vincenzia was carrying Ora, who struggled to get down when she saw her mother.

"Mamma, I'm hungry," she stated.

Ayla smiled as she got up to get her daughter. "Weren't you just inside eating with Serana?" Ora nodded.

Vincenzia brushed Ayla's cheek with his, and smiled down at her. "Little ones are always hungry, my daughter."

"Hummmm, except when you want them to eat," Ayla said with a broad smile.

Darvie laughed. "Isn't _that_ the truth." She looked around the camp, then back at the young family. "So, you got in late last night. How did you both sleep?" she asked.

"I slept well," Ayla replied, but Grov did not answer. Ayla could tell that he was thinking about the incident with Janika again, so she answered for him. "I think Grov _slept_ okay." She frowned. "But, he had some trouble with a woman from Spruce Camp.

Hearing the concern in Ayla's voice, Vincenzia turned toward the young woman's mate. He seemed to be lost in thought. "Grov, is everything alright?" Vincenzia asked.

Grov shook his head to bring himself back from his thoughts. "What?"

Vincenzia laughed. "You _must_ be worried about something."

Grov frowned. "Is it that obvious?"

Vincenzia smiled. "The Clan aren't the only people that can read body language. Come on, out with it."

"Well, it's about . . .," he began. But as he started, a loud scream came from inside their tent, quickly followed by Danie angrily pushing the tent flap aside and running out. Her face was red and tear-streaked, and Darvie could tell that her sister's blood was boiling. Ivanolia stepped out only moments later.

"Danie, _please_, you can't just run off like this. We need to talk," the man said, reaching for her arm as she fled. But, as soon as he touched her, she stopped and yanked her arm away from him. It was as if his touch had burned her.

"How _DARE_ you!" she screamed at her mate. "How dare you tell me what _we_ need to do. _YOU_ have done enough!" Then, switching to Mamutoi, the woman began pacing and continued to rant her frustration and anger, though most could not understand a word she said. Even Darvie did not know what her sister was raging about.

"Danie, please let me explain. I . . ." the man said, reaching out to try to get her to look at him again.

Danie flinched at his touch and once again pulled her arm out of his reach. "I do not want you to touch me," she said through gritted teeth. "I do not even want you to _LOOK_ at me!" Her eyes flashed with hatred. The woman gave him one last look of disgust, and then she stormed away. Ivanolia could only watch her go. Tears were streaming down his face as he sank to the ground where he stood.

The scene could be heard by many, and people were coming out to see what all the yelling was about. Darvie watched her sister with wide eyes. Not even Danie liked yelling, though she had always been the most outspoken person of their camp. What had the man done now, she wondered? Then, when Danie ran off, Darvie followed her.

Ayla's face didn't look much different that Darvie's had; she was shocked at the display. But, when Darvie ran after Danie, Ayla handed Annaliza to Grov and went to her cousin, who still sat near the opening of the tent.

The woman approached him slowly, but when she touched him he pulled back, startled. "Ivan?" she said questioningly. She was kneeling down in front of him, at about eye level. The man looked up at her, wondering how he was going to go through this again. Now he had to tell Grov and Ayla, and who else? Maybe he'd have to tell everyone. Surely Danie was telling Darvie as he sat here in the dirt. Maybe they'd all hate him after today.

Ivanolia glanced around at the staring people, and wished he would have had the sense to just go back inside when Danie left. He saw his mother standing there and several others from Oak Camp, and knew he was going to have to tell them. What would they think, he wondered desolately? Would his mother turn her back as well? He was sure this was the end of life as he knew it.

However, when he looked back at Ayla, he didn't just see curiosity. Her eyes held such concern and patience that he had to blink back tears again. She had picked up his hands, and was holding them, waiting for him to be ready. Glancing over at Grov, he whispered, "Ayla, I need to talk to you and Grov. I need to tell you something. I've done something awful, and I really need to tell you both." Ayla nodded.

Though no one except Ayla and his mother could hear him, Grov got up and walked over to them. Serana looked down at her son, wishing she could ease his pain. She knew there had been something he had wanted to talk to them about, but had no idea what it could be. She only hoped that Grov and Ayla would be more forgiving than Danie had been.

"I'll watch the children," Serana stated, taking Annaliza from Ayla's mate. "Maybe the three of you could take a walk." Grov looked at her gratefully and nodded at her suggestion. It was a good one.

**XxX**

**Ivanolia's Secret**

Ayla continued to kneel in front of her cousin, waiting for him to look at her once again. Ivanolia watched his mother take Ayla's daughter from Grov and hug her tenderly, then his eyes followed her as she walked over to Ayla's other two children. Serana took one of Ora's hands as Durc took the other, and led them back inside the tent. Vincenzia followed. Ivanolia watched his people moving, going; it seemed to be happening in slow motion. After several others had gone, Ivanolia noticed for the first time that Fraylora was standing there with Braydalana as well. The woman took the hand of the daughter of his hearth and led her away. As Braydalana disappeared into the tent, the man sighed audibly; they were the last of Oak Camp to go. _Then_, knowing there was no one left to look at, he turned back toward his cousin.

When his eyes were upon her again, they filled, just as they had before. It took a moment for him to compose himself, to focus on her face. When she could tell that he could see her, she squeezed his hands and smiled at him. Ivanolia looked at her as if he hadn't seen her before; she was a very beautiful woman. He _had_ known that, but something seemed different about her. The man stared at her, then looked up at Grov. Ayla's mate stood there silently, waiting for him to get up. Finally, after mustering all the strength he had left, he squeezed Ayla's hands in return and struggled to lift himself off the ground. Grov reached out to assist them for it was obvious the man needed them both.

For just a moment, they stood there waiting as Ivanolia tried to decide what to do, where to go. He knew he had to get out and away from the summer meeting, but where should they go, he wondered? Then it came to him. The man went into Oak Camp's tent and returned carrying their three parkas. The day would not be cold, but it was still brisk, as the sun had not finished burning off the morning mist. It was obvious to the young couple that this might take a while; that they might be out for some time.

Ivanolia, his mind still on his furious mate, hoped that it _would_ take a while, and that they wouldn't go rushing off angrily, as Danie had done, though he would not blame them, or anyone else, if they never spoke to him again. He fervently hoped that they would find it in their hearts to forgive him.

After putting on her parka, Ayla adjusted the hood so that it lay against her back; it really wasn't necessary at this time as she could already feel the warmth of the sun. When she finished, she looked toward her cousin. He had been silently biting his lip and waiting. But, when he could see that _she_ was ready, he started off.

**xXx**

The man headed east, taking them between Oak Camp and Spruce Camp's tents toward the outer path that surrounded the entire encampment. Grov noticed that Janika was still sitting by Spruce Camp's fire and that her eyes never left him as he passed between the two tents. She narrowed her eyes and gave him an odd smile as he turned away from her. The man frowned and took up Ayla's hand.

Once out on the outer path, Ivanolia turned and headed north. He knew the area pretty well, though he had not been here in years, and he wanted to find the place where they could be alone, so he could talk to them without the watchful eyes of his people on them.

After reaching the northern most part of the summer meeting, Ivanolia veered northwest, heading away from the summer meeting. The man planned on taking them up the hill that housed Maple Camp's winter caves to the plateau above. Atop the hill, there would be a large patch of trees, not quite a forest, but still rather large. And, among those trees there would be an arrangement of benches that Maple Camp often used for meetings. It would be a nice, secluded place to tell them of his indiscretion.

As they crossed the nearly flat land that led to the hill they would climb, Grov and Ayla watched the man ahead of them. He looked as if the world was ending. Ivanolia trudged along, his thoughts weighing heavily upon him as Grov and Ayla followed silently. As the couple walked hand in hand, they both surveyed the land around them. It was a truly stunning land, much different than the land that was nearer to their home.

When finally they reached the hill, Ivanolia stopped for a moment, waiting for them to catch up. It only took moments. The man did not say a word when they reached him, but turned toward the path that had been cut into the hill, and began the ascent.

As they hiked up the path, Grov and Ayla could see the many caves that belonged to Maple Camp. Both were curious about the openings they saw and wished they could see inside, but they also knew that this was not the time. Perhaps there would be time for that later, perhaps not. They did not know if that was something caves normally shared with summer meeting visitors.

Before long Ivanolia reached the top of the hill. The climb did not take long as he had set a decent pace. At the top, the man once again waited for his cousin and her mate to be standing beside him. As they approached slowly Ivanolia could see that they were winded from the climb. He gave them a moment to catch their breaths.

When all were ready Ivanolia took up the lead and headed northwest again. The land on top of the hill was nearly flat, making their hike easy. They could see a line of trees not too far ahead, and followed Ivanolia toward it.

As they approached the stand of trees before them, they could see that it was much more dense than it had appeared to be from a distance. Ivanolia stopped for a moment, and looked back at the other two people. He could see only trust and concern on their faces. The man sighed heavily, then entered the tree line.

As they entered, the light of the sun faded as the trees cast shadows upon them and the ground around them. They could hear the rustling of leaves, as a gentle breeze blew through the trees, and here and there, the chirp of a bird. Ayla was instantly reminded of the hunt that had exposed her hunting skill when she was still a girl. It did not look any differently among these trees than it had on that day. She shivered without meaning to. Grov, feeling her shiver, squeezed her hand.

They did not walk long, not more than fifty paces, when finally Ivanolia stepped out into a large clearing. Grov and Ayla followed the man slowly. As they stepped out, the light of the sun hit them, causing them to have to blink hard. It was time to shed their parkas. After they did so, they sat down upon a bench that had been made by Maple Camp, and waited for Ivanolia to begin.

Ivanolia, who had not taken off his parka, was walking around the cleared space, almost pacing. He had one hand in a pocket of his parka and the other covering his eyes and forehead. He stopped and looked at them, then continued to pace. Now that he had their undivided attention he didn't know where to begin. Finally, he sat down, head in hands and took a deep breath.

Slowly, and with much effort, the man looked up and focused on the expectant couple. "Ayla, I do not know how to tell you what I _need_ to tell you. What I have done is so very terrible," he said, pausing.

"Ivan, you can only be honest with us," Ayla said, getting up, going to the man, then kneeling before him again. "I know that it must be bad, but I will not turn my back on you. You are my family."

Ivanolia frowned at the beautiful woman. "How can you be so sure, Ayla? You do not even know what I have done. I assure you, what I have done is unforgivable."

Ayla looked back at Grov. He was not showing that he would be as forgiving, but he would not contradict his mate. "Maybe _unforgettable_, but you have changed so much Ivan. I cannot imagine that I could be so unforgiving. Whatever it is, no matter have terrible, I will forgive you." She paused. "I'm not saying that I, that we, won't be angry. If it is as terrible as you believe, then I'm sure we will be angry, but I promise that time will ease our anger." Ayla hoped that it would be that simple, that Grov could do as she had promised.

Ivanolia stared at her, then shook his head. It was obvious he did not believe it was possible. He stood up and began pacing again. "You have to understand that what I've done, what I did, is not considered as awful as I now know it to be. Many young men talk about it secretly when others aren't around." Ivanolia stopped and looked at them both. Ayla was still kneeling where he had been, and Grov had not gotten up from the bench that he had been sharing with his mate. Both faces held an expectant look. The man sighed and began again, almost talking to himself.

"No, no, that's wrong; who do I think I'm fooling?" He was almost ranting. "It _is_ considered awful, but men do it anyway. I did it anyway." Ivanolia sank onto one of the benches and put his head in his hands again.

"Why don't you just tell us what happened, Ivan," Grov stated plainly. "Ayla has already told you that we will _eventually_ forgive you."

Ivanolia's head snapped up. Could this man _really_ forgive him without knowing what he had done? He did say _eventually_. Ivanolia sighed and got up; he started pacing again. "It was . . . ummm . . . five years ago, and we were at the summer meeting, a summer meeting just like this one, but we were summering with Ash Camp. Do you know where Ash Camp is?" he asked stopping only long enough to see them shake their heads.

"Ash Camp is probably the closest camp to Oak Camp, but it is one of the most eastern camps." The man waited, watching them. They still did not know where he was going. How could they? "Do you know which camp is Ash Camp?"

"Yes," Grov replied just before Ayla said, "Yes, their tent is between Dogwood Camp's tent and Cedar Camp's tent." Ayla grimaced, which made Ivanolia nervous. He decided to changes angles.

"You have to understand that when Braydalana's mother died in childbirth eight years ago, I felt like _I_ had died. I spent all my time taking care of Nemlora's daughter; it was all I could do to keep going. I didn't _want_ to keep going, and I never believed life would be good again. Then, when Bray was only a couple years old, Fraylora, _and_ my mother, thought it best for me to get out again. They took many pains to see that I had other places to go . . . but they didn't know that I wasn't ready." The man heaved a sob and sat down again. "I started drinking more bouza than one person should. It was just to push my pain away, but I was quite aware of what people thought of that, so I hid it; I had to start going outside of Oak Camp for the bouza. Soon, I went to people like . . . like . . . Zadneetsia . . . and Igorvia to find what I wanted." Ivanolia looked away from his cousin. He did not want to see her look of disgust. What he didn't know was that her eyes only held pity. He wouldn't have wanted to see that either.

"So, some people knew I was going there; some even joined me with them occasionally. Others conveniently ignored where I spent my time, but I wasn't fooling most people. They knew I was drinking, _and_ that I was spending my time with less than desirable people." The man paused to think.

"When I first began to spend time with them, it was only for the drink, but soon I began to enjoy their company. They never tried to tell me the pain would go away like everyone else did. They seemed to understand me, and offered what I thought I needed, _as much bouza as I wanted_. I really thought I could mask my pain with bouza. That was at Cedar Camp's summer meeting. Cedar Camp is directly north of Ash Camp, and very near to Sumac Camp and Dogwood Camp," Ivanolia informed them. The information didn't really mean much, because they didn't know where any of these camps were, except that Ash Camp was east of Oak Camp.

"My new _friends_ . . . they talked of having adventures, of taking journeys; I had never considered this before. It sounded interesting. _Then_, when we got together at Ash Camp's summer meeting, some of the man started talking about going south . . . into Clan country." It was here that Ivanolia stopped and watched his cousin and her mate.

Ayla cocked her head and frowned. Why would they want to go into Clan country, she asked herself? But even as she considered what her cousin said, she realized that she knew exactly what he meant; she knew exactly what those men had wanted. She had heard Oda's story about the man of the Others that forced her, killing her first daughter. No, she did not need to ask why they went there, she knew exactly what her cousin had done down there.

The young woman looked over at her mate. It was as if she could see inside his mind. She thought about what she knew about her mate's life, and the lives of the women among his people, and she shuddered.

Grov's mind was just a step behind Ayla's, and only moments after she had, he too realized what the man had done. An image of his mother came into his mind. He knew that women of the Clan were required to submit to any man, though his clan had been much different than other clans, often not following Clan tradition, but the thought of one of the Others taking her, without so much as giving her the signal, made him truly furious. He was also aware that he himself would not exist if one of the Others had not done this to his mother, but he would rather not exist if it meant that his mother could have been spared this violation. It had always haunted her.

Grov was on his feet. "Are you telling us that you took a woman of the Clan?" he demanded angrily. Ivanolia did not even have time to answer for the Clan man was rushing at him. Ayla stared with wide eyes for only a moment, then she acted. She was much closer to Ivanolia than Grov was, so she was able to intercept her mate. He would not push past the woman to reach the other man.

"Grov," Ayla said, standing between the two men, and looking up at her mate. This position somehow seemed very familiar to all three of them, but this time it was Grov that was looking at Ivanolia with fury, almost without seeing at all. Ayla had never seen him so angry. He hardly looked like the calm, quiet man she had mated, and there appeared to be no trace of Clan in the man at the moment. She briefly glanced at Ivanolia; he stood there, shoulders slumped, ready to take any punishment that came his way. She could immediately tell that he would not put up any kind of fight.

"GROV!" she said again, this time raising her voice to get his attention. The man's eyes flickered a little. She could tell that he had heard her, but he did not stand down.

"Grov," she started again. "We promised."

"But we didn't promise not to be angry," Grov replied through clenched teeth. Ayla sighed. _No_, they hadn't promised that, and she was angry, but she could also tell that Ivanolia was truly sorry for what he had done. He was not like those other men that didn't seem to care about anything, or anyone. Then another thought came to her.

"Ivanolia, you said this was five years ago?" she asked.

Ivanolia blinked, and thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes Ayla. It's been almost five years. This happened at the very end of our summer meeting, _almost_ five years ago."

"And Ash Camp, you said they live east of Oak Camp, but north of Clan country?" she asked again.

"Yes Ayla, that is right. There is a river that separates the two areas. We crossed it and went south," the man stated.

"How many women did you force, Ivan?" she asked sternly.

He frowned, not sure why that would make a difference. The fact still remained that he'd _forced_ one of their females. "Just one Ayla, but I don't see how that really matters. I still did it . . . only once, but I still did it." The man had tears in his eyes.

Ayla frowned again. "It matters to me, Ivan. I need to know if you were the first man to take the woman."

Ivanolia's frown deepened as he thought back to that day. He hadn't even wanted to do what he had done, but he got caught up in the excitement of it. He had never allowed himself to do it again though; he knew it was wrong. He had even blocked the deed from his mind. "I know it was wrong, Ayla." He shook his head. "But, no Ayla, I was not the first, nor the last." He hung his head.

Grov was standing behind his mate fuming, and not understanding her questioning. She seemed to be going somewhere with it, but where, he wondered?

Ayla's mind was now on Oda. Could her cousin have been one of the men that forced her? Then suddenly, she sucked in her breath, could he possibly be responsible for the birth of Ura? Ayla looked at him and studied the man's face, his hair, his eyes, his build. Yes, she thought to herself, it was entirely possible. Ura _could be_ his daughter.

**XxX**

**And the Story Continues**

Danie was absolutely furious with her mate. How could he have forced that Clan woman? What was he thinking? I can't spend my life with a brute such as him, she thought. She ran north through the summer meeting between the hunter's tent and the musician's tent, then she passed by the Shogur's tent, Womanhood Camp, and the northern most healer's tent. When she broke free of the summer meeting's boundaries, she heaved a sob and took a deep breath. She had been running blindly, tears streaming down her face, but now she needed to focus.

At the edge of the summer meeting, she glanced around. Where could she go to be alone, to think about this? I have been in this area before, not far from here in fact, she thought to herself. Then she remembered that Maple Camp was deeply embedded within the usual hunting territory of the Mamutoi. She had probably been on a hunt somewhere very near to this very spot.

Danie looked around for another moment, then through her tears she saw the blur of the river to the east, and headed toward it. There were several trees clustered very near to the river, just enough to give her some privacy.

The river was not far. When she reached it, she sat down on a rock and cried her heart out. What kind of man had she mated? "Oh, what am I going to do?" she moaned aloud. The woman thought she was alone, but what she didn't know was that she was being pursued by her sister.

**xXx**

Darvie, trying very hard not to allow her sister to disappear from sight completely, followed as quickly as she could. She ran through the summer meeting, watching as Danie dashed between tents, then out into the open space. She saw her sister pause for only a moment, then dart eastward. Darvie ran, and caught up just as her sister sank down upon a rock on the riverbank.

"Danie?" Darvie said.

Danie looked up at her sister, then rushed her. "Oh Darvie," she sobbed. Darvie held her sister as she cried. She had no idea what Ivanolia had done, only that he had done something that had hurt her sister terribly. She held Danie while she cried, gently rocking her, then released her when her tears seemed to subside.

"Danie, can you tell me what Ivanolia's done?" Darvie asked, not sure she really wanted to know.

"Oh Darvie, I don't know if I should. It is the most horrible thing I have ever heard. I don't see how I can get past it."

**xXx**

Grov listened to his mate question the man. He could tell that her questions were purposeful, but what was she getting at, he wondered? He was so furious with Ivanolia at the moment that he could not think straight to even _try_ figure it out, and he didn't know any of Oda's story, so that was the farthest thing from his mind. All he could think about was that it was a man like this one that had caused his mother deep mental pain, a pain that she never really got over.

Ayla placed her hands on Grov's clean-shaven face, then hugged him lovingly. She knew the pain and anger the man was feeling. She knew more than most women; she too had been forced. "I know he has done wrong," she whispered into the man's ear. "But I _need_ for you to forgive. I beg you," she said quietly, pulling away slightly, tears glistening in her eyes. "Think of Broud; he was able to change, and I have learned to forgive him."

Another flicker of anger went through the man's eyes. Broud was still a sore spot when it came to his Ayla, but it was true that _that_ man had changed, and Ayla had indeed forgiven him. He glanced over his mate's head toward Ivanolia. The man had his back to them. Grov frowned. He did seem to be a different man. He would never have guessed that the man had done what he had just told them he had done.

When Grov finally looked back at Ayla, she had a hopeful look in her eyes. He sighed and gave her a brief nod, which made her face break into a wide grin. It was the smile that melted his heart.

The woman gave her mate a thankful hug, then turned back toward Ivanolia. The man stood there, facing away from them. "Ivanolia," she said, placing her hand on his shoulder. He turned around. "I think there is more we need to talk about. Maybe we should sit down." She gestured toward the nearest bench.

Ivanolia narrowed his eyes, and glanced at Grov. Then, curious about what else they wanted to know, he did as he was bid.

Ayla sat down next to him, and took up his hands. "Ivan, there is a woman named Oda that lives with our clan that has a mixed child. Do you remember her?" The man thought for a moment. He didn't remember much about the women of the Clan. They had kept their faces averted, as if they didn't want to be seen. _And_ he hadn't been in the right frame of mind to get to know them anyway. The man shook his head.

Ayla watched him as he thought, then continued. "I met Oda at our last clan gathering. It was there that her daughter was promised to Durc, because they are both mixed. They were just babies at the time." Ayla paused for a moment as she thought back to that time.

"_But_, before that happened, she told me the story about how men of the Others had forced her and other women of her Clan; it was a story that sounds nearly the same as yours." It was here at Ayla stopped. She left out that Oda's first daughter being killed by the men. It seemed that Ivanolia hadn't been responsible for that, so she decided to omit that part for now.

Ivanolia just stared at her for a moment, then he swallowed and glanced at Grov again. The other man was just standing there. "What are you saying Ayla?" Ivanolia asked her, not quite sure he understood.

"I'm saying that I think it's possible that we are talking about the same incident. That it's possible that Oda's daughter is a child of your spirit. Ura is four years old now. I think that she might be your daughter."

Ivanolia frowned, wishing he could remember the woman, from either the day he had assaulted her or from when he had spent time with Ayla's clan. He wished he could remember her daughter. "But Ayla, there were many of us," he said with a shudder. "How can you be sure that she is of my spirit."

"Well, I can't really, except that she looks very similar to my son Durc. Her eyes and hair are much lighter than Durc's, but still, she looks like him. She looks like you."

"Oh Ayla, what have I done?" Ivanolia cried. "I have not only forced this woman Oda, but she has had to birth a mixed child." The man gasped, realizing what he had just said. "Uhh, that came out wrong, Ayla. I didn't mean that anything is wrong with mixed children." He looked mortified that he'd insulted the one person that seemed to possess an endless amount of forgiveness.

Ayla only smiled. He continued. "I mean, the one thing I have learned is that mixed children aren't tolerated well by the Clan either." He paused again.

"I know what you meant, Ivan. Please calm down." Ayla tried to console the man, but he was much too distressed.

"What can I do to make up for what I have done? I will do anything. Ayla, please tell me what I can do? Does she need someone to provide for her and her daughter?"

"No Ivan, Oda has someone to provide for her; she _is_ mated. I'm not sure if there's anything you can do. Maybe you could come see her and tell her you are sorry, and meet her daughter, _your_ daughter I think.

Ivanolia frowned. "_My daughter_?" he said. Then a thought came to him. "What am I going to tell Braydalana, or my mother, _or_ Danie. Oh Sumata," he suddenly cried. "Danie has left me. She will never forgive me for what I have done to Oda." Ivanolia stood up, and began pacing again. He was nearly hysterical. Ayla didn't know what to do.

Grov had been watching them, and was considering what the man had done, and to whom. He hadn't understood that he knew the woman Ivanolia had forced, but now that he knew what Ayla had been thinking, he wanted to know more about the incident. But now was not the time to ask. Right now, he was thinking about how he would feel if he lost Ayla and he didn't like it. He was feeling very bad for Ayla's cousin at the moment. He had changed; he was a good man, in spite of what he'd done.

"Ivan?" Ayla said, trying to get the man's attention. He stopped and looked at her, then dropped down at her feet and put his head in her lap, and began to sob. Grov's eyes widened. He had not seen a man react so strongly, but he knew that his own feelings for Ayla were this strong; he just might react this way if he lost her love.

"Ivan," Ayla began again. "You have done a very bad thing, but this is not the end of your life. You can make up for it. You have already started making up for the wrong you have done. Just think about how you've changed."

"But Ayla, I have lost Danie and her child. I did not think I could get past losing Nemlora, and then I found Danie . . . now I've lost _her_ too," he whined.

"No Ivan, you haven't lost her yet; she's just mad." Ayla stood up, forcing him to stand as well, and looked into his eyes.

Ivanolia searched his cousin's face, hoping that she spoke the truth. "Didn't you see how angry she was?"

"Of course I did," Ayla stated. "Everyone saw her anger. _We_," Ayla gestured toward her mate and then herself, "are still angry as well Ivan, make no mistake about it, but everyone will forgive you eventually. I will talk to Danie; she is a good woman. You might have to prove to her that you are sorry, that you are a changed man. I don't know what she will want you to do, but I will support you."

Ivanolia looked deep into her eyes. "Why would you do this for me, Ayla? After the way I behaved toward you, how could you be so forgiving?"

Ayla gave the man a warm smile. "I already explained this to you Ivanolia; we are family. That is what family does." Ayla continued to smile, then took the man into her arms. "I will talk to her." Ivanolia hugged her back tightly, daring to hope that his life might go back to the way it used to be.

**xXx**

Back at the summer meeting Oak Camp was within their tent talking quietly about the explosion between the young couple. Serana and Fraylora both tried to shield Braydalana from the conversations that, at this point, were just gossip.

Jendoza and Laurana sat together listening to the people talk. They both wondered what their brother had done to make his mate so angry. Jendoza glanced at Donzolnia, then recalling the feeling that he had been hiding something the other night, she narrowed her eyes at him.

When he saw her looking at him he sighed; he knew he was going to have to tell her something, but should he be the one to tell her? When he saw her hand Teglodia to her mother, he quietly slipped out of Oak Camp's tent. Jendoza followed.

**xXx**

The couple walked together silently. Donzolnia didn't know where to begin, and didn't want others to overhear them, so he led her through the summer meeting looking for somewhere to talk. He was not only nervous about telling her what Ivanolia had done, but also that he himself had been there that day. He had not participated, but he _had_ been there, and he had done nothing to stop them.

They followed nearly the same path as Danie and Darvie had, though they did not know it. Then, when they came to the edge of the summer meeting, they too headed east toward the small, usually secluded space near the river.

**xXx**

"Danie, please talk to me," Darvie begged. "Tell me what he did. You know I can be open-minded."

"Oh Darvie, it's just so awful," Danie cried.

Darvie frowned, wondering what could possibly be so bad that Danie would be afraid to tell her own sister. Again she questioned whether she _really_ wanted to know. She was about to press her sister for more information when she saw movement in the distance. She leaned to the side, trying to see through the small stand of riparian growth.

Seeing that Darvie's attention was suddenly on something else, Danie turned around. She was shocked to see Donzolnia and Jendoza approaching, though the two seemed unaware of the sisters' presence.

Danie's shock, however, only lasted a moment. She jumped to her feet, ready to defend her choice to leave Ivanolia no matter what excuses they may have for the man.

**xXx**

Donzolnia and Jendoza were still walking quietly and didn't see the two women in front of them until Danie stood up. Jendoza gasped and stepped back, a little startled. When she realized it was Danie and Darvie, she relaxed. Then seeing Danie's defensive look, she frowned.

"Danie, what has happened?" Jendoza asked.

Danie looked from Jendoza to Donzolnia, then back to the woman again. "Are you saying that you do not know what your brother has done?" she demanded angrily.

Jendoza's brow knotted. "No actually," she replied shaking her head, then looked to her mate for help.

Donzolnia sighed loudly. "I know what he's done, Danie," the man said sadly. "But Jendoza doesn't yet." The man's eyes were pleading with the young woman. He wanted to be the one to tell her.

She narrowed her eyes at the man suspiciously. "Were you a part of what Ivanolia did?" she asked, tears beginning to fall again.

"In a way, yes," he answered painfully. "I did not . . ." He could not finish; he looked at the ground. She knew what he meant. "But, I was there," he finally continued, looking back at her. "I was there and I didn't stop them." Donzolnia glanced at Darvie; she clearly didn't know what was going on either.

Danie's eyes were a mixture of pain and anger. What is wrong with these people, she wondered?

**XxX**

**Everyone Learns a Little More**

Danie continued to stare at the man trying to determine if he spoke the truth. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Then she glanced at Jendoza, where she saw only a look of confusion on her friend's face. She _clearly_ doesn't know what's being discussed, Danie thought immediately. Next, Danie looked at her sister, who still hadn't been told, and who looked very confused as well. Finally, the woman turned back to Donzolnia, and seeing only honesty in his eyes, she sighed and sat down.

Jendoza watched silently then turned to her mate. "Donzolnia, what has Ivan done?" she asked, a deep frown creasing her forehead. "What have _you_ done?"

The man took a deep breath and looked up toward the sky, sending a silent plea to the Mother. Sumata help me, he thought, then looked down into his mate's expectant eyes. He took her hand and led her to the nearest rock, easing her down. "Jen, this is so hard to tell you. It's been so long since this happened, and I've tried so hard to push it out of my memory. I hoped you'd never have to know, but . . . well . . . ." His voice trailed off, and he looked at Danie, who waited silently. "I guess these things never stay hidden forever."

Jendoza glanced at her friend. "Don, what did you see that you should have stopped? What has my brother done?" Jendoza asked desperately, considering the bad things he could have been part of.

He took another breath. "It was five years ago, so you were still very young; your _brother_ and I were pretty young too. Please remember that he was young and stupid, _and_ grieving. He was still desperately hurting over Nemlora's death . . ."

"Donzolnia!" she interrupted abruptly. "Just tell me what's going on," she demanded.

The dark-haired man stopped and stared at her. "Five years ago Ivanolia used to hang out with some of the less desirable camps."

"I know that. He was still doing that up until the summer before last." She eyed the man. "But that's not wrong. Disgusting, but not wrong."

"No Jen, that's not the bad part," Donzolnia said. "I never really hung out with them, except for the one time, so I don't know what they usually did, but the one time that I was there they did something terrible, and I have kept it secret all these years." Jendoza sat waiting, watching her sweet, gentle mate, knowing that if he said it was terrible, then it must be reprehensible. There were tears in her eyes as she waited for him to continue.

"It was the year that we summered with Ash Camp. I don't know why I let him talk me into going with them, but I did." The man shook his head. "They said they wanted to make a short trip; just over night, so I said okay. I figured, what could it hurt, right?" Jendoza nodded. "So, we left early one morning, but soon the plan changed." Donzolnia stopped and ran his hand through his long, dark hair. "I don't know who had the idea, but suddenly I found that we were crossing the river and going south into Clan territory, and . . . and . . . well, Ivanolia and the others . . . they . . ." Donzolnia stammered. He couldn't seem to get it out. Then, when he turned toward Danie, Jendoza looked at the woman as well.

Danie could tell that Donzolnia couldn't do it. He couldn't tell her that her brother was a complete scoundrel, but she could. She sighed and put her hand on his knee, then looked at her friend. Then, not very gently, she put what she knew into words. "Jendoza, when they were in Clan territory, they searched for unattended Clan women and made sport of them.

Jendoza frowned and looked down at her hands, not entirely sure what Danie meant. Darvie, on the other hand, totally understood; her jaw dropped open and she gasped. She stared at her sister, but didn't say anything.

It took Jendoza a few moments to put it together in her head, then she looked back at Donzolnia. "Don?" she said questioningly. "Why would they do such a thing?" she asked. "They claim to hate them. Why would Ivanolia want to do something like that? Why didn't you stop him?" She was crying.

"Believe me, I wish I had, but I was shocked at the time. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I mean, I'd heard of young men doing this, but we were only seventeen, and I didn't know what to do at the time."

Danie watched them and began to feel bad for Jendoza, and bad about the way she had told her. She obviously loved her brother and this was deeply hurting her. She reached out to hug her friend, which Jendoza accepted gratefully. Jendoza fell into her arms and sobbed quietly.

Darvie watched them. She was feeling quite a bit of shock and anger herself, but she was not directly affected by Ivanolia's actions, except for the fact that she lived in the same earthlodge as the man. She kept quiet anyway. Darvie continued to watch her sister take care of Jendoza. She noticed that now that Danie had someone else to console, she wasn't as upset herself. Darvie thought that that part was good.

Donzolnia also watched without saying a word. He let the women comfort each other; they seemed to need it, and he was glad to keep silent. He dearly hoped that both Jendoza and Danie would forgive Ivanolia; he was truly a changed man. _But_, he mostly hoped that Jendoza would forgive _him_ for not stopping the incident all together. He wondered if any of it was possible.

**xXx**

Grov and Ayla sat there talking to Ivanolia for a lengthy portion of the morning. They went over every last detail of the incident, as much as could possibly be remembered after so long. Ayla was now certain that this was the very same incident that Oda had told her about all those years ago.

Ivanolia was quite distraught over what he had done, and he wondered if there was anything he could do to make everything right again; he didn't think so. There was nothing he could do, not for Oda or Ura, not for Danie, and certainly not for himself. How could he possibly make up for something so evil? At this point, he figured his life was over.

Ayla tried hard to convince him that eventually things would get better, and that he had to go back and face what he had done. _That_ was the first step to making things right, and to making sure people were more aware so this didn't continue to happen. Ivanolia wanted so badly to believe her; he hung on her every word. He'd do anything, he promised himself. Even Grov could see that the man was willing to do whatever it took to make up for his wrong-doing.

Then finally, after discussing the matter extensively, the three of them left to return to camp. Grov and Ayla let Ivanolia set the pace, hanging back somewhat to give the man the space he may need. It turned out to be a pretty slow pace; the man used the time to think about everything that he'd been through and the pain he'd caused Oda, and others. Ivanolia had a lot more on his mind as well. He wondered where Danie had gone when she'd stormed out, if she was back yet, and whether or not she would be able to forgive him. It seemed like a very long walk back to the meeting.

**xXx**

Jendoza heaved a final sob, then sat up and smiled at Danie. "Thank you Danie," she said. "Thanks for letting me cry on your shoulder." Jendoza studied her friend carefully. "I . . . I know this must be terrible for you," she stammered.

Danie frowned, then nodded and looked away. "I'm not sure what to do. I almost feel as if he did this to _me_. I don't even know him, Jen," she whined. "I've never known him."

"He's not that man anymore, Danie," Donzolnia tried to convince her. "And he loves you so much." The three women just stared at him.

"Donzolnia, this isn't the time!" Danie snapped sharply, then feeling bad, continued with a softer tone. "It's too late. I don't really care how much he _loves_ me, I'm just not able to forgive such an awful act of . . . ." She stopped as she saw movement off in the distance. The other three followed her gaze. Through the few trees that surrounded them and across the open plain, they could see Ivanolia walking back toward the summer meeting. Grov and Ayla were not far behind. "I can't believe this," she said angrily. "They need to know what he's done." She stood up, ready to charge after them.

"They do know, Danie," Jendoza informed the woman. "When you ran off, Ivanolia took them off somewhere to tell them what he did."

Danie frowned then looked back through the trees. Ivanolia _was_ heading back toward the summer meeting, but his posture told her that he was deeply troubled, even frightened. Next Danie looked at Grov and Ayla. They too looked upset, but they didn't look as if they hated the man. He had told them what he had done and they hadn't rejected him. She was very confused. She didn't understand what was going on.

Then, when she noticed that Ivanolia, Grov and Ayla had stopped walking, she got curious about what they were saying and began her approach. Slowly, she slipped through the trees, leaving her friends looking after her.

**xXx**

Ivanolia was heading toward the summer meeting at a pace nearly as slow as a turtle, but stopped just short. He stood some distance away from the northern healer's tent, just outside the outer perimeter, and turned to face Grov and Ayla. "I can't go back in there, I just can't."

"Yes, you can, Ivan. You have to. You have to find Danie and talk to her."

"Oh Ayla, I need help with Danie. She won't listen to me, but she might listen to you."

"I told you I would talk to her, but I want you to find her and try again first. Maybe she's cooled off by now."

"Or maybe she hasn't," Danie said angrily, standing just behind them, hands on her hips. Ivanolia spun around quickly. Grov and Ayla shifted their gaze toward the other woman. Even they had not known she was approaching, but now they could see that Donzolnia, Jendoza and Darvie were there too.

"Danie, I need to talk to you," Ivanolia pleaded.

"No, I don't think that you do. I think I've heard enough from you," she said bitterly, then turned her attention to Grov and Ayla, boring her eyes into _them_. "How _could_ you, of all people, forgive him for what he's done?" she demanded from the young Clan couple.

Ayla returned the woman's penetrating glare and squared her shoulders. Grov stood behind her, adding his support. "It is not up to me to forgive my cousin for what he has done, though I have already done that. Forgiveness is what he needs from the Mother, and from the woman that he forced. I believe that he can gain that from both of them." Ayla paused. "You do not have all the details, Danie."

"I do not _need_ all the details, Ayla," Danie spat. "I have heard quiet enough." She folded her arms across her chest and looked away.

"Danie, Ivanolia is not the first man to have done this. I'm not saying that what he did is okay, but he is a good man. He has changed so much, and he is sorry for what he's done. He's willing to do anything to make things right again. I believe he _can_ make up for this." Ayla stood waiting, but Danie continued to look away from her. Ayla didn't know what else to say to the hurt and angry woman.

Danie's mind was reeling. Did Ayla really believe what she was saying? How _could_ Ayla forgive him, she thought angrily? But then, what does _Ayla_ really know about this topic? "Ayla," she finally said, facing the young blond again, "I'm glad that you have forgiven him. After all, his _is_ your cousin." She glanced at her mate. He was standing there with a forlorn look on his face. Then she looked back at Ayla. "But do you _really_ think the Mother would forgive his evil? And what about this poor Clan woman? If you were her, could you truly forget that some man made sport of you?"

Ayla's eyes glazed over for a moment as her mind went back in time. It was as if she were there, experiencing it again.

_Broud gave her a signal, and Ayla's eyes flew open. It was unexpected. Iza told her men only wanted that from women they considered attractive; she knew Broud thought she was ugly. He signaled her again, imperiously, to assume the position so he could relieve his needs._

_The young woman felt awkward; she knew she must comply, but she was flustered. He hovered close as she got up, then started to lower herself to her knees. Ayla wasn't accustomed to men of the clan being so near. Broud's heavy breathing frightened her. She hesitated._

_Broud got impatient, pushed her down, and moved aside his wrap exposing his organ, thick and throbbing._

_As Broud closed in on her, something snapped. Her reason left her. It didn't matter that she was supposed to obey him. She scrambled to her feet and stared to run. Broud was too quick for her. He grabbed her, pushed her down, and punched her in the face, cutting her lip with his hard fist._

_She tried to get up and he hit her again. He hit her again and again._

_Her head was ringing, blood trickled out of her nose and the corner of her mouth. She tried to get up, but he held her down. She struggled against him, pummeling his chest with her fists. They had no effect on his hard muscular body._

_She was nearly unconscious when he threw her over on her face, feverishly ripped her wrap aside, and spread her legs. With one hard thrust, he penetrated deeply. She screamed with pain._

Ayla shook her head, dispelling the dreadful memory. It seemed that the whole incident had flashed through her mind in only moments, then it was gone. Finally, she focused on Danie again. "No Danie, I could _never_ forget such a thing." A tear slipped from each eye. She took a deep breath. "But forgiving is not the same thing as forgetting. I _could_ forgive a man for such a thing, if I thought he'd really changed."

Danie stared at her. What was with the tears? "This is ridiculous!" she said with a laugh. "You have no idea what you're talking about.

"And you do, Danie?" Ayla countered, suddenly very frustrated with the woman's persistence on a topic that _she_ had no true knowledge of. Ayla wiped her tears away.

"This is about being _forced_, Ayla?"

"I know what we're discussing, Danie, but you still haven't answered my question. Do you know what _you're_ talking about?"

Danie frowned. Of course she did, she thought. "Well, I haven't been forced, if that's what you mean, but Rydag is my kin, so I do understand that what Ivanolia has done a very evil thing. Can't you see that? Why can't you see what he's done?" Danie threw her hands up in the air and began to pace.

Ayla heaved a sigh. "I _know_ what Ivanolia's done, Danie. Don't think for a moment that I am not furious with him."

That got the other woman's attention. Danie stopped pacing and put her hands on her hips. "Really? she said sarcastically.

Ayla rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying that _he_ is not an evil man. He has _changed_," she finished, trying to lead the conversation back to the original topic, Ivanolia, and away from herself.

Danie studied the woman. Did she have an odd tone in her voice? What else was going on here? What was it that Ayla wasn't saying? "What could you _possibly_ know about . . ."

"Danie!" Grov barked in his deep Clan voice, cutting the woman off. She turned to look at him. "Ayla knows plenty about being forced." He hadn't meant to give this woman more information than Ayla had wanted her to have, but he hadn't been able to stop himself. The woman was pushing too much and they were getting nowhere. He only hoped that Ayla wouldn't be angry. He looked at her to gauge what she may be feeling; it was obvious that she understood.

Danie stared at Grov for a moment, as did the others. Suddenly what he said registered in their minds. Darvie gasped. Ivanolia and Donzolnia's eyes widened. They knew much about Ayla's life with the Clan, but they hadn't known that part. Jendoza blushed. She knew more about Ayla's experiences, but didn't think Ayla would ever tell others. Then she realized that it hadn't been Ayla that had told them.

"What?" Danie questioned. "What is Grov talking about?" Ayla didn't say anything as she collected her thoughts. "Ayla?"

Ayla finally sighed. "Okay. Yes, Danie, I _do_ know what it feels like to be forced. I will _never_ forget it, but I have forgiven the man that forced me. He even lives in my very own hearth."

Everyone's eyes suddenly swung over to Grov. He gave them a small shake of his head. Only Darvie and Danie didn't understand, because they had not been to the clan's cave. "Ayla?" they said in unison.

"No, not Grov," Ayla informed them. "There is another man that lives at our hearth. It was the other man; I have been able to forgive this other man, just as you need to forgive Ivanolia."

**XxX**

**? (no chapter name again) ?**

Danie frowned deeply as she considered what she had just learned about Ayla. "But, if you've experienced this first hand, how can you even think about forgiveness?" The woman was completely baffled.

"Like I said, the man has changed." Ayla shifted her eyes toward the three people that had actually met Broud and continued. "I'm not saying that I like him, or that he's my friend, but he wouldn't hurt me anymore, and he's even protected me a few times." She looked back at Danie and shrugged her shoulders. "And besides, I wouldn't have my son, if it hadn't been for Broud. Durc is my reward for what I went through. I wouldn't trade him for anything in the world."

Danie frowned as she imagined someone from Ayla's own camp forcing her. What kind of people allowed _that_ to happen, she thought? Maybe she didn't know _anything_ about this Clan that she was so adamant to protect.

It was not hard to follow her line of thinking. Ayla was ready with a response before the woman could even form words. "It is the Clan way, Danie. A woman is must submit to the wishes of a man, any man, at any time."

Danie considered what Ayla had said. That was surely a strange custom. Then she eyed Ivanolia. "So then, the Clan women, they didn't even fight?"

Ivanolia gave her a pained expression, then shook his head and looked at the ground.

"So Ayla, you'd go through it again, to have your son?" Ayla was nodding before the woman was even finished; she did not even hesitate. Danie still didn't understand. She didn't have a child yet, so the concept was too farfetched for her. She unknowingly touched her belly as she wondered if her child would bring her _that_ much joy. She stared at Ivanolia. Was he a good man? She desperately wanted it to be so. "But this is different, it was not me that he violated. I cannot be the one to forgive him, and it's not likely he could find this woman, to make it up to her."

"Oh, but Danie," Ayla replied. "I already know who the woman is. She lives at our cave."

Danie stared at Ayla, then glanced at Grov. The man nodded. Next her eyes went to her mate. "I don't understand. You were at their cave. Didn't you recognize the woman?"

Ivanolia winced. "No, this happened so very long ago, five years. I just didn't remember what she looked like."

Danie nodded. "I suppose that's possible after several years of not seeing someone, but why didn't this woman say something? Surely she recognized you? Why didn't we know about this sooner?"

"The Clan is very different in that way, Danie," Grov interjected. "The men of the Clan do not like strangers looking at their women. Ivanolia would have received many angry looks, had he looked at the women, and Clan women don't usually look directly at men, especially strangers. She probably didn't even see him.

"Danie, I was there when Ivanolia . . . did what he did," Donzolnia said, putting in his own view of the situation. "And, I was at Grov and Ayla's cave, and I didn't see her either. There's no way we could have known about this sooner."

The woman wanted to believe them so badly and was nearly ready to melt, but it was just so awful. "Yes, there is a way we could have known sooner. Ivan could have told us. I wouldn't have left my people. I wouldn't have mated him. I wouldn't have moved to Oak Camp. And _we_ wouldn't be expecting a baby." She touched her stomach again as she spoke. "I wouldn't be trapped and I wouldn't be bringing a baby into this mess," she said as silent tears fell. Ivanolia didn't know what to say to her. She had gone from furiously angry to hurting desperately and he could do nothing to make her feel any better.

Danie wiped the tears from her face again. She stood there watching him, wishing that he'd say something else, wishing he'd try again, wishing he'd pull her into his arms and comfort her, but he didn't. Suddenly, the woman burst into sobs again and fled. She ran toward Oak Camp's tent.

Ivanolia watched her go, wondering if she'd ever be able to forgive him. She didn't even know that this Clan woman had a child, one that Ayla believed was of his spirit. What would she say when he told her that part.

**xXx**

Everyone had watched Danie run off again, but at least this time they knew she had gone home. Darvie excused herself, to follow her sister once again, but not before frowning at Ivanolia. She knew that some Mamutoi men made sport of the Clan, but it wasn't talked about much. Not in good company anyway. And almost _never_ in front of the women. She wondered what Vincenzia thought of this Broud person. Did her mate know what the Clan man had done to Ayla? She decided not to mention it to him, just in case.

Jendoza's eyes followed Darvie as she left. "So brother, made quite a mess of this one, haven't you?" she asked, not even looking at the man. "Why in the Mother's world," she began through gritted teeth, "did you think doing something like _that_ was okay?"

Ivanolia blanched at her harshness. "Jendoza, I . . . "

Jendoza shook her head. "Don't even bother trying to explain. You can blame it on losing Nemlora, or drinking too much bouza, but that is just not really a good excuse, now is it?"

"I wasn't going to blame my actions on anyone or anything," he said defensively. "I was stupid, Jen. That's all I can say; I was very stupid."

"Humph, well, I'd have to agree with _that_," Jendoza said.

Ivanolia was standing there, staring at the ground, shoulders drooping, arms dangling down at his sides. He didn't even bother to respond to his sister. He'd let her do her worst; he knew he deserved it. Then suddenly, he felt arms wrap around him; it was Jendoza.

"I am so mad at you brother," Jendoza said quietly as she squeezed him tightly. "But I still love you." Ivanolia instantly broke down and hugged his sister. She gladly held him while he cried, adding her tears to his. This is going to be a long road, she thought, then something else occurred to her, and she turned toward Ayla.

"Ayla, I spent much time with the woman of your clan. Which woman was it?"

"It was Oda," Ayla replied.

Jendoza thought for a moment. It took a few moments, but she remembered the young woman. She's mated to that man that doesn't like the Others very much, she thought to herself. Jendoza remembered that she hadn't spent much time with her, because of the woman's mate, but somehow she had known that it was that particular woman. She continued to think about the clan woman, and remembered that she was the one that had a child of mixed spirits. Jendoza's expression changed quickly as she considered how long ago the incident had occurred, the age of the mixed little girl, and Ayla's theory on how babies were made.

"Ivan?" she said questioningly. "Does this mean that Braydalana has a little sister?"

"That's what Ayla thinks," Ivanolia replied. He turned away from his sister quickly, and waited for her to chastise him some more, but that is not what happened.

Jendoza gasped audibly, but she now fascinated. She couldn't believe that her brother had two children, and soon would have another. What was everyone going to think? She smiled. "We have to go see her," the woman finally said.

Ivanolia frowned. "I . . . well, I don't know, Jen. I'm sure she doesn't want to see me. I mean . . ." his voice trailed off.

Now it was Jendoza's turn to frown. "Oh, I guess you're right. I wouldn't want to see you either." Ivanolia winced.

Ayla watched the pair. There was definitely a dilemma here. On one side, Ivanolia wanted to make amends for the suffering he had wrought. He didn't even know that the incident had caused Oda to lose her first daughter. True, he had not been the one to carelessly toss the woman's baby aside to violate her, but it was likely that Oda would not be able to see past that part. Who could? Ivanolia _also_ wanted to meet his daughter, get to know her, but again, Oda probably would not understand that he was connected to her daughter, or care even if she did understand, considering how the child had come to be made.

On the other side, there were bad memories and feelings to protect. Maybe Oda did not want to meet this man again. Maybe the Clan would not allow it. What would Corg think about this, being Oda's sibling and all? He was an unusual man of the Clan, giving his sister far more respect than most clan men did. And then there was Ura to think about. What about Ura? What might she want? What would be best for _her_? Would it matter to anyone what the child could gain from all of this? Ayla didn't know, but what she did know was that things were getting very complicated, and that her mind was starting to hurt from all the thoughts there were running through her head.

After standing there talking for a short time the five of them decided to return to camp. They were very close to the outer path, which led back to camp on the east side of the meeting, so that was the route that they took. Jendoza held her brother's hand as they walked. Donzolnia walked silently next to Grov and Ayla.

**xXx**

Back at the tent, most of Oak Camp had begun their day as usual. Many were gone, off doing whatever they'd had planned before Danie's outburst. That made it easy for Danie and Darvie to return and not have to answer a multitude of questions.

Outside the tent by their fire, Vincenzia sat talking to Durc and Brenevia, waiting for his mate to return. When Darvie and Danie appeared, the man stood up. He could see that Danie had been crying, but the woman quickly entered the large tent, hoping to find her mother. Darvie sighed and went to her mate.

"Mother, can we go and play now?" Brenevia asked as soon as his mother sat down.

Darvie smiled at her five year old son and nodded. "Yes, but do stay close, please." The boys grinned and ran off to play. Darvie and Vincenzia sat there silently for a time watching the boys, dissimilar as they were. They had run over to Alder Camp's fire where two other boys sat outside playing. It was amazing how well children adjusted, if given the chance.

"I take it you know what Ivanolia has done." Vincenzia finally asked his mate. She confirmed with a nod, but she stayed silent. He continued. "You do not have to tell me. I mean, if it would be better left private."

"It would, but I do not know if it can be," Darvie replied. "I think the Councils need to deal with the problem."

"It's that bad?" the man asked.

Darvie nodded. "And it's not just Ivanolia. He is just one of many."

**xXx**

Inside Oak Camp's tent Danie stopped to look around. She had hoped that her mother would be there waiting for her to come back, but the older woman was not. Danie frowned and peered down the long narrow corridor of the tent to see a few children playing. Braydalana and Crisana were entertaining Ora, while Annaliza was making an attempt to help Serana clean up. Zarina was sitting down holding Jendoza's son. Danie smiled at the children, then slipped into her and Ivanolia's space to be alone. She closed the curtain and sat down to think. Could she forgive him, she asked herself? She sure wanted to, but how was it possible?

**XxX**

**? (no chapter name...again) ?**

By the time the others arrived back at Oak Camp's tent, the outside space surrounding the tent was empty. Vincenzia had left to attend the first hunt meeting, and Darvie had brought the boys inside so that she could clean them up, then they too left the tent. She had some visiting to do and decided to take the boys with her.

Ivanolia looked around, hoping to at least see Danie sitting outside talking to _someone_, but the man's mate was nowhere to be seen. He glanced hopefully at the tent, but hesitated to enter.

Jendoza however, who needed to feed her son, entered the tent quickly and started to walk down its center to get to the woman and children. As she passed her brother's space she mentally noted that Danie had come in, but she didn't stop to talk to the confused young woman. She knew Danie had a lot to consider, more than the pregnant woman even knew at the moment. What would she say when she found out there was a child out there, most probably born due to her brother's . . . _evil_. Jendoza didn't like the sound of that word. It somehow made _Ura_ seem, well, not right. More than not right; it made the child seem just as evil as the act which had created her. Jendoza thought for a moment. _Incident_? Was _that_ a better word for how Ura came to be? The woman frowned and continued to think. She shook her head, not liking the sound of _that_ either. That made the child's life seem so insignificant, as if all she was was just the result of some unimportant happening. She was not just an unimportant happening, not just the result of the _incident_, evil as it may have been, was she? Jendoza didn't know what to think, except that she wanted to meet the little girl again, really get to know her this time. After all, the child was family. Would she get that chance?

As she approached the small group in the back of the tent, she slowed down and continued to think about what had happened five years before. She had been very young, but she wished she could have helped her brother through that time, so that he wouldn't be suffering now. So that _many_ wouldn't be suffering now, she thought as she remembered Danie's tear-stained face.

"Jendoza," a voice said quietly. "You're back." It was her mother. Serana peered behind her eldest daughter, hoping to see her son, then frowned. He was not there.

"And it's a good thing too," Zarina said with a smile. "I think Teglodia is mighty hungry."

"I'm sorry," Jendoza said guiltily. "I did not mean to be gone so long." She took her son and put him to her breast immediately. Teglodia nestled in quickly, making gurgling noises as he suckled, his eyes staring up at his mother's face. Jendoza sat down on the nearest bench to be more comfortable and gazed into her son's light blue eyes. When she finally looked up she noticed that everyone was staring at her. "What?"

"Well?" Serana said with expectancy.

Jendoza frowned. "Well, what?"

"Daughter, please do not attempt to hide whatever it is that you know," Serana said sternly. "You know that I do not waste time worrying when there is no cause to, but this is different. Your brother has clearly done something wrong . . . again."

Jendoza's eyes became very gloomy. "Mother, this is _not_ my story to tell. Please don't try to make me tell you; it should be Ivan."

The older woman narrowed her eyes. "Hummmm." Serana desperately wanted to interrogate her daughter, but turned toward Annaliza instead. "And where is _your_ mother?" she said, picking up the one year old.

**xXx**

Ivanolia had watched his sister enter Oak Camp's large construction, but was reluctant to follow. He looked at the Sungaean people from other camps around him, and noticed that they were talking and laughing and gaming as usual. Nothing had changed for any of _them_. They weren't embarrassed, or sad, or feeling lost, or hating themselves the way he was, but then, why should they? None of them had committed such an evil. None of them had forced some young woman. Ivanolia shuddered as he thought about what he had done.

"Ivan," Ayla whispered, bringing him out of his self-loathing. "Do you want to go inside?"

"Huh?" the man responded, turning his eyes back to his cousin. Ayla stood there waiting patiently. She had such a pleasant look on her beautiful face. Didn't she ever get mad at anyone, he wondered? He couldn't help but remember how awful he had treated her, and her family, when he had first met them. He blushed inwardly. No, she was angry with him, she was just very good at helping people, even bad people like himself.

Ayla's mate, Grov, was standing there waiting too. He was a surprisingly quiet man, and Ivanolia hadn't liked him in the beginning, though it was more the idea of the man being a _flathead_. Ivanolia knew now that Grov was a decent man. No, that's not right, he said to himself. He's much more than just decent; he's very good man, definitely worthy of respect. Ivanolia thought about what he had done to Oda, and how Grov had reacted to it. It was as if the act had been committed on the man himself. Then a thought occurred to Ivanolia; Grov was definitely the product of a mixture. He stared at Ayla's mate and swallowed a large lump of remorse.

Ivanolia glanced at his long time friend, and brother through Jendoza. Donzolnia was also standing there patiently. He hadn't followed his mate into the tent, but waited to back up his friend. Ivanolia clearly remembered the look of horror in Donzolnia's eyes at the mere suggestion of making sport of the Clan females, yet here he was, ready to support him.

"Are you ready to go inside?" Ayla repeated.

Ivanolia finally smiled. "Yes, Ayla, we can go in now."

They entered the tent in height order, Ayla, Ivanolia, Grov and finally Donzolnia, and paused only briefly to deposit their belongings in the small storage area just inside the tent flap. Ivanolia couldn't help be see that his own sleeping place was occupied; Danie had _indeed_ returned and she was in their space with the curtain closed. That gave the man a small piece of relief for she could have packed her things and moved to someone else's bed, or thrown his things out of their space to tell him not to come back.

After putting their things away they started down the passageway toward the familiar, yet indistinct voices, at the other end. It was now Ivanolia that took the lead. He was definitely nervous, but relaxed when he recognized his mother's peaceful tone.

As they neared, the conversation in front of them became audible. _"And where is_ your _mother?"_ Serana was saying to Ayla's chubby one year old as she picked her up.

"I am here, Serana," Ayla called out from a short distance down the tent. Serana looked up to see her troubled son leading the group back into the tent. She frowned at his distressed face, and took him into her arms. He somehow seemed far worse off than he had in a very long time.

Serana sat down and patted the bench beside her, hoping Ivanolia would sit down and talk to her. He did _sit_, for the moment, but he did not utter a word. Ayla sat to nurse Annaliza, Donzolnia sat down beside his mate, and Grov picked up Ora and sat down beside Ayla.

"So, where is everyone?" Donzolnia finally asked, breaking the painful silence.

Zarina looked at her son. "They went to the hunt meeting," she said, as if he should have already known. He had forgotten. "I think the hunt will be the day after the first matrimonial, which is scheduled for the day after tomorrow."

Donzolnia suddenly realized that he didn't know when Brulenzia would be getting mated, but he didn't know if now was the right time to ask. After some more silence he decided that he didn't care; the silence was too painful. "Which mating ceremony did Brulenzia and Laurana decide on?" he asked hesitantly.

"Brulenzia convinced them to make room for them in the first one," Zarina stated. "I think he couldn't stand to wait." The woman grinned as she thought about her younger son and his very young mate-to-be.

Serana smiled too. She hadn't been very happy in the beginning when the two started spending so much time together, but when she'd figured out that there was nothing she could do about it, she had to admit that Brulenzia and Laurana were a perfect match, _and_ a perfect way to keep Laurana within Oak Camp.

Zarina frowned. "But, I'm not sure Laurana's matrimonital tunic is finished." She looked at Serana, whose brow wrinkled with concern.

"No, it's not finished, but it will be," she finished confidently. "I still have the rest of today and all of tomorrow."

"Is there anything we can do to help, Serana?" Ayla and Jendoza asked in unison, then smiled at each other.

"No, no." She gave each of the women a smirk. "Nothing to do with the tunic anyway, but you'll both have to attend to your children while this old woman works Laurana's tunic."

Jendoza laughed at her mother, but Ayla was mortified that she'd run off too many times, leaving her children as a burden to others. She could feel the heat of her blush all the way down to her toes. "I . . . I'm sorry, Serana," she stammered. "I didn't mean . . . ." She couldn't even continue. Jendoza was still laughing, which confused Ayla. Hadn't they just been scolded for not mothering properly? Ayla thought about Iza and knew her mother would be horrified at her daughter's inability to take care of her children. Ayla frowned.

"Oh Ayla, I didn't mean anything by that," Serana said, getting up and going over to the confused young woman. "I am just teasing you two." Ayla's frown deepened. Teasing?

Serana knelt down and took one of Ayla's hands. "Summer meetings are fun for everyone, but they are mostly for the young. You cannot enjoy them fully if you do not get out there and see things. Please do not think you need to be here _mothering_ all the time. I only meant that I have to work hard today."

Ayla tried to smile. She looked at Jendoza, who was still giggling, then at Zarina. "We are just so happy to have you back, Ayla. You have done so much for us, and you continue to help, even when you do not have to." Everyone else there was nodding as well. Ayla suddenly felt overwhelmed with emotion and let her tears spill.

"Besides," Serana cut in, trying to lighten the mood. "These _men_ can definitely do more to take care of the children. After all, they _are_ the cause of them, right?" Serana winked at the woman and waited for her to catch on.

Ayla smiled back. She understood that no one was upset with her for leaving her children among them when she had somewhere to be. Further, they considered her help with situations more valuable than she could have ever expected. She wasn't even sure that she'd been of any help. And then finally, it seemed that everyone within Oak Camp seemed to be backing her theory on how a woman got pregnant. So much so that significant changes were being made in just casual conversation. All of this made Ayla feel good.

"They certainly can," Darvie said, coming into the small space with her son and Durc in tow. She was referring to the men taking care of the children. "Ayla, we were just over at Beech Camp and Seriana was complaining of cramps. Would you mind going over to see her?"

"Oh, of course not," Ayla said, hugging her son as he came up to her. "I just have to clean up a bit." Ayla started to get up, but wondered what to do with her children. She felt bad; she had to run out again.

"Don't worry, Ayla," Darvie said. "I'll take care of them."

Ayla frowned. She had been gone all morning and wished that she could at least sit with them for a moment, but she knew Seriana needed her. "Um, I think that I will take them with me," she finally said. "I haven't seen them all morning."

Darvie frowned. She had had to ignore several loud and very rude remarks about Durc. Remarks that she knew Ayla would have to hear if she took Durc with her. Remarks that _Durc_ would have to hear all over again if he went with his mother. The boy didn't seem to be bothered by them, but how long would that last. "Ah, Ayla," Darvie began. "Do you really think you should bring the children?" Everyone froze for the moment; they all knew what the woman was really saying. "I mean . . ." she stammered.

Ayla smiled. "I know what some think of me, Darvie. I am not ashamed."

"No Ayla, I do not think that you should be ashamed. I'm just saying that . . . well, some people are saying . . . not nice things," Darvie said lamely. She knew that Ayla already knew that.

"It's okay, I will just ignore them," Ayla began. "I . . ."

"I will walk her over there," Ivanolia said. "No one will say anything if I'm there; at least not loud enough for us to understand them."

Ayla smiled at the man. "See? We will be just fine." She turned toward Grov. "Did you want to come with us?"

"He can't," Donzolnia said, answering for Ayla's mate. Both Ayla and Grov, along with most everyone else, turned to stare at the man. "He has to come with me to the hunt meeting. Everyone that's going must attend the meeting or they're not permitted to go."

"Oh," Ayla said with a frown. She wanted to attend the first hunt too, but after thinking about it, she knew that she couldn't; she just had too many responsibilities, her children, Ivanolia and Danie, Seriana, _and_ whatever else came up. She knew she'd have to stay behind this time. "Okay, I'll let you take me over to Beech Camp, Ivan, then you can join them at the hunt meeting."

Ivanolia nodded, glad he could do something, and that everyone had, for the moment, forgotten that he'd done something terrible. Donzolnia and Grov quickly slipped away to get to their meeting, and Jendoza said she needed to go lie down. And finally, Ayla collected her children and left with Ivanolia for Beech Camp.

**XxX**

**Others to Consider**

Though in a hurry to get out of Oak Tent and away from his mother's scrutiny, Ivanolia wasn't in any rush to get anywhere else in particular. He would escort Ayla to Beech Tent, as it was something he thought he could do to be helpful without having to discuss his troubles any further; at least for the time being.

As he and Ayla walked slowly away from Oak Camp's space, Ayla held her youngest child. Ivanolia helped out by carrying Ora on his shoulders. The mouthy toddler had stamped her foot and declared that she didn't want to go, but when the man had swung her up there without reacting to her misbehavior, she had grinned with delight, all protests gone. He figured it was just the thing to keep her quiet. Durc walked between them, holding Ayla's hand. At just five the boy seemed to be maturing much faster than other children his age, but he still liked the reassurance of his mother's hand.

Ayla hadn't really thought an escort was necessary, after all Beech Camp was not very far away; it was only three tents south of Oak Camp's tent, _and_ she had already been there when they had first arrived at the summer meeting. _But_, she really didn't mind and it had been obvious that no one wanted her to go alone so she allowed the company. At least it kept Ivanolia busy.

However, since Ivanolia was in no rush to get back to Oak Camp's tent or the hunt meeting, his gait was very slow; it seemed to be taking them much longer to get to Beech Tent than it should have. Ayla figured that it was the tension. There was a whole lot of _that_ going around, she thought as they inched along. She looked at the people around her. Many seemed to either be staring at them, or doing their best _not_ to see them. Oh well, it doesn't really matter, she told herself.

Ayla watched Ivanolia as he stopped to talk to a man that had greeted them friendly. The man smiled at her, but only conversed with Ivanolia. As the two man talked, Ayla surreptitiously glanced up at her cousin. She wondered what was going on in his mind. He had caused much pain, but the pain he seemed to be experiencing now appeared to be worse than what she remembered going through after Broud had forced her. She shook her head. How can that be? Have I forgotten how badly Broud hurt me? She frowned. No doubt Oda had felt pain too, though probably not physical, like her own had been. Oda had felt pain for the loss of her first daughter, and then later the pain of rejection due to the birth of a child whom her mate called deformed. He had insisted Ura's _deformity_ was her punishment for wishing for a girl, but Oda had only been confused. She had only really wanted to have her dead daughter back.

Ayla's own life had been confusing for many years too. She had been raised by people that looked so different, and who considered her big and ugly. She had always believed them, even after Grov came along. Part of her still believed it, even though there was evidence to the contrary. Oak Camp was full of people that were extremely tall and many looked very much like she did. _And_, Ayla had learned that most of the Sungaean people considered Oak Camp's members, both men and women, to be among the most beautiful of all the Sungaean peoples. Ayla's thoughts shifted to Jendoza and Laurana, whom most believed to be extremely attractive, and either of which could almost pass as her very own twin. In fact, Laurana was the shortest adult member of Oak Camp, but she was taller than many Sungaean people and would still tower over all Clan people, except for those with mixed blood like Grov, and perhaps Durc someday.

When Ayla became aware that the man was making ready to leave, she smiled and watched him moved off into the crowd. He was on his way to the hunt meeting, and they resumed their walk to Beech Tent.

Ayla's mind then moved back to thoughts of her life. Throughout her short lifetime Ayla had always done her best to blend in. Many times it had been very hard, too hard in fact. The Clan were a people with customs that were so difficult to live by that she had often gotten into serious trouble. She thought about how she had learned to hunt, and about the punishment she had had to endure for going against Clan ways. _That_ particular punishment had been worth it, she thought with a inward smile. Actually, they all had been worth it. Everything she had lived through, everything she was, was due to the experiences she had had. She knew she was different than her Clan family, but she could only work with what she was and what had been laid in front of her, and that was an Others woman living in a harsh world full of strangeness. She didn't think she'd ever know why certain things happened.

Her mind returned to Broud. She had never understood why Broud had hated her, or why the man had looked for reasons to hurt her. Back then she also hadn't understood why he signaled her that first time, or all those times after that. It had been the worst experience of her life, and the most painful. She remembered thinking that she didn't know he could beat her on the inside too. _But_, she did understand now; it had been so she could have Durc. Ayla smiled and looked down at her son. His birth had been extremely painful, but he was worth every bit of pain she had felt.

Besides, everything was different now. She did not _hate_ Broud anymore. She had to admit that she didn't like him either, but she had learned to live in harmony with the man. He had changed too, though she knew it had been forced on him. Forced on him, just as he had forced himself on her. If it hadn't been for the punishment Brun had imposed on the son of his mate, or Grov's loving protection, they might not be where they are today. She suddenly wondered what Broud thought of her, then shook her head. What did that matter right now? And why am I thinking about Broud?

Ayla looked up at Ivanolia again. He still had Ora on his shoulders, but he had a far away look and his brow was creased in despair. Was physical pain not as bad, once the actual pain part was gone? Was emotional pain worse? Anguish really, she reconsidered. Or was it that since time had eased her physical pain, she no longer remembered the rest? Had she buried it somewhere deep inside herself, or was it gone completely? _Or_, was it that the pleasure of having Durc erased the awfulness of what she had gone through? She frowned, wondering what emotions Oda would feel five years later. Had the birth of Ura taken some of Oda's pain away? Of course, having Ura couldn't make up for losing her first daughter; no one could be replaced. Ayla thought about the loss of Iza and Creb. Their deaths had pained her greatly. With Iza's death, not even Durc could rouse her out of her misery, but later he had given her something to focus on. And then with Creb's death and her own death curse, Durc was all that she had had. Still, Durc had never been a substitute for Iza and Creb. And even now, though having Durc and Grov and Ora and Annaliza definitely helped to dull the pain of everything in her past, Ayla would forever miss Iza and Creb, no matter how many people she had around to love her. She would always mourn for them. She wished that they could see her now, happily mated with three children.

Ayla knew that she had been lucky. Sure, she'd had to put up with Broud, but she'd also had Iza, a loving mother to nurture and train her, and Creb, the man of her hearth, who'd loved her despite all the things she'd done to confuse the craggy, old, one-eyed man over the years. They'd never _truly_ understood her, but they'd loved her all the same. What had Oda's life been like? Ayla didn't really know much about the woman, except what she'd learned at that clan gathering. She knew that Oda had not had such a loving hearth. She'd had a sorry excuse for a mate who had blamed the birth of a mixed child on her for wanting another daughter, and apparently no one else to stand up for her. There was her sibling, Corg, a good man, but quiet and typically Clan when it came to women, or at least he had been, until the demolition of their cave and most of their people. He was still quiet, but it was obvious that he respected his sibling. Ayla wondered what Corg would think about Ivanolia. Could he forgive this Others' man? Ayla shifted her daughter so that she could see Ivanolia better.

And what about Norv? she wondered. She knew Oda's current mate would hate Ivanolia, but that wasn't because the man cared so much for his mate as it was that he just didn't like the Others very much. He wasn't much of a mate either, by Others' standards anyway, but he was a decent Clan man, she supposed. Oda never gave him reason to do anything to prove himself otherwise. Ayla did worry about Ura though.

Actually, Ayla thought, Norv was the reason why Ayla hadn't been able to get close to Oda, or even get to know her better. Ever since Corg's people had joined Brun's clan, Norv had made it clear that he didn't want his mate socializing with certain people in their clan, namely Grov's hearth. Of course he'd never come out and said it, but his facial expressions were all that were needed.

"It's going to be okay, Ivanolia," Ayla finally said to him.

"What?" She had startled him out of his own thoughts. "Oh . . . yeah . . . I guess. If I don't mind not having Danie for my mate anymore."

"No Ivan, I told you. She is mad, but you will both get through this."

He stopped walking and lowered a squirming Ora to the ground. "How can you be so sure?"

Ayla shrugged. "I don't know, but I am sure. Just give her time." Ayla looked around and noticed that for all the thoughts that had gone through her head in the last few moments, they had not made much progress in their walk to Beech Tent. But then again, thoughts seemed to speed so quickly through one's mind.

"Besides, I do not want to frighten you, but there is more than just Danie to be concerned about here."

"Yes Ayla, you are right of course," the man said sadly. "There is everyone else here too."

Ayla's eyebrows lifted. "And Oda and Ura, and Norv and Corg. There are them too."

Ivanolia frowned. He vaguely remembered who Norv and Corg _were_, but he did not know how they fit into this. "What do Norv and Corg have to do with this?" he asked worriedly.

"Norv is Oda's mate and he does not like Others. And Corg is Oda's brother, sibling as they say, and he has respect for his sister."

"Oh," Ivanolia said with an even more worried look.

"You are going to have to come down there to try to make things right, you know that, don't you?" Ayla asked.

The man nodded. "I know that, Ayla, but how can I? They are going to hate me. What can I possibly do to make up for this?"

"Again, I don't know, but you can never truly get past this if you do not do everything in your power to try."

"Oh Ayla, there you are," a voice said from a few yards away. It was Kristana, Seriana's sister, and she looked worried. "I am so glad that I found you. Seriana says that she isn't feeling right."

"I'm sorry Kristana. I am coming," Ayla said, then she turned to Ivanolia. "I will be fine now." She patted the man's arm and smiled at him. "You can go to the hunt meeting; it will get your mind off . . . things."

He tried to smile back. He didn't think it would. "If you do not mind, I'll still come with you."

Ayla shrugged. "That is fine with me," Ayla said, then she looked at Kristana. "Will you take Annaliza for me so I can pick up Ora?" The woman nodded, took the child from her mother, then they walked swiftly toward Beech Tent.

"Oh good, you're here," Tarana exclaimed when they came into view. Her brow was wrinkled with worry. "I have to get to the hunt meeting, but I didn't want to leave until you got here." The woman smiled, then promptly left.

**xXx**

Inside Beech Camp's tent Seriana's brother was arguing with her mate-to-be. "Do you _really_ think it's necessary to bring that woman into this tent?" Mikolavia said in a hushed, though angry, voice. They were standing some distance away from Seriana's bed, but not completely out of earshot.

Dimia took a deep breath. "Yes Mikolavia," he said patiently. "If Seriana wants her here, then it _is_ necessary. You should meet her, she's quite nice."

"Nice does not matter," the man spat. "I do not want her to cause my sister to give birth to an abomination of mixed spirits."

"Mikolavia!" Seriana yelled. "You do not have a choice. This is up to me." She groaned as a pain went across her belly. "I want her here and I do not care _what_ I give birth to, as long as it is healthy." Mikolavia glared at Dimia.

"Your sister may not give birth to a living baby at all," Dimia whispered worriedly. "And look at how weak _Seri_ is." He paused to look at his woman. "I only want her to come through this," he said desperately.

Mikolavia looked at his sister. He didn't want to lose her either, but just the thought of this Ayla woman brought a sour taste to his mouth. Suddenly, the tent flap opened and a bright stream of sunlight came in, along with several people. No doubt it was the woman that he'd heard so much about, but hadn't met yet, he thought. The man wanted to just leave and he started to, but as they neared he saw that she'd brought her children with her; she'd brought that abomination son of hers into _their_ tent. He scowled. He knew that his mother would be _very_ unhappy about this. What had Tarana been thinking, letting them into their tent?

"See," he hissed at Dimia. "She's brought that . . . that flathead with her."

"Miko!" Seriana said curtly. "Just go _away_!" The man stared at her, then turned to go, noticing that someone else was with the woman.

"Ivan," he greeted stiffly. "I haven't seen you around much. But then, I've heard you're not the man you were."

Ivanolia shifted uncomfortably. "No, I'm the same man. I've just discovered that I was believing in the wrong people."

Mikolavia glanced around. He looked down at the flathead child, then his eyes settled on Ivanolia's cousin. She _was_ beautiful, but beauty didn't mean much if someone brought danger. "And now I can see you're with the _right_ people," he said sarcastically."

Ivanolia didn't even answer the man's retort. "So, I haven't seen you around either." Ivanolia knew that he had nothing to fear from this particular man. Mikolavia had spent much time with the likes of Zadneetsia when he was younger, but not much time since he'd mated Mirra and moved away. Mating the daughter of the hearth of the respected Beech Camp headman had been good for the lowly man, but he had never been part of making sport of the flatheads. _Clan_, Ivanolia repeated in his mind; I have to remember that they say Clan, he told himself. He wondered if Mikolavia even knew about what Zadneetsia's collection of miscreants had been up to. After all, it had been years since the man had been a part of Cedar Camp.

Ivanolia turned when Mirra walked up and stood next to her mate. "Hallo Mirra, how are you today?" Ivanolia said, stretching out his hands in greeting. Ayla watched the byplay between the three people before her, and wondered about their strange behavior. Had Mikolavia been a part of Ivanolia's indecent past? Or maybe Ivanolia had known Mirra before she had mated Mikolavia? Or was it something else? Ayla eyed them carefully.

Mirra looked from Ivanolia to her mate wondering why there was such tension, then, still looking at Mikolavia, she took the other man's outstretched hands. "Well hallo back," she said, kissing Ivanolia's cheek and smiling at him. "I am doing very well, thank you." She turned to Ayla. "It is so good to see you again, Ayla," she said, taking the woman into her arms. She did not miss Ayla's confusion, or her mate's upset over her contact with the woman, but she ignored it. "I hope you can do something for Seriana. We have all been worried."

Ayla narrowed her eyes, wondering what was going on. "That is my hope as well," Ayla replied. "I have brought a tea that is good for cramps, but Seriana really needs to rest more." She handed Ora to the woman.

"I am, Ayla," Seriana protested from the bed platform. She looked drawn and tired, and more than a little upset.

"Yes, I can see that, as much as I can see how upset you are," Ayla said, then knelt down. She felt the pregnant woman's forehead, then rested her hand on her protruding belly. After only a few moments Ayla could feel the muscles within bunch up.

"What is happening to me?" Seriana moaned. "This hurts."

Ayla smiled. "This is normal, Seriana. Your body is just getting ready for the job it has to do soon. You do seem to be experiencing more pain than discomfort," Ayla said with a frown. "But every woman is different. I would like to examine you to be sure, but as long as you rest, you shouldn't have to worry. I want you to rest, and by that I mean sleep. I'm going to have you drink a tea that will help with that," she said, pulling a small pouch out of her medicine bag and dumping some leaves into a wooden cup. "This tea tastes better when it is made from the _berries_ of the Hawthorn plant, but I only have the leaves right now. But either way, it will help to calm you down and it will make it easier for you to get some sleep."

Ayla glanced up at everyone that was watching; everyone seemed to be mesmerized, even Mikolavia, and he seemed to be struggling with it. She didn't understand their apparent reverence, but she continued nonetheless. "Seriana really needs everyone's cooperation right now." Then she looked pointedly at Mikolavia and Dimia; one man she hadn't met and didn't know anything about, the other she knew to be a caring, loving man whose calmness and support might be everything this woman needed. One was a brother who wanted what he _thought_ was best for his sister, the other man a man who was about to mate his best friend. "If you two have something to discuss, it would be better if you did it outside, so that you do not upset Seriana with it."

Dimia blushed, but nodded. Mikolavia blushed as well, but he crossed his arms over his chest in anger. How dare this woman come into _their_ tent and start issuing commands, he thought, though he didn't say anything.

Finally Ayla looked away from them. She knew she had angered Milolavia, but he was not her concern at the moment, Seriana was. "Durc would you take care of your sisters for me while I look after Seriana?" He nodded.

"Ayla, they are welcome to go outside," Kristana cut in. "My sons are out there, but all their age mates are off somewhere else." Kristana didn't wait for the woman's response, but turned to her brother instead. "Here Mikolavia, take Annaliza outside to play," she said, handing the child over to him. Kristana masked a smile as she watched her brother's inner struggle.

Mirra too hid her smile and handed Ora to Ivanolia. "Good idea Kristana," she said. The two men glanced at each other. They did not seem to like each other much, but they slowly walked out, each with one of Ayla's daughters in hand. Ayla silently nodded to her son and he followed the men out. She was not worried; Ivanolia was there to take care of them. Dimia went with them.

**XxX**

**Danie and Ayla Chat**

As it turned out Seriana's cramps subsided with only a small amount of Ayla's Hawthorn leaf tea and then she drifted off to sleep quickly. Ayla sat and talked to Kristana and Mirra for a short time, and let them know that she had been serious about not wanting the pregnant woman upset. "She must get through at least one more moon for there to be any hope for her baby," she told them. "And even then, it's going to very hard." Both women nodded and walked the medicine woman out.

**xXx**

Outside, Ivanolia, Mikolavia and Dimia sat in silence watching the children play. For a brief moment Ivanolia had forgotten about his own troubles. He watched Ayla's children play with Kristana's sons, who seemed to be about six and eight years, and he couldn't help but smile. It was the first time he had noticed how much more mature Durc was than the average five year old, but there was no mistaking that he seemed to be closer in age, maturity-wise, to Kristana's older son, Degassia.

_That_, of course, brought his mind back to reality, where he started thinking about Ura, and what she might be like. I have another daughter, he thought with a slight smile. He wondered if he'd ever get to know her. Would the child's mother allow it? Would Norv and Corg allow it? he wondered. Then he thought about Danie again. He hadn't even told her about Ura yet. His mind went back to Ayla's words, _"She is mad, but you will both get through this."_ How can she possibly know that? He shook his head.

Mikolavia was also struggling. He was sitting there battling the intense desire to get as far away from these abominations as he could and a strong force that told him to stay and protect his sister. Plus, there was the anger he felt toward Ivanolia for seemingly abandoning their friends. He didn't see that he wasn't really a part of that group anymore either.

Dimia, a high status man in his own right, didn't know what to say to either man. He knew both of them, but neither very well. He had been trying to stay away from Mikolavia, who had always been a hot-headed man and who seemed to have something against his sister getting mated. Why, the man didn't know. Maybe Mikolavia didn't like that he was considerably older than Seriana, or maybe it was just _him_ that Mikolavia didn't like. And then there was Ivanolia, a man that seemed nice enough, but everyone knew he'd been a troublemaker in years past. Dimia had heard all the stories about the man, but he didn't know how much was true.

Finally, after what seemed like forever to the three men, the women emerged from the tent. Mikolavia and Dimia stood up quickly, both concerned about the woman inside. Ivanolia remained seated, waiting patiently. Ayla looked over at her children then addressed the men. "She's sleeping peacefully right now, but I don't want her left alone. I have left some of my tea for her to drink if she feels any discomfort." She wanted to add that everyone had to work together to help Seriana keep her baby, but she knew that they already knew that, and it would only make Mikolavia angry again, so she didn't say it.

Ayla looked from one man to the other, finally laying her hand on Dimia's arm. "I hope you will come and get me if Seriana needs anything," she finished. He nodded. "Are you going on the hunt?" she asked him.

"I wanted to, but I've decided to stay here with Seriana instead," Dimia answered.

Ayla smiled "I think that's a good idea. It will help keep her mind off things, and it will be good to have another person around that can stay with her." Then Ayla turned to Ivanolia. "Aren't you going to the hunt meeting, Ivan?"

"Uh, yeah. I guess I'll go then," the man said, turning to Mikolavia. "Are you coming?" he asked, knowing the man should be heading there too. They were already late. Mikolavia frowned for a moment, but finally nodded. After all, Ivanolia hadn't _really_ done anything to him, had he?

"Okay then, please come get me if Seriana needs me," she reminded the ones staying at Beech Tent, then she picked up Annaliza, signaled to Durc that they were leaving, took Ora's hand, and began to walk away.

Mikolavia froze for a moment, watching to blond woman retreat. He hadn't expected to go with _her_. He didn't want to be seen with the woman, but when Ivanolia began to walk away, he frowned and followed them.

**xXx**

The walk through the summer meeting back to Oak Camp was much quicker this time. There was no conversation between the three adults, for which Mikolavia was grateful.

Outside the tent Ayla hugged her cousin, and watched him walk off with Mikolavia before turning to go inside. Ayla noticed that someone had tied the outer drape open. It had been accomplished with two pairs of leather straps that were wrapped around the rolled up drape and tied together, one pair high, the other low. Ayla smiled, thinking that it would be nice to have more light inside.

Ayla stepped in and went directly to her and Grov's sleeping place to put the girls down for a nap. "But I'm not tired, Mamma," Ora complained as she yawned and rubbed her eyes with balled fists. Ayla only smiled. The three-year-old looked at Durc, who was standing at the end of the bed platform, obviously not preparing to nap. "Why Durc not going to sleep?" she whined.

"Durc is older than you, Ora," Ayla said, trying to hide her smile this time.

"But, I'm not _sleepy_."

"Ora! That's enough. It's time to sleep," Ayla said sternly, causing her middle child to turn away and pout; the child she knew she could not win.

Annaliza had been watching her mother and sister go back and forth, but stuck her two left middle fingers in her mouth when Ora rolled away and signed, "_I_ sleepy, Mamma." She had no wish to argue with her mother.

Ayla smiled at her youngest and tousled her hair, then leaned over to kiss the back of Ora's head. "I'm going now," she gestured to Annaliza, then got up, closed the curtain, and left.

**xXx**

On the next bed platform Danie lay still, listening to Ayla put Ora and Annaliza down. She couldn't help but smile at the feistiness of the child, and unconsciously rubbed her belly wondering if _her_ child would be like that, like she herself had been. Then, hearing that Ayla had closed the curtain and walked away, Danie decided to get up. She couldn't just lie around being hurt and angry, and crying all day.

Quietly, so as not to disturb Ayla's little girls, Danie opened her own curtain, and stood up. She still didn't want to run into Ivanolia, but she hadn't heard him in a while, so figured he had left the tent. She didn't know about the hunt meeting or the requirement to attend if one planned to go on the hunt. Not that it mattered; she wouldn't be going on the hunt anyway.

Out in the tent passageway Danie looked toward the brightness that emanated from the tent opening and smiled. Then, knowing that Ayla had probably gone to the main space, she looked the other way and gingerly stepped out. There was light at that end of the tent as well. Danie wasn't sure where she should go at the moment. She still did not know what to say to these people. She didn't want to tell them anything, but she knew questions were bound to come. She couldn't blame them after the way she had screamed at Ivanolia. Now she wished she had had the tact to hold her temper. Not that she thought she had been wrong. She thought she had every right to yell. It was just that, now she would have to explain herself, and she didn't want to.

Danie took a tentative step toward the main space and was startled when Ayla appeared at the end of the passageway. Ayla stood there for a moment, then smiled and waved her in. Danie sighed, figuring that she'd have to go in there and talk. At least it was someone that already knew Ivanolia's secret and she wouldn't have to be an informant.

"How are you feeling?" Ayla asked the woman as she came in.

Danie looked around, glad that no one else seemed to be in the tent at the moment. "I am feeling fine, Ayla," she answered, running her fingers through her short, dark hair.

Ayla eyed her, then handed her a cup of tea. "You were not sick this morning?" Danie shook her head. "That is good. You should be past that now." Ayla took a sip of her tea and stared at her hands. She didn't know what to say and neither did Danie it seemed.

Danie watched Ayla, wondering about how hard a life this woman had lived through. How had she done it? she wondered, thinking that Ayla was definitely stronger for it. She looked into her cup of tea, which she had not tasted yet, and smiled at the mint leaf that was swirling around. She leaned to smell the tea; it was her favorite, chamomile and mint. How did this woman always know what to make? she thought with a smile.

"So, where is everyone?" Ayla asked. She had not expected the tent to be empty when she returned.

"Jendoza and Teglodia are still sleeping," she replied. Ayla nodded, she had noticed the closed curtain. "And Darvie told me that almost everyone was going to the hunt meeting."

"Do you know where Serana went to work on Laurana's matrimonial tunic? She said she needed to work on that today."

"No, but I think Zarina went with her."

Ayla frowned, not liking the small talk. She took another sip of her tea.

"Ayla?" said Danie with a frown that matched Ayla's. Ayla looked up expectantly. "Why is it so important to you that I forgive Ivanolia?" She had tears in her eyes again. "I mean, until this year, you didn't even know the man, so why do you care?"

"I guess that is _why_ it matters so much to me, Danie. Last year I did not know who my people were, and now I have so many people to love. I do not want to lose any of them, not even Ivanolia. Do _you_ want to lose him?" Ayla asked the woman. Danie did not answer, so Ayla continued. "I know Ivanolia has done something awful, but I know that he is not the same man that did what he did. The Ivanolia I know now could never repeat the things he's done in the past." Ayla paused. She wanted Danie to understand. "I am not excusing what he did either, Danie. I am so very angry and we plan to take this information back to our Clan. I am sure it will cause some anger there too, but Ivanolia has promised to make restitution for what he has done."

"But how can he? What could this woman possibly want from him?" she asked. "_I_ wouldn't want to look at the man if I were her.

"In the Clan it is different. They will not be upset about what he did, only about how he did it." Ayla stopped for a moment again. "It was the same when Broud forced me. They did not understand why he did it, or why I resisted him. They only saw it as his right, as a man of the Clan. It is the Clan way."

Danie frowned. "What about the woman? What is her name?"

"Oda."

"Oda," Danie repeated. "And what about Oda? What if she doesn't want to see him? Will she have a say in anything?"

Ayla was shaking her head. "It is not likely. Oda has a mate and a brother; that is who restitution will be paid to, if it is going to be paid at all. This is a very rare occurrence though . . . not the forcing of Clan women, but actually knowing who did it." Ayla continued to frown. "I'm not sure if there is anything that they will want. They do not like that Others men take their women, but they may not make much of it. In the Clan, men are supposed to dominate women, and women are supposed to be submissive."

"What did you want, Ayla, after that Clan man forced you?" Danie asked.

Ayla thought back and grimaced. "I wanted Broud to stay away from me and leave me alone."

"Did he?"

"Only after I was pregnant did he stop forcing me, but he was always mean to me and not nice to my son." Ayla smiled. "But Broud is not so bad anymore."

"How can you stand living in the same hearth as the man that did that to you?" Danie shuddered.

"It was very hard at first, but Grov asked me to try hard. I did not want to be a bad mate. Then, as time went on, it got easier. Now it sort of feels as if Broud is my brother. Mother knows that he treats me like a brother," Ayla said with a slight smile, thinking about the day that they were practicing with the Others' spears. "It is still hard sometimes, but it is not terrible."

Danie swirled the dregs of her tea, then took the last swallow. "I was thinking . . . that I'd like to come meet your clan, Ayla . . . and meet this Oda too. Do you think that would be possible?"

"Of course it's possible . . . but there is one more thing you should know about this whole thing," said Ayla tentatively. She really wanted Ivanolia to be there, if not be the one to tell his mate himself, but then again, it might be better coming from her.

Danie's brows creased. What else could there be? What else had the man done? "I'm not sure if I can take much more, Ayla," the woman said sadly, indicating that she still needed some more time to think.

Ayla nodded and kept silent. Maybe it would be better to wait. Maybe Ivanolia _should_ be there.

**XxX**

**The Close of Another Day**

After a short time of talking with Danie, Ayla excused herself to go lie down. It was hardly past midday, but it had been an exhausting morning. Durc, who had been entertaining himself while the two women talked, followed his mother and fell asleep promptly.

Danie watched them leave, and wondered what to do with herself. She didn't really know anyone at the summer meeting, except for those of Oak Tent, and none of them seemed to be around. After drinking another cup of tea, which Ayla had left for her, she finally decided to head out. It would be better than sitting around in here, she thought.

However, once outside she hesitated. She saw many people sitting down at their tentfires and others walking here and there, but again, she saw no one she recognized. She was just as much a foreigner here as Ayla was. More so, _her_ people, the Mamutoi, were only distantly related to the Sungaea; Ayla _was_ Sungaean. Danie felt tears sprout in the corners of her eyes again and she wished she could talk to some of her Mamutoi friends.

Then, just as Danie had lowered herself into a sitting position by Oak Tent's fire, she heard a woman's voice behind her. "Danie, right?"

Danie looked up and squinted into the sun. It was the dark-eyed Janika. Danie hadn't liked her, but she didn't want to be impolite. "Yeah, that's right." Danie gave the woman a thin-lipped smile, and tried to look like she wanted to be alone. She didn't actually _want_ to be alone, but this woman wasn't the sort she wanted to be around.

Janika didn't get the hint and sat down. Danie rolled her eyes. "So, not planning on going with the hunters, huh?" Danie asked, trying to be friendly.

Janika frowned for a moment, as if she didn't know what Danie was talking about, then said, "No, I'm going. I only go sometimes, but I'm definitely going this time."

Danie looked confused. "Why aren't you at the hunt meeting? Ayla tells me you have to go to it or you can't go on the hunt.

Janika didn't even try to hide a scowl. That Ayla, she thought angrily, she thinks she knows _everything_. But of course she didn't say that to Ayla's _aunt_. "Yes, it is the requirement. I was there, but I hate all that discussion. I slipped out after they checked to see who was there."

Danie eyed the young woman, thinking her not very honest. Janika didn't even seem like someone that liked to hunt.

"So why aren't you there?" Janika asked her. "I've heard the Mamutoi hunt the great mammoth."

"Oh, we do. I do like to hunt, but I'm pregnant," Danie replied, smiling and patting her tummy. "There'll be no hunting for me, at least not for a while."

Janika glanced at Oak Tent. "What about Ayla? I didn't see her at the meeting, doesn't she like to hunt?"

"Oh yes, Ayla _loves_ to hunt, but she's not going this time either. I told her that I'd watch her children, but she's worried about Seriana and thinks she should stay behind." Danie didn't mention that she was glad Ayla would be staying in camp with her.

Janika had figured Ayla wasn't going when she didn't see her at the meeting, and was glad that Danie had confirmed it. "But I saw her mate at the meeting. He's going, right?" she asked hopefully.

Danie suddenly realized why the woman was being so friendly; she was trying to get information about Grov. She was going to make another attempt at getting Ayla's mate into her furs. Danie hid a smile. This woman is going to find it hard to tempt Grov, she thought, knowing the man didn't much care for her. "Yes, you are right, Grov _is_ going on the hunt." Janika smiled, then quickly made an excuse to leave. She had gained the information she had come for, and didn't really want to stay and talk to the Mamutoi woman. Danie watched her flounce away, and noticed that she joined some of her friends. They looked back at her, then turned and giggled. Danie shook her head.

**xXx**

The hunt meeting, which took place in an open arena that had been dug into the ground prior to the last summer meeting of which Maple Camp hosted, had started with much exuberance. They had much to discuss. The first hunt of every year was always a big to do, causing even those that did not plan on attending the actual hunt to spend at least some time at the meeting, listening to the leaders talk.

Though not the largest construction at the summer meeting, the arena took up the largest open space, and was the only permanent feature of the summer meeting. It was circular in shape and had been carved into the earth, like a bowl, with several steps gracing its circumference. This was where the official competitions were to be held, though many unofficial competitions went on all summer without the watchful eyes of the Councils.

For this meeting, however, the first order of business was to present possible sites for the hunt, and to receive input from the crowd. With more than fifteen Sungaean camps in attendance, and many people with suggestions, this part of the meeting took quite some time.

Second, it was necessary to single out who would be going. Again, there were well over one hundred fifty potential hunters present so this was another lengthy process, and not everyone that wanted to go was selected. It was only after finding out that she would be allowed to go that Janika had left.

After the final hunter selections were made, the topic turned to what there was to be hunted at certain locations and what animals were preferred this year. No one wanted to deplete the area of too many of one species, so this was very important, especially if they headed north, which would encroach on Mamutoi lands. It was finally decided that they would head southwest, where they would cross Big River, and hunt Bison, the most revered animal to the Sungaea. Crossing the river would make traveling much more difficult if heavily burdened, but Maple Camp's boats would make it less so. It seemed the better way to go.

Next, the lay of the land for the journey to the chosen hunt site, and the hunt site itself, was discussed in great detail. Grov was amazed that they took stock of every single aspect of the land, even down to the positioning of obstacles, such as hills and valleys, large rock formations, various trees, bushes and plant life that were known to exist in the area, and finally, the animals they might encounter on the way. Grov couldn't help thinking that Ayla would be most interested in learning about the plants of this area. He was sorry that she was not going.

After all of this, the floor was opened up to anyone that had something to say. There were many comments made, which gave way to more comments and the meeting ended with a questioning session. Many people, especially first time summer hunters, had questions they wanted answered. Grov had a few of his own, but resisted the urge to ask. He figured he could ask the people of Oak Camp.

It was nearly dusk when the hunt meeting broke up and people finally began climbing the steps of the arena, filtering out, and heading away. Grov couldn't believe that it had taken more than half the day to talk about the hunt; he hadn't known there was so much to say. It had been so different than what he was used to. In the Clan, the leader typically made all the decisions, conferring only with Mog-ur, and then finally telling the men what to do. This discussion seemed so strange; everyone seemed to have something to say, something to contribute.

But then, Grov thought, the Clan never had so many hunters to consider at one time. This got the mixed man thinking . . . wondering what a Clan gathering was like. His clan had never gone to a Clan gathering in his lifetime, partly because there were no clans in the region they inhabited, but also because their make up made them outcasts among the western clans. He thought hard and realized there would have been two gatherings during his life, one when he was thirteen, the other when he was only six. He wondered about the next one. It would be two years from this very summer. Would Brun take them to wherever it would be held? The thought frightened him.

Grov was jarred out of his thoughts by Brulenzia's laughter. Apparently Ivanolia had made some comment about his friend's upcoming nuptials. Though Grov was still angry with his mate's cousin, it was good to see the man relaxing a bit. Grov looked at the younger hunters of Oak Camp as they walked back toward Oak Tent goofing off and laughing. They were a good bunch of men.

Then his thoughts returned to the reason for the meeting in the first place: the hunt. Grov couldn't help but ask about the meeting's length. It was explained to him by Donzolnia that the meeting was fairly typical for the first hunt meeting of every summer, but that there would be a second hunt meeting, which would take place before the final hunt. Ivanolia interjected that the second meeting was not a requirement if one had been present at the first meeting, and that most people preferred to go to the first meeting, leaving the second one to the hunt leaders. That explained why Brulenzia had been there, since he would obviously be in his matrimonial isolation during the coming hunt. Grov wondered if Ayla should have come; she was sure to want to go on the next hunt. He briefly thought about her vision, but pushed that aside; there was no way to know when they'd be called by the vision and have to leave.

The hunters stopped briefly at the Shogur's Tent, where they picked up Tinozia. He wouldn't be going on the hunt either, as he had just been accepted into the Shomata, the trials that were expected of someone who wished to serve the Mother as a Shogur. Though nervous about the trials, which must be passed before entering the training that would keep him away from Oak Camp for an entire year, he was very excited and proud that he had convinced the Councils.

**xXx**

Once back at Oak Tent, most of the hunters sat down outside to enjoy a meal. Without realizing it, they had been gone for most of the day without food. Grov quickly found Ayla, who was extremely well rested after her afternoon nap, and promptly accepted the plate of food she offered. As he ate, he happily played with Ora and Annaliza

Ivanolia, who had, for the time being, forgotten about his troubles, looked around for Danie, wondering if Ayla could possibly be right. He spotted her on the other side of the tentfire, talking to Laurana. She appeared to have not even seen him return, but he knew that she had. He had noticed her glance away quickly when he arrived. He sighed, thinking that it was better that she ignore him than show open hostility toward him, or worse, rush off in tears. He glanced around. Braydalana had just finished eating and was talking to . . . who was that? he thought with a frown. There was an unfamiliar boy there at their fire. Ivanolia's frown deepened. She was too young to be thinking about boys, wasn't she? He watched her giggle, then run off with Crisana and Serlona. That was better, he thought, though he wondered where they were going after dark. He looked over at his mother, thinking that she'd be watching her youngest daughter, but she hadn't even noticed Serlona's departure. Darvie too hadn't seen Crisana leave. He frowned again.

A few others joined their evening meal, turning it into an impromptu feast. Danie noticed that Janika and her friends made their way over to the group, but the young women managed to stay just far enough away that Grov didn't seem to react much. Danie did notice that he stayed at Ayla's side all evening, arm around her shoulder, but she wasn't sure if that was due to his day away from his mate, or the disconcerting presence of Janika.

Another guest was Bolodenkia and his mate, Galina. They had been invited by Vincenzia and Darvie and were sitting with an older group of adults, making comments about the upcoming hunt. Bolodenkia kept his eye on Galina's daughter, who had come with them, and had been introduced to Grov and Ayla. Bolo was quite nervous about the flathead's presence, but he didn't say anything.

Finally, the night ended with everyone returning to his or her respective tents. Once inside, Ayla carried her droopy-eyed three-year-old to a bed platform within sight of her own, while Grov did the same with Annaliza. Durc climbed into the one next to his sisters, where he had spent the last two nights sleeping next to Brenevia. Ayla tucked them in soundly and smiled down at them. Grov stood watching her watch them, and smiled. He was so happy at that moment that he suddenly grabbed her and kissed her. Ayla gasped, but responded with like feeling. No longer thinking about the children, or even seeing the other people within the temporary dwelling, Grov picked her up and carried her to their bed.

**xXx**

Most people were busy doing the same thing, putting children down, changing into night clothes, or just straightening up a bit, and smiled at the oblivious couple as they went by. Ivanolia was sitting on the edge of his and Danie's bed platform, wondering if he should find somewhere else to sleep or if he should force Danie to choose, when he saw Grov walk by carrying Ayla. Ivanolia smiled and glanced over at Danie, wishing he could do the same to her.

Danie's eyes had followed the couple as well, but she was now staring, eyes transfixed on their closed curtain. Ivanolia watched a tear slip down her cheek and he silently berated himself for being such a stupid man. He was just about to grab one of their furs and move to another bed when she crossed the passageway and crawled onto their bed.

Ivanolia didn't know what to do. She obviously thought he was staying, and she had come anyway. The man turned his head to see her curled up under their furs, back facing him. He finally decided that he wasn't going to make it easy for her to ignore him. He would only leave their bed if she asked him to, and she hadn't done that yet. Ivanolia ran a hand through his pale blond hair and stretched out next to his mate. She smells so good, he thought as he listened to her breathing.

Danie lay there, trying to calm herself. She hadn't known what to do. He had been sitting on the bed, with that desolate look on his face. She thought she wanted him to disappear, but at the same time she prayed that he'd stay. She had been so nervous when she'd crossed over toward him and got into bed. He hadn't said a word. Nor had he looked at her. Then, when she had finally settled down, she felt him get into the bed too. Oh Mother, she cried silently. How I ache for him to hold me again, she thought as she drifted off to sleep.

Ivanolia waited until her breathing was even and he knew that she slept, then he rolled over so that he could look at her. She still had her back to him, but he stared at the back of her head. He couldn't help himself; he reached out and touched her short, dark hair. Then, letting his eyes drop to her shoulder, he slid his hand down and caressed her bare arm, finally letting it come to rest curled around her.

Danie had drifted off to sleep, but it was only a light sleep. When Ivanolia's hand touched her arm, her eyes snapped open as tingles touched the pit of her stomach. She closed her eyes again, careful not to do anything which might cause him to pull his arm back. No, she thought, I don't want to lose him. I can't lose him.

**XxX**

**Laurana and Brulenzia's Big Day**

Ivanolia woke up in the morning with his right arm still draped over Danie. She was still on her left side, but apparently they hadn't moved much during the night. He noticed that his mate's left hand lay over his arm. She must have unknowingly moved to touch him in her sleep, he thought. He wished he could snuggle up to her, but he was afraid of making her angry.

Danie had awoken several times during the night due to the discomfort caused by staying in one position for too long. Her back ached, but she didn't move because her back was not the only thing that was aching. The pain over what Ivanolia had done was nothing compared to the thought of losing him. Everything can be just fine, if only I can get past this, she thought. While lying there perfectly still, she ran her fingers over the dead weight of the man's arm, wishing she could see him; it was too dark. Slowly she drifted back to sleep with her hand still on his.

Carefully, so as not to disturb the sleeping woman, Ivanolia tilted his arm, letting her hand slide off of his, then he propped himself up on his elbow so that he could _really_ look at her. She groaned and rolled onto her back, making it easier for him to see her.

For a moment, he held his breath, then he let it out slowly, and looked around. He had forgotten to shut their curtain, so when Tinozia's curtain opened he smiled sheepishly at his friend. Tinozia smiled back as he got up, extending a hand to the woman beside him. Ivanolia noticed that his friend was not alone, and realized it was Fürlasa with him. It wasn't the first time he had seen them together. Ivanolia was glad Tinozia was finally taking an interest in her.

Ivanolia considered the Shomata that his friend was going to be put though. No one, save those who were dedicating their lives to the Mother, knew what one might be asked to do during these trials, and no Shogur ever spoke of it later; it was private. _Ivanolia_ had never been interested in serving the Mother, but he was now thinking about the training that would keep Tinozia away for a year. He wondered if spending so much time with the young woman was his friend's way of laying claim to her while he was away. Ivanolia smiled. It wasn't likely she'd look for someone permanent while Tinozia was gone; she had liked him for some time.

Ivanolia studied Fürlasa as she walked away with Tinozia. She looked a lot like her sister had, though older now than Nemlora had been when she died. Fürlasa was, perhaps, shorter than Nemlora had been, and Nemlora's hair had been lighter, hadn't it? Ivanolia struggled to recall, then frowned in frustration. He hadn't thought of his dead mate in a long time; he was even starting to forget what she looked like.

The man finally pulled his thoughts back to the present. He looked around. Most everyone seemed to be up. On the other side of him he could see that Grov and Ayla were gone, their curtain was pushed completely open, as was Brulenzia and Laurana's. And finally, he noticed that Donzolnia and Jendoza's curtain was open too. The man decided that he should rise as well.

Getting off of the sleeping platform without disturbing Danie proved to be difficult. Just when he thought he had pulled it off, she opened her eyes and watched silently as he pulled his leggings on. She didn't say anything for a moment afterward, preferring instead to continue to watch the man dress.

"Morning," she finally said, moving to scratch her head.

Ivanolia stopped mid-tie and looked down at her. "Did I wake you?" he asked, worried that he'd upset her again, though she didn't look as if he had. A muscle twitched on his chest.

Still lying down Danie yawned and rubbed her eyes, then shook her head. "Nope . . . well, yeah," she said, looking around the tent. "But I guess that's good. Everyone else is up." She sat up and smiled, then swung her legs over her side of the platform, stood up and walked to the end of the bed. Ivanolia's heart lurched; he wondered if her smile was for him. She was still dressed in yesterday's clothes, Ivanolia noticed as she walked toward him; they were all wrinkled from sleeping in them, and her short hair was sticking up in a few places. He couldn't help but grin at her.

"_What_?" she said self-consciously, running her hand over her head, knowing that her hair was at least one thing he could be grinning about. Ivanolia reached out to help her, pushed a short strand off her forehead, and caught her hand in his. As he did this, she froze and stared at him.

"Danie," he began. "We still need to talk . . . ." His voiced trailed off.

She frowned. "I know. Ayla told me there was more, but . . . I don't want to do this right now, Ivan." She started to turn away from him. He understood, but he wasn't quite ready for her to walk off yet, so he held tight to her hand and pulled her into his arms, holding her as if he never wanted to let go. Danie allowed him to do this, but with her head on his bare chest, she heaved a sob.

They stood like that for some time, Danie crying, Ivanolia holding her, then suddenly Ivanolia felt her stomach lurch and he pulled back. "Was that the baby, Danie?" he asked her. She smiled and nodded, then took his hand and placed it on her belly. For a moment there was no movement, then Ivanolia's eyes opened wide when he felt it again. This was the first time he had felt the movement of her child, and he grinned.

"Amazing, isn't it?" she asked him. He nodded.

**xXx**

The day sped by without much happening, and before anyone knew where the day had gone, it was over, and they were once again sitting down to an evening meal by their tentfire. Of course, many people did not return for the meal. Some were eating at other fires; some were involved in other activities.

Danie and Ivanolia had spent the day apart, doing their separate things, but came together in the evening. Danie finally let Ivanolia tell her the rest of his secret, and surprisingly enough she didn't even get upset. For him to have another child of his spirit didn't really mean much; he already had one daughter, what was the difference between one daughter and two? It only made Danie's resolve to visit Ayla's clan all the more strong.

**xXx**

When it seemed that many were retiring for the night, the younger adults of Oak Camp did the same. Once again Fürlasa joined Tinozia for the night. He only had four more days before his Shomata began, so she wanted to spend every second with him that she could.

As they entered Oak Tent, Ivanolia grew nervous. He knew Danie was following him, but he didn't want to push her, not after what he'd put her through, so when they reached their sleeping place he just sat down at the end of it, as he had done the night before. He decided that he'd give her the choice again.

The other three young couples were right behind them, laughing and talking as usual. Jendoza and Laurana sat on the far platform, talking and nursing their babies. Ayla was just across the passageway, putting her three children down. And Donzolnia and Brulenzia were telling Grov about the previous summer's big hunt.

Danie watched the people talking, and sent a plea to Mut that she would be able to join in with them again. She untied her waistthong and slipped her leggings off, then pulled her tunic over her head so she could put on her sleeping tunic. With a quick glance at Ivanolia, she pulled their fur back and got in.

Though Ivanolia was observing his friends' jubilant conversation, he was quite aware that his woman had changed her clothing, and was now lying down. He sat there a while longer, adding a comment or two to the men's conversation, which had turned from last summer's hunt to a journey to Brun's Cave in the near future, then he decided to call it a night.

Ivanolia dropped his tunic onto the end of the bed, then got in, careful not to touch his mate. She might be willing to share his furs again, but that didn't mean she was ready for him to hold her. This time, he pulled their curtain closed, wishing to be alone with her, even if they weren't speaking.

For some time Ivanolia lay there staring at the tent ceiling. He could see the flicker of light that danced above him, and hear his family and friends talk happily. He wanted to be as happy as they were, and wondered if he ever would be. He thought he was moving in that direction when he met and mated Danie, but things had become decidedly worse as of late. Could he get back to happy? he wondered.

Danie was on her side, facing away from him, but her backache was already starting. No, she thought, who am I fooling? It's my heart that aches. Her back did hurt, but it was insignificant.

Slowly, so that he did not become alarmed, she moved to roll over, so that she was on her other side. Now, she was facing him. He turned his head to look at her and their eyes locked. He wanted to grab her and hold her and kiss her, but he didn't move. He didn't want to make a mistake. Danie could see his desire, and wanted him so badly, but she _also_ didn't want to make a mistake. She closed her eyes. He did the same.

_Then_, just as he was falling asleep, she scooted closer and snuggled up to him. She placed her head in the hollow of his shoulder, and put her arm across his chest. Ivanolia opened his eyes and moved his hand to cover hers. That is how they fell asleep that night; that is how they woke up the next morning.

**xXx**

The day started very early. Serana still had to add the finishing touches to Laurana matrimonial tunic, but more importantly Laurana had to be removed from Oak Tent and brought to the tent of the Council of Sisters, where she would remain out of Brulenzia's sight, for most of the day. There was no restriction against him seeing her before the ceremony; it was just that they had rituals to perform before he did see her.

It was just before dawn when Tiflona, Zarina, Fraylora, and Serana, carrying everything for the night ahead, came down the passageway, silently opened the curtain to the platform where they knew Laurana slept, and hustled the young woman away. Zarina was the last to leave. Kissing the forehead of her sleeping son, she picked up the tiny Bruana, and followed the women out.

**xXx**

Though making her daughter's matrimonial tunic was entirely Serana's duty, it fell to the four elder women of Oak Camp to plait the mirt and barvinok wearths that would be placed on the heads of both Laurana and Brulenzia during the ceremony. Mirt, a shrub that grew down by Beran Sea, was usually difficult to find anywhere else. Because of this, the Sungaean people had worked hard to learn how to keep it living, so that it could be transported over long distances for mating ceremonies. Barvinok was an evergreen ground-covering vine that seemed to grow in many locations. These two items were meant to symbolize eternal love and fertility.

Laurana's only contribution to the wreaths was to add her favorite flowers, which had been collected by the women for her. It was considered good luck if the woman to be mated actually applied the finishing touches herself.

**xXx**

The day seemed to creep by, and Laurana's stomach was in knots. It was only when Donzolnia, Ivanolia and Tinozia came bearing the man Laurana was to mate that she relaxed completely.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in _forever_," she gasped as he took her into his arms.

He laughed. "It's only been since last night."

"I know, but they practically kidnapped me," she said with a smile. "Not that I minded. This is where I want to be." She ran her fingers through his long, dark brown hair and gazed into eyes sky blue eyes.

"Me too, Laurana," he agreed passionately. "Me too."

**xXx**

The rest of the day was filled with getting to know the other couples that were getting mated, spending a short time with the Shogur that would join them, and then finally getting ready. Again, there was no restriction against seeing each other prior to the ceremony, so they dressed along side one another.

Laurana's mother helped her to pull her long tunic over her head, then tugged at the sides to make it fall just right. It nearly touched the ground, and it hugged her body snuggly. Laurana noticed first that it was of the softest leather that she had ever felt, and that it was a very pale color, almost white.

"How did you make this so white?" Laurana asked her mother.

"Hummm, well . . . " Serana started, as she helped to adjust the thin leather straps over her daughter's shoulders, "apparently Travie is friends with a Mamutoi woman that specializes in white leather. When I saw those camp shoes she wears inside the earthlodge, I asked her about it."

Laurana smiled. "I love it mother," she exclaimed, hugging the woman.

"Yes, it's beautiful," said Brulenzia, adding his compliment to the chorus of watchers. He had just finished dressing himself, and stood there in complete contrast to her nearly white ensemble; his matrimonial outfit was so dark it looked black.

**xXx**

After dressing, nearly everyone left. Only Serana and Ivanolia remained. Ivanolia stayed because he would have a part in the ceremony that evening. Serana stayed because she had to help Laurana with her hair, which they decided to leave down. Once brushed, Laurana's long, honey blond hair fell in gentle waves all the way down to her fingertips.

"Okay, I need to go get Vegodia," Serana stated as she was picking up her things to leave. "Your brother is very nervous." The woman patted Ivanolia's chest. "I hope you will walk him through this."

Ivanolia rolled his eyes. "Yes mother. Of course I will. He will do just fine."

**xXx**

As it turned out, they didn't have much more time. Serana had hustled away to get Vegodia, who was back at the tent pacing. He was more nervous than his mother was aware of, but he knew this was an important day for his sister; he would not let her down. After all, it wasn't like he had to do too much.

When Serana arrived at Oak Tent, she sent her younger son to the east entrance of the Council of Sisters. Laurana and Ivanolia met their brother at the opening to the tent, and assured him that everything would go smoothly. It was not long before it was time to line up.

**xXx**

Brulenzia and Laurana were the seventh of the many couples standing side by side waiting to walk out of the tent of the Council of Sisters. They stood nervously as they watched the couples before them, Brulenzia on the right, Laurana on the left. Each couple had stopped briefly in front of the Shogur, who represented the Mother in the ceremony, then preceded outside to walk the path to the matrimonial platform.

When Brulenzia and Laurana reached Maple Camp's Shogur, they stopped. "Is it of your own will that you wish to mate?" she asked them.

"It is," they replied in unison. Their answer meant that they understood freedom was essential for a lasting mating.

The Shogur gave a clipped nod, indicating that they should step out. They did so and continued on until they were standing behind the couple that left before them. The Shogur continued on with the other couples, then walked out herself.

Outside, the couples had followed the path south, straight toward the platform in the dim light of the few torches that graced the first part of their journey, but had veered west when they came to the steps intended for the Shogur, and finally turned south again. At this point, the light of the torches got brighter. This was meant to symbolize going from the darkness of being alone, to the light of love from the union.

Custom dictated that they enter from the west, going toward the east, so the couples turned east to ascend the steps before them. It was here that they came into full light for all to see.

Brulenzia held Laurana's hand as they took the steps, only three of them, then they walked across the platform, forming a half circle around a small central table with the other couples that were mating.

Once all couples were in place, the Shogur took her place on the platform, standing just in front of the table, and bowed her head a moment in reverence to the Mother.

"Who has brought a piece of the earth that will always be with you wherever you go?" the Shogur asked. It was a question asked out of tradition, but everyone knew that it was the man who brought this spiritual necessity to the ceremony, just as it was the woman's family that brought the wreaths each would wear.

Each man pulled out a small pouch, which contained a handful of dirt that had either been brought to the summer meeting from the ground of his home camp, or had been attained while at the meeting. This earth was the tangible, emotional link of the Sungaean people to their territory and their traditions. The Shogur nodded and each man returned the pouch to his belt.

Then, looking out at the people below, the Shogur bagan. "A mating joins not only two individuals, but also the two immediate and extended families. Are there any here that do not wished to see these couples joined?" There was a hushed silence among the people. A baby could be heard crying quietly; Laurana and Brulenzia recognized it as Bruana, and both smiled. Then, when no objections were made, the Shogur turned back to the couples. With one gesture, she called the first couple forward, while everyone watched in rapt attention.

When finally the Shogur's eyes fell on them and her hand raised, indicating that they should approach, Brulenzia and Laurana smiled, glad it was their turn, but neither said a word, they only grasped each other's hands tightly and came forward. The Shogur, whom they had spent a small portion of the day with, smiled in return, but also did not say anything. Though Sungaean matrimonials were rich in tradition, they typically didn't include many spoken words, and there would be no vows for the couple to exchange.

When Brulenzia and Laurana stopped in front of her, the Shogur turned to face the table that was behind her. This was where Laurana's brothers had a part in the ceremony. The Shogur motioned the two onto the platform, and Laurana smiled to see Ivanolia and Vegodia, each holding one of the wreaths that had been so lovingly made by the women of Oak Camp. Laurana's brothers took their place on either side of the Shogur, and waited for the woman to give them the signal to continue. When she did, they stepped forward obediently. Laurana could see that Vegodia was still a bit nervous, but he was doing just fine. This was the first time he had been required to participate in the matrimonial ceremony of a sister, because he had been too young when Jendoza had been mated.

Laurana then looked at Ivanolia. In spite of his own personal anguish, he appeared to be quite happy as he stepped toward Brulenzia. Being the taller of the two, Ivanolia placed a wreath upon Brulenzia's head at precisely the same moment that Vegodia placed the other on Laurana's, then both stepped back to allow the Shogur to finish.

Pausing for only a moment, the Shogur then asked the couple to clasp right hands, in a fraternal handshake, then she took out a cord, wrapped it around their arms and wrists, and tied a loose knot under their hands. Then, not waiting at all this time, she took a small torch from the table behind her, lit it, then placed it in Laurana's free hand.

Then focusing on the crowd of observers, the Shogur repeated for the seventh time, "For all to see, the Mother gives us the grace of matrimony, but we must make it our own by our own actions." Brulenzia slipped his left hand to Laurana's back, so that he could glide her around the table.

Once they had circled the table three times, they stopped in front of the Shogur one final time, and waited. She took the torch back, extinguished it, then continued.

"In making this circle, the two shall be one, and the one shall be two." The Shogur motioned them back into the line, and continued on with the remaining couples.

Brulenzia smiled as he saw Ivanolia retreat down the steps behind the Shogur. His friend disappeared for a moment, then reappeared as he walked through the crowd toward their camp. Brulenzia could see all of them, grinning widely. He noticed others in the crowd that didn't seem as happy about their mating, but he wasn't going to dwell on them; they were just some of the many women he had spent his time with in previous summers. They were his past, Laurana was his future; Laurana and Bruana, he corrected himself, with another smile.

I can't believe I'm a mated man, he thought to himself. Without moving his head, he glanced down at Laurana, who was trying very had to stand perfectly still, but seemed to vibrating with excitement. They weren't supposed to move until everyone had had a chance to make the union, but Brulenzia couldn't help himself; he was so happy.

Laurana's eyes stared straight ahead, but she didn't see or hear anything that went on in front of her. She was thinking about how perfect everything was. She had never considered that she could have everything she wanted. Actually, she had never really known what she wanted, not until she and Brulenzia had gotten together anyway. Laurana was so happy; she felt tears threatening. Then, when she felt Brulenzia squeeze her hand, she glanced down at the rope that bound them together, and blinked hard so that she could meet his eyes with a smile. He was smiling down at her, so she squeezed his hand back, and tried to focus on the other matings. The Shogur was just completing the circuit with the final couple. It was almost over, she thought.

"Now, as tradition dictates, you shall all leave this platform and enter the isolation that will make your union permanent. But remember this ceremony and your isolation is only the beginning of your promise." The Shogur held up her hand so that the couples knew that they had been released.

Brulenzia and Laurana followed the others down the steps, staying on the path that would lead them to a larger area where they could see family and friends before leaving the festivities that were going to be held in their honor. Many people had crowded into the open space, wanting to congratulate and talk to the newly mated couples. There was no rule that required the couples to hurry to the isolation tent; they were only forbidden to leave the path, so they stayed to talk.

Donzolnia, Ivanolia and Tinozia were the first of Oak Camp they saw, and allowed their three family members to hug them as a couple; they could not hug separately due to the rope that held them facing each other.

"So it's done, my friend," Ivanolia teased. Brulenzia rolled his eyes, but Laurana laughed.

Zarina made her way forward, handed over the babe she held in her arms, and grasped Laurana tight. "I am so glad that it was you," she said, tears in her eyes. She stepped back to let others through.

Though everyone from Oak Camp came forward to see the couple off, Jendoza's group was the last. She brought Danie, Ayla and Grov with her.

"I am so happy for you," she said, kissing her sister's cheek. Danie and Ayla hugged the newly mated woman as well, while Grov stood waiting. Laurana hugged him last.

"Thank you for the patience you are showing my brother," she whispered into his ear as she clung to the man with only her free arm. "I hope you will look after him on the hunt." As Grov held her he noticed that she smelled just like Ayla, and he smiled.

"Yes, Laurana, I will do that," he replied. Laurana smiled back at him, then allowed herself to be pulled with the crowd toward the isolation tent.

**xXx**

Okay, there were probably two unfamiliar words in this post...since I used Ukrainian words for the plants.

**Mirt** – myrtle  
><strong>Barvinok<strong> – periwinkle

**XxX**

**Post Matrimonial Activities**

Upon leaving their friends and family, Brulenzia and Laurana entered the isolation tent, and gathered in its large center with the other newly mated couples. Laurana couldn't believe the size of the tent; its center was significantly larger than Oak Tent.

It was here that it was explained to them that once they entered their private space, they would be required to stay there, and that the rope that bound them together must not be severed when they left isolation, or their mating would be considered dissolved. Though not common, some couples did decide during the isolation that it wouldn't work, and severed the knot.

Here, the couples were also told that there would always be a shogur in the tent, though sometimes it may only be a shogur-in-training, just in case anyone needed anything. Brulenzia and Laurana immediately thought about Tinozia, but knew he wasn't in training yet; he still had his Shomata to go through.

Next, Maple Camp's Shogur asked if they had any questions. There were a few, but none from Brulenzia or Laurana, who just wanted to get the isolation started, so they could start their life together.

Finally, when everyone seemed ready to explode, the Shogur began assigning their private spaces, and Brulenzia and Laurana were led to the space they would occupy for two days and three nights. Their space within the isolation tent was nearly as large as Brulenzia's hearth at Oak Camp; Laurana was amazed.

"I wish I had brought more of my things," Laurana said, as she laid Bruana down on the furs. She noticed that the furs on their sleeping place were the ones they always slept in, then looked around. Most of their stuff _had_ been brought to the isolation tent. She frowned, wondering who had brought everything in. Then she looked at her mate.

Brulenzia had a huge grin on his face. "What did you think I was doing all day?" he asked her. "I wasn't just hanging around. You had your _cleansing_ rituals to go through, and I needed to give you a place to go after the ceremony."

"You did this for _me_?" she asked with tears in her eyes.

"Honestly, Laurana," he said, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. "Don't you know our customs?" He grinned at her.

She smiled back, kissed him, and tried to put her arms around him, but couldn't because of the rope that bound them. "This is going to make doing anything difficult."

Brulenzia laughed. "I think that's the point," he said. "But, we aren't _really_ expected to wear this for the isolation."

Laurana opened her wide. "We're not?"

Brulenzia laughed again. "Aren't you aware of _any_ customs?" He continued to laugh.

She pouted. "Hey, it's not like I've been mated before," she said, trying to act hurt. It was too hard; her face melted into a smile.

"Well, I'm glad for that," he said, still grinning at her. "But weren't you even paying attention to the Shogur out there; she said it must not be _severed_, but we can take it off. That's why they tie it so loosely." He slowly began to twist his arm so that he could work his hand out of the rope, then pulled it off her arm, and tossed it onto their furs.

"I guess I wasn't really listening," she replied as she wrapped her arms around her mate's neck and pressed her lips onto his. He moaned softly as her tongue caressed his, and felt a tightening in his loins. Then, just as he was ready to rip off her dress, Bruana started to whimper, as if she sensed her mother might become too busy for her soon. Brulenzia groaned.

Laurana reluctantly pulled away from Brulenzia, and they both looked down at the baby. "I guess I should feed her first," the young mother said. "But I can't feed her in this." She indicated her matrimonial dress, and attempted to remove it.

Brulenzia watched her struggle for a moment, then went to her aid. "Here, let me help you," he said, gently lifting the wreath from her head and setting it next to Bruana. Then, taking hold of the hem of her dress, he slowly pulled it up and over her head, leaving her completely naked except for her shoes. He smiled at her, then picked up the wreath and put it back on her head. "There," he said. "That's perfect."

Laurana giggled, feeling silly in only a hat and shoes, but leaned down to pick up her daughter. Bruana was always a good baby, never crying loudly, and sleeping more than new ones usually did. They could already see growth in the two-week-old. Laurana sat down on their furs to nurse, while Brulenzia knelt beside them to watch. He was always amazed that she could produce the very thing that would keep her daughter alive.

As Bruana suckled, she looked up at both her mother and Brulenzia, curling her tiny fingers around the man's smallest finger. They both stared at her as she drifted off to sleep, slowly releasing her mother's nipple as she did so. Brulenzia pried his finger out of her hand, and Laurana stood up to put her daughter down.

"Put her here," Brulenzia said, pointing at another, much smaller sleeping place.

Laurana smiled. "You thought of everything, didn't you?"

"Well, don't misunderstand. I love her, but I didn't want to have to share _every_ moment with her." Laurana knew just what he meant, and put her daughter down, tucking her in securely.

"That was a good idea you had. I _also_ do not want to share everything with her," she said, then she smirked as she looked at her mate. "You know, I think it unfair that you are fully clothed while I am _nearly_ naked."

"Do you wish to unshoe me?" Brulenzia asked, playfully making fun of the Sungaean ritual that involved the woman removing the boots of her mate on the night of their matrimonial.

"I do," she answered, pushing him down onto their furs, and taking one of his feet into her hands. Slowly, so that she could draw out the moment, she pulled on the tie that secured his boot to his foot. After she had worked the knot, she slipped her hand to his heal and pulled his boot off. Laurana looked up at her mate, and realized she had delivered the desired effect by taking her time. She moved to remove his other boot, but it was getting very difficult to follow the custom.

Brulenzia groaned, as she attempted to remove his second boot, but couldn't stand it any longer, and reached to assist her. Once his boots were off he stood, and took her into his arms again, kissing her hard. Laurana kissed back fiercely, and gasped when he scooped her up and placed her in the middle of their furs.

**xXx**

Everyone outside stayed up late into the night, feasting and dancing and singing. The matrimonial platform had become the perfect place for such a display, and nearly everyone took their turn.

Jendoza had just returned with Donzolnia, Danie and Ivanolia and was trying to convince Ayla to try.

"Come on, Ayla. It's fun," Jendoza begged, looking to Danie for support. Danie nodded. She was new to Sungaean dances too, but sorely wanted to fit in, so was taking pains to learn all that she could.

"Here," Donzolnia said, taking the young woman's hand. "I'll help you." Ayla glanced at Grov, who shrugged, then allowed her cousin's mate to lead her to the dancers.

Ayla had been watching everyone dance and knew that this particular Sungaean dance was one where the dancers continually changed partners. Then, each time there was a change, the new couple had a few moments to dance with and talk to their new partner, before moving on. It looked simple enough, she thought as she approached the platform, but learning yet another Sungaean dance proved to be emotionally more difficult than Ayla had realized.

Ayla stood with Donzolnia, waiting for a chance to get in there. They had to wait for a couple to leave before they could step in, which gave Ayla time to get nervous again. Then, when Donzolnia took her hands and pulled her out into the center, Ayla took a deep breath and tried to relax. She had to listen carefully to his instructions, and thought she was getting it, but before she was ready, it was time to switch partners.

The next man, an older man from Pine Tent, took her hands firmly, and led her around. "Hallo, my name is Valencia."

Ayla smiled at him. He was perhaps close to Vincenzia in years. "Hallo," Ayla replied. "I am called Ayla. What camp are you from?"

He grinned at her. Everyone knew who _she_ was. "Pine Camp," he answered her. "And you are from Oak Camp."

"How did you know?"

Valencia laughed. "Everyone knows who _you_ are, Ayla," he replied. "_But_, I have a better explanation; our camps are related. Gredenzia is brother to our headwoman's mate, Zackodia.

Ayla nodded. "Oh yes, I met him on our way here. He brought Ivanolia and Braydalana up Big River, then helped us to cross it."

"Yes, that would be our Zackodia," the man said, then moved onto the next woman.

Ayla stepped forward, facing the next man, and took the hands that were extended out to her. She noticed that he was of average height and build, with serious, light hazel eyes. He didn't bother to introduce himself and seemed a little cold. Ayla felt awkward as he slipped his arm around her waist to lead her around, but tried to concentrate so that she didn't miss a step. The silence seemed to make the time pass slower, but eventually she moved to the next man.

As Ayla went from partner to partner, she began to get more comfortable with the dance, and smiled and talked more as she went. When it was time to change partners again, Ayla looked up at hairless face of Dimia, and stared into his blue eyes. Smiling, she placed her hand in his.

"Where is Seriana," she asked him, hoping the woman wasn't participating in the dancing.

"Don't worry, she is sitting with my mother," he reassured the healer. "Have you met Temina yet?"

Ayla shook her head. "There are so many that I have not met. Temina is your mother, right?"

"Yes, but she is very busy. We have four new women this year, and three couples that are to be mated." Ayla was just about to say something else, but realized it was time to move on.

She partnered up with two more men, then turned to face Jondaria.

"Hallo Ayla," the man said to her. Ayla grinned at him. "I was disappointed to see that you were not at the hunt meeting. I have heard so much about your skill with the sling, I hoped to have a chance to see you use it."

Ayla blushed. "I would like to have been there, but I am not going on the hunt this time. Besides, it's not likely I'd be using my sling to hunt the mighty bison."

"True, very true." He was nodding. "Well maybe you can show me some other time." Jondaria frowned, thinking about his sister. "I did see _Grov_ at the meeting." It was just a statement.

"Yes, he is going. He has only been on one hunt with the Others . . . I mean . . . with people that are not Clan," she corrected herself. "He is very interested in how they hunt." Jondaria smiled at her, then moved on. How _they_ hunt, he thought as he took up someone else's hands. Ayla does not consider herself one of her own people.

There were three more partners, and Ayla was really getting comfortable. That is, until she turned to face the next man. Ayla had been facing away from him, but turned when she felt someone grab her roughly. She immediately stiffened when she looked into the intoxicated eyes of Zadneetsia.

"Miss me?" the man sneered.

Ayla suddenly got nervous, and could not answer him. Then she stepped on the man's foot, but he didn't seem to notice. She wanted to get away, but wasn't sure if she could do that. She didn't know _what_ to do so she stayed and tried to concentrate.

"I _said_, did you miss me?" he repeated, just a little bit louder. He pulled her closer and breathed down into her face.

Ayla grimaced and shuddered. "Ah, n-no," she answered honestly, desperately trying to keep some distance between them.

The man stared at her for a moment. He hadn't expected her to say no, but it struck him as funny, so he laughed loudly and pulled her into him with force. Ayla was extremely uncomfortable and looked around for . . . someone, but everything seemed a little out of focus to her at the moment. The man was clutching her tighter than she would have liked, then suddenly let go and gave her a little shove. Startled for a moment, Ayla stared back, then turned to find herself facing Ivanolia.

Ivanolia had been watching the dancers, but when he saw Zadneetsia step onto the platform, he had grabbed his sister's hand, and pulled her up there with him. Jendoza seemed confused at first, but noticed Zadneetsia right away, and suddenly began to worry about Ayla.

When they saw Zadneetsia finally reach Ayla, they watched him say something to her, and saw the color drain from her face. They had no idea what he had said, but when they saw the man manhandling their cousin, and her struggling to remain calm, they were glad Ivanolia would be her next partner. Then, when Zadneetsia gave her a push, Ivanolia caught her and glared at the man as he moved away from them.

"Oh," Ayla exclaimed. "Thank you." Ayla hadn't seen Ivanolia come back up onto the platform, but was grateful that he had, and smiled at him as he took her hands and steadied her.

"Are you okay?" Ivanolia asked her.

Ayla took a deep breath. "Yes, but thank you. I did not expect to see him. I was not ready for that."

Ivanolia changed the subject. "I've been meaning to thank you, Ayla," he said, then continued on quickly when he saw a look of confusion. "For talking to Danie."

Ayla smiled at him. "She just needs time, but it looks like everything will be fine."

Ivanolia frowned and glanced around, trying to find his mate. "I think so."

"Did Danie come up here with you?" Ayla asked, looking around for the woman. He shook his head, then moved on.

Ayla continued around the circle, but when she came to Donzolnia she told him she wanted to go get a drink. They stepped out of the line and Ayla waited while Donzolnia went to change places with Ivanolia; he didn't want to leave Jendoza out there without him.

It was not long before Ayla and Ivanolia had rejoined their mates at the tentfire. Someone handed them each a cup of something, and Ayla gulped it down. Grov and Danie stood next to them, but the man frowned at his mate as she downed the liquid she didn't normally like. He had not missed her _dance_ with Zadneetsia, or her discomfiture, but for the moment he didn't mention it; Ivanolia had handled it just fine.

**xXx**

They stayed outside with everyone for a while longer, then decided to end the night. Grov would be leaving with the hunters before dawn, so he wanted to get some sleep. Many of the people that would be going on the hunt had _already_ left.

Inside Oak Tent they settled down. Ayla nestled Durc down next to his already sleeping sisters, then went to change her clothes. Grov was lying down, waiting for her to come to him. His mind was still on Zadneetsia when Ayla crawled into the furs.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay with me gone?" he asked his mate. He didn't usually worry about her, but he could clearly see that man's hands on his mate in his mind's eye.

"What do you mean?" she asked. He had gone on many hunting trips without her. What made this one different?

For a moment he didn't answer. He didn't really know what to say. "Well . . . Zadneetsia will be here, won't he? He couldn't have gone to the hunt meeting, he was still being . . . held at the Council of Brothers."

Ayla frowned. She did not like the idea of running into Zadneetsia, but Grov couldn't just _not go_. "I suppose he'll have to remain here," she replied thoughtfully.

"Maybe I should stay as well," Grov stated firmly.

Ayla shook her head. "No, no, you should go. There will be plenty of people staying here with me, and besides, Sumac Tent is halfway across the meeting. What are the chances I'll run into _him_ again? Plus, Brulenzia will be back the day after tomorrow, and Tinozia will be here while Brulenzia is not. And that's not even mentioning everyone else that will be around. I will be fine."

Grov looked at her dubiously, thinking that she didn't look as confident as she was trying to sound, but decided she had a point. And, he _was_ looking forward to the hunt; it was a chance to expand his knowledge. He decided he'd have to talk to Tinozia before he left.

**xXx**

"_Grov_," came a whisper from outside the curtain. It was Ivanolia's voice. "It's time to get up."

Grov pushed aside the drape, and looked up at the man holding a small torch. "Already? It seems like I just fell asleep."

Ivanolia grinned. "The hunt leader just stopped by to wake us. He still has half the camp to organize, so we still have some time."

Grov scratched his stubbly face and got up. "Do you think I have time to shave this off?"

"Probably," the man answered, then headed toward the other end of the tent get a cup of tea. Grov shaved quickly, then went to talk to Tinoiza.

**xXx**

"Ayla's good at taking care of herself, but I'm still worried," Grov whispered.

Tinozia nodded. "I understand. I'll tell Brulenzia. I'm sure he'll gladly keep her safe." Grov smiled, then went to say bye to this mate.

**xXx**

"Ayla, I talked to Tinozia . . ." he began, but stopped when he saw her smile.

She had Annaliza to her breast. "I will be _fine_, my mate," she said. "Now _go_, and have a good time. Bring me back something furry." She giggled. "And be safe."

Grov leaned to kiss her, then ruffed Annaliza's blonde hair, and disappeared from sight.

**XxX**

**Chance Meeting at Big River**

The hunters of the first summer hunt gathered in the great arena to quickly go over a few things, but pushed out before the sun rose over the eastern horizon. Their plan was to cross Big River, then head in a generally southwest direction into the hills on the southwestern plain. This was the direction Maple Camp preferred to travel when going on a hunt, knowing that they wouldn't be in any of the usual hunting grounds of the Mamutoi. Generally, they were able to coexist with their more outspoken relatives, but sometimes there could be trouble, and they wanted to avoid that if all possible.

The large group of people headed east through their encampment until they reached Klyen River, the river that Maple Camp recognized as their boundary, then turned south, toward Big River.

It didn't take much time to get to Big River, and the large group was across it in no time. Maple Camp's boats were of much use. At this point they decided to stop for their morning meal, which was only to be some small traveling cakes that each camp had prepared for themselves.

As they sat eating, the sun came into view, making Big River's water shimmer brightly. Many remarked on the beauty of the river that began at the glacier far to the north, carving its way through Mamutoi territory, then Sungaea lands to empty into Beran Sea. It was largest river in their area.

Just as they were about to continue on, someone saw movement on the other side of the river.

"Heyooo!" a voice called over the rushing water.

The hunters turned to look, noticing immediately that these people were _not_ people they recognized. For a moment, nerves were on edge.

Grov was watching the hunter's reaction to the strangers, but could tell by the way they moved that he knew these people.

"Darvie, that is Talut," Grov said to the woman.

She squinted into the rising sun, and nodded. "I think you are right, but how can you see them."

"I can't really," he replied. "It is the way they move that I recognize, _and_ his voice."

Darvie smiled. "Yes, that voice is distinctive."

Darvie and Vincenzia went to the hunt leader, to explain that these strangers were actually relatives of hers. The hunt leader, knowing that Lion Camp lived nearby, relaxed. Darvie then asked if they could help Lion Camp cross Big River, telling him that they were on their way to their own summer meeting, which was northwest of where they were at the moment. The hunt leader reluctantly gave his permission, though none of the Sungaean people seemed willing to assist; it was up to those from Oak Camp to do the work.

Some of the hunters seemed interested as they watched the six men of Oak Camp backtrack, cross Big River, load several people into their boats, then recross. They had to do this four times to get all of Lion Camp to the southern side of the river.

"Well thank you," Talut boomed, taking Vincenzia into his huge arms. "That saved us a lot of time."

"Yes, thank you very much," Tulie said, agreeing with her brother. "A hunting party?" she asked, nodding at the large group of people.

Vincenzia nodded. "Yes, first summer hunt."

"But where is Ayla?" a man asked, hobbling up on crutches, and throwing an arm around Grov. "No hunting party is complete without _her_.

"Darneg, you are not supposed to be up," Tulie commented exasperatedly.

Barzec frowned. They had purposefully waited several days after Oak Camp left to begin their trek to their own summer meeting, hoping to give Darnev just a bit more time to rest and recuperate, but the man couldn't be kept down.

Vincenzia smiled. "Ayla chose not to come on the hunt this time, but I'm sure she'll be disappointed that she didn't get to see you again. When I see her, I will try to leave out that you were up walking around. I'm sure that will worry her."

"I told you you should still be lying down," Barzec stated dryly. "Ayla would not have insisted on it otherwise." Darnev only smiled.

Grov spoke with Mamut for a moment, who was wondering about Ayla's vision. Grov told him that she'd told him all about it, and that they'd already seen the first part of his vision, a full moon, but were still waiting on the rest. The old man nodded, but didn't give further information.

They only talked a short time before deciding to part. The hunters were getting anxious, partly because they did not understand most of what was being said, but also because they noticed another child of mixed spirits, holding the hand of a large motherly woman. The child had stayed out of sight, until Grov had gone over to him.

Grov knelt down. "How are you feeling?" the clan man asked the boy.

Rydag smiled, then gestured, "I am better."

"I will tell Ayla when I see her. She will be happy that you are well." Grov ruffed the boy's hair, then said his goodbyes.

Darvie was a little irritated at the coldness shown to her people, but it was nothing out of the ordinary. She knew all too well that the nerves between the Mamutoi and Sungaea ran high, probably due, in part, to the occasional raiding that young men seemed disposed to.

**xXx**

As they continued on, Oak Camp fell back into step with the hunters. Grov walked with Donzolnia and Ivanolia, and a few other younger men, but frowned when he saw Janika approaching them.

Ivanolia saw her coming and smirked at his friend. "She's not going to give up," he said quietly. "You should just give her a turn, and be done with it. That's all they really want, you know; to see what a new man is like." Grov just stared at man. "Besides, it's not like you and Ayla don't share pleasures with others."

Grov frowned. "Ayla and I do not share pleasures with others," he denied.

"Oh _come on_, I saw you with Oga, and Durc is _not_ the son of your spirit.

"Durc was born before I joined Brun's clan, and well . . . Oga is different. And I don't use her anymore. Broud does not like it," he confided. "But that is not the problem here. It might be different if she was . . . different. I don't think that she is just curious." He paused, noticing that Janika was getting closer. "And she's too . . . forward."

Ivanolia laughed. "So you _do_ like those submissive clan women kneeling at your feet and getting your food."

Grov blushed and shook his head. "No, that's not it either . . . I . . . ." He couldn't continue because the young woman had finally reached them. Grov noticed she didn't have that angry look in her eyes, but she still worried him.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

Ayla's morning was so busy that she hardly had time to notice Grov's absence. After the hunters left, and she had finished nursing her youngest, she got up, deciding to make a morning meal for those left behind.

"Mamma, I'm hungry," Ora said when Ayla went to check on her. The three-year-old was standing, completely naked, in the center of her sleeping platform, and holding her arms out to her mother.

Ayla laughed. "Well, we better get you dressed first, daughter," she gestured, trying to keep her daughter's shrill voice down.

Ora caught on immediately. "But it's too hot to wear those," she signed back, pointing at a crumpled pile of her clothes. "I want to wear my wrap."

"Too hot," Annaliza repeated, nodding her head.

Ayla frowned. It _was_ getting rather warm during the day. She had been thinking the same thing, but their clan wraps were not an option here, and she didn't want Ora running around naked.

"You can't wear your wrap here, Ora. No one dresses in wraps. You would look silly," Ayla whispered, poking her daughter in the tummy. "Besides, we did not bring one." The child pouted. "But I'll think of something, okay?" Ora looked sad, but nodded. Ayla picked up her tunic and slipped it over the child's head, then did the same to Annaliza.

"I'm hungry," Ora said again.

"Okay, I'll make you something." Ayla looked to around. "Where is Durc?"

"Brenevia came and got him," Ora answered. Ayla smiled, glad her son had a found a playmate. He had been so worried about missing Grev.

**xXx**

Outside, Ayla made a meal, which she served to the members of Oak Tent as they rose one by one. Travie was the first to appear, with Brenevia and Durc in tow.

"Ayla," she said. "I'm taking Crisana and Braydalana out to trade some of the their Mamutoi style bracelets. Do you want me to take Brenevia and Durc with me, or shall I leave them?"

Ayla was still worried about Durc, but most people were keeping their comments to themselves, so she shrugged. "It's up to them, I suppose." Travie ended up taking them. She didn't know many people at the summer meeting, and it seemed to make her feel better to have the children to care for, and the boys liked getting out and seeing things.

Jendoza and Danie came out next, Jendoza carrying Teglodia, and sat down to eat. "Ummm, Ayla, this is so good," Danie said, taking another big bite. "I think this ptarmigan is my favorite thing you make."

Ayla smiled. "My mother used to make this when I was young. It was the favorite meal of the man of my hearth. She held out a small piece to Annaliza, who shoved it into her mouth.

Jendoza stopped eating. Ayla had a sadness in her voice that caught Jendoza's attention. "You must miss them . . . your clan mother and her brother . . . don't you?"

Ayla sighed. "Yes, I do, very much. I do not remember much about Annalisa. I know that she is my _real_ mother, but that is all. And Vincenzia . . . well, he's great. I love him, but he did not raise me. Creb was the man of my hearth; I will always miss him.

The three women finished eating in silence. Jendoza wondered what it would be like to have so few memories of early childhood, and none of her mother. It would make _her_ sad too, she thought. She suddenly wished Serana was there.

Danie was thinking about her choice to leave the Mamutoi and join the Sungaea, all for a man she hardly even knew. It had been a big change, leaving friends she'd had her whole life, to come live with a whole different people. It had been very hard, especially since she'd had so much trouble with Ivanolia. She did love him, for all that he could get under her skin, but sometimes she missed what she had grown up with. She was glad she had her mother and her sister. They, at least, would always be there. Then she smiled to herself. And I _have_ made many new friends.

Suddenly, Zarina and Wäglodia arrived with a gaggle of children, ages ranging from seven to thirteen, most of which dispersed as soon as they got outside. With both their mates gone, they quickly fell into their old habit of spending time together. There was a real closeness between the headman and headwoman's mates.

"Mother," Zarina's daughter said. "Torina and I would like to go see Frala and Fräubita today. Is that okay?"

Zarina smiled at the two girls. They were both very close to having to spend time in Womanhood Camp themselves. It could be another year or a couple years yet, she thought, but they were definitely interested in the process that brought them to womanhood. Zarina looked at Wäglodia. "I think that's okay, don't you?" she asked him, touching his hand lovingly.

"Yes," he agreed with a nod. "But don't stay there all day. You two will have your chance only too soon." The two girls smiled and walked off. The man watched them go. They were nearly identical in appearance even though Morina was Zarina's daughter and Torina was Tiflona's daughter. He was quite certain that his spirit had been used to create both girls. Everyone thought so and remarked on it often.

**xXx**

Tinozia and Fürlasa showed up just as the food had been put away, but Ayla pulled it back out.

"Good afternoon," Wäglodia said to the first son of his hearth, grinning widely at the sleepy-headed couple.

Tinozia looked up at the sun. "It's not that late already, is it?" he asked, thinking that he didn't have many more days before his Shomata, and that he had a lot to do.

Wäglodia laughed. "Losing track of the day?"

Tinozia gave his mother's mate a dirty look, but everyone knew it was just in fun. Tinozia looked to Ayla. "Ayla, what did you want to do today?" he asked. He had promised Grov to keep an eye on her, and he took that promise seriously.

"Well, I wanted to go visit the flint worker's area. I haven't had a chance to see more of the work they do."

"Okay, why don't we go over there after we eat," he suggested. "I need to make a new knife anyway." Ayla nodded. Tinozia turned to Fürlasa. "Do you want to come with us?"

The young woman shook her head. She wasn't at all interested in flintknapping. "No, but I'll be here when you get back." She smiled at him.

**xXx**

So Ayla spent her afternoon outside at the flintworker's area with Tinozia. The man told her that he needed a new knife for his Shomata, so after the man picked out the nodule of flint that suited his purpose, Ayla sat down to watch him work. He tried to explain to her that he really didn't make the best stuff. That he usually traded for blades, but the Shogurs said he had to make this one himself, and that she ought to watch someone else, but she shook her head, insisting that she wanted to see _him_ work. When he was finished, she was extremely impressed. In her opinion, he had made a fine blade.

Next, he needed to haft it. Ayla knew what that meant, but only because she'd seen some of Oak Camp's knives, and had seen the work the Mamutoi did. "I am much better at this part," he told her. "But I cheated. I have an old one that I made during the winter." He pulled it out and went to get what he'd need to complete his task.

Ayla hadn't understood what _cheated_ meant, but she smiled as she watched him attach his new blade to its handle.

"There." He held it up. "I guess it's serviceable," he said, examining his work.

"It's more than _serviceable_. That is beautiful," she exclaimed, taking it from him. "I will have to show you what a _Clan_ knife looks like sometime."

"Do you have one with you?" he asked her.

"Yes. Brun gave one to me when he allowed me to hunt again," she began rummaging through a pouch that was tied to her belt. "Here it is." She handed it to the man. He turned it over in his hand. It was only made on a flake, and it didn't even have a handle. Tinozia handed it back to her.

"Now you can see why I like _your_ knife so much," she said with a smile. "I'd like to learn how to make them the way you do, but I haven't had time."

Tinozia grinned. "How about right now. We have time."

Ayla took a deep breath, and looked around. "No, I think it's getting late. I didn't realize so much time had passed. He nodded, wanting to get back to Fürlasa.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

The hunting party stopped for the night and set up camp against a rocky outcrop in a wind-protected valley. The mood was jubilant as they ate their meal, which consisted of more traveling cakes, and tea. Someone had brought out a skin of bouza, and was passing it around.

Grov was sitting at a fire with the younger men, drinking his tea and staring into the flames, when Janika plopped down beside him again. "Here, drink this," she said, thrusting a cup of bouza at him.

Grov caught Ivanolia's laughing eye from across the fire and thought about what the man had said that day, _just give her a turn, and be done with it_. Would she leave him alone if he did? he wondered. Somehow he thought it would be worse.

"No, I'm drinking tea," he said trying to give it back to her.

"Oh, come on. Everyone else is having fun," she whined, setting the cup in his hands again. "Just a sip."

He frowned, wishing he had stayed at the summer meeting with Ayla. "Janika, I don't want the bouza!" She pouted. He could tell she was trying to be cute, but he just wasn't interested. "Okay, just a sip." She smiled as he took one and slipped her hand onto his knee. He stiffened, and looked around for his friends. He could see Ivanolia laughing with some people, but the man wasn't looking at him.

"Isn't it good?" she asked, pushing the cup back up to his mouth. "My mother's mate makes it. Have some more."

"You know, Janika, I think I'm just going to go to sleep."

She brightened. "Well, maybe I could come with you, you know . . . since Ayla's not here." She was trying so hard, but that was definitely the _wrong_ thing to say; it made him stand up abruptly.

"NO! I'm going alone," he stated firmly. He downed the bouza she had brought to him, then stalked off.

Janika watched him go, then she picked up his cup of tea and took a sip. "Arghh!" She quickly spat it back out, and dumped the rest of the cup's contents into the dirt at her feet, then stood up to return to her friends, taking his cup with her.

Ivanolia had seen Grov walk way. He didn't have to be a clan man to know the other man was irritated. Ivanolia kept his eyes on Janika. She had a strange smile on her face. She didn't looked very angry, he thought. Just more resolved. Suddenly, Ivanolia was quite worried about his friend.

**XxX**

**Ayla and Durc Spend Some Time Together**

Just after sunrise the next day, Grov woke up with a sourness in his mouth, and licked his dry lips, thinking about the last drink he had had the night before, and who had given it to him. He knew that it was more than just the remnants of Janika's bouza that was causing the awful taste. It was the woman's forcefulness. He didn't even want to get up, because that meant leaving his tent and the security of privacy he had there.

At least I have my own tent, he thought. He had brought his and Ayla's traveling tent, which was really much too large for just him, but most people had done the same. Vincenzia and Darvie shared a tent to Grov's right. Ivanolia and Donzolnia had each brought a small personal tent, which had been set up to right of Vincenzia and Darvie. And the _remaining_ Oak Camp members were interspersed among the other hunters.

The man sighed. He knew he had to get up; he could hear the movement of people packing things up. It was time to move on. Sitting up, he grabbed his tunic, and crawled out of the tent.

To the left of Grov's tent, Jondaria had just finished taking down his own tent. "Morning," he said to the mixed man. Grov nodded his good morning, glad that the man's sister was nowhere to be seen, then went to relieve himself.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

It had been about mid-morning when Braydalana, Crisana and Serlona had scratched on Ayla's closed curtain. Ayla hadn't been up late the night before, so she woke easily, and was surprised that she had slept as long as she had.

Pulling back the hide, she looked up into the smiling faces of the three girls. "Fraylora is taking us over to the musician's tent this morning," Braydalana informed her. "And we were wondering if we could take Ora and Annaliza with us."

Ayla frowned for a moment. She was sure her daughters would _want_ to go, but how long would it be before the one and three-year-old impinged on the girls' fun. "I guess so, if you promise to bring them back when they become too much."

"Okay," Crisana agreed quickly. "We're not going to be there all day, so they should be fine.

Ayla smiled at them, then got up to dress her daughters. Ora and Annaliza were indeed excited, and both promised to obey properly. Ayla smiled as she watched the three older girls carry them outside to join Fraylora, wondering how long that would last. This is sure a busy meeting, she thought to herself, as she went back to her sleeping place to get dressed.

However, once she got there she decided that she didn't want to go out yet. I don't have anywhere to be this morning, so I guess there's no need to get up, she thought as she glanced at Durc's sleeping place. He wasn't there either. She frowned for a moment, thinking that she'd hardly seen her son the whole time they'd been there, but shrugged, glad that he was at least off having fun. Sighing, she lay back down and closed her eyes.

It was not long before she started drifting back to sleep, but voices in the passageway woke her. It was Danie telling Jendoza that she missed Ivanolia already. Ayla smiled, her thoughts turned to Grov and the hunt. She wished she could have gone on the hunt. It's not like I'm doing anything _here_, she thought crossly. She wondered where he was at that moment and what he was doing, and smiled at the thought of how well he was fitting in. He didn't even seem that nervous anymore.

Ayla continued to lie there for quite some time, thinking about her life and everything that had changed it. When her mind moved on to the future and what she was to find there, she thought about the visions she had had. That caused her to frown; she hadn't had one in a while, about ten days. But then, she told herself, I haven't had the _time_ to think about them.

But I'm not busy now, she almost said aloud, and turned her thoughts to the three horses she would have one day very soon; horses she was destined to ride. She wanted to see them again, and lay there concentrating, going over every bit she could remember, but nothing happened. After some time, she became frustrated and decided to get up.

**xXx**

Once Ayla got outside she didn't really know what to do with herself. She finally decided to do a little hunting, and went back in to get her sling. That would certainly give her something to do. But where do I go, she wondered, as she walked back in. She didn't know the area at all, except for maybe the place she and Grov had gone with Ivanolia. I could go there . . . _no_, I don't want to go that far. Then she remembered the small grove of trees that Danie had come out of. Just north of that might be good, she thought. That wouldn't be _too_ far.

She stood inside Oak Tent for a few moments, holding her sling in her hand, feeling indecisive, until something else struck her. Her mind went back to the grove of trees. The positioning of them hinted at running water, which caused Ayla to remember the river they had followed to get to the summer meeting. For a moment she struggled to recall, but was finally able to reach into her vast memory and come out with the answer; it is the Klyen River, she thought happily. "I think I'll go swimming instead," she said out loud, picking up a small rucksack and stuffing a few things, including her sling, into it. Maybe she'd hunt too.

Back outside at the fire, Ayla sat down and drank a cup of tea. She wanted to take Durc with her, so she'd have to wait. It wasn't long before Gredenzia appeared. He needed to speak to Tinozia, who was busy at the moment, but he told her that Travie had the boys with her and that she'd be back shortly. Ayla sat with the man for the moment, finally asking why he had not gone on the hunt. She would have never asked that in the Clan, but here, it was okay.

"I don't do much hunting these days. There are always matters of the camp to deal with, especially at summer meetings," he said. "And now that Tinozia is likely to start training, I'll be even more busy for a while. At least until he leaves, then things should return to their _normal busy_." He laughed. "I guess I'll start hunting again when Tinozia becomes Shogur."

Ayla's mind went to the day Goov had taken Creb's place as mog-ur, and wondered if Gredenzia's work ended when he stepped down. "When Tinozia becomes shogur, what do _you_ do?"

"Oh, my work won't be done. I don't think I could give it up completely; it is part of who I am. I will still work with him, but he will take on most of the responsibility for Oak Camp, and I will be able to do other things, like hunting."

Ayla was nodding, Goov may have turned to Creb for help too, if the Mog-ur had lived. Suddenly, she missed her clan very much.

Gredenzia studied the woman. She seemed to be thinking about something else and she looked very sad. The man wondered if she was missing her mate. When finally she looked back at him, he continued. "You should have gone on the hunt, Ayla. There are plenty of people here to take care of your children."

"Yes, I would have liked to go, but there will be other hunts, right?"

The man nodded. "Of course, it's just that the first hunt is the biggest one. It's always . . ." Gredenzia started to say, but stopped. "Well, here comes Travie and the boys."

Travie approached the fire quickly. "Zarina has asked me to come to Womanhood Camp. Something to do with Frala, or maybe it was Fräubita?" She shook her head. "I can't remember."

"Is everything okay?" Gredenzia asked nervously, thinking about the daughter of his hearth.

"Oh yes, everything is fine," the older woman responded. "I think they just want a watcher, but I can't take the boys there."

"Well, you can leave Brenevia here. But I think Ayla wanted to take Durc somewhere." Ayla nodded. Travie shrugged and left.

Ayla watched her go, then turned to Durc with a smile. "What would you say to a little swimming and hunting?" she asked him.

He returned her smile. "Can I bring my spear?" She nodded, and almost laughed as he rushed toward Oak Tent. She thought about picking it up for him when she was inside, but decided the boy would like to get it himself. She couldn't help but smile as he raced inside, then returned with it in his hand. "Ready," he exclaimed.

Ayla looked at Gredenzia. "Will you let Tinozia know where we've gone? Grov wanted him to _protect_ me."

Gredenzia smiled. "Of course I will, but where _are_ you going?"

"Just north of the summer meeting there is a small patch of growth . . . I thought the hunting might be good there, and maybe the swimming too."

Gredenzia nodded. "I know the place. I will tell him."

**xXx**

Ayla and Durc left Oak Tent, and went north. They traveled through the summer meeting, only stopping a couple times to talk to people. At the northern end of camp they headed toward to stand of trees that was their destination.

"What should we do first?" Ayla asked, smiling down at her son and feeling like she hadn't been alone with in him a very long time. Then she switched to using Clan signs. "Hunt or Swim?"

Durc had a serious look in his eyes. "This boy thinks we should hunt first. Then wash in the river, so we will be clean."

Ayla smiled at him. "That is a good idea," she signed. "This woman is glad that her son is so logical." She only spoke the last word, because the clan had no sign for that meaning.

"Mama," he started. "I still need to think of something to bring back for Grev. What do you think he would like?"

"Hummmm," she thought. They had just skirted the trees that grew next to the river, and had come to an open area, one that would be good for hunting. "I could make him a tunic in the style of the Others."

Durc seemed to contemplate his mother's idea, then shook his head. "But that would be something from _you_. I want to bring him something from _me_."

Ayla nodded and frowned, then thought of something else. "What if you hunt something and I use what you kill to make him an outfit?"

Durc nodded. "I like that idea," he gestured. "But do you think he'd like an Other's outfit?"

"These clothes are much more restrictive," Ayla said, pulling on her own tunic. "But you did tell him you'd bring him something Others." Ayla paused. "Maybe I could make it shorter. That would make it easier to wear." Then a thought came to her.

"What are you thinking, Mama?" he asked.

Ayla smiled at him. He was very astute. "Yesterday your sisters were complaining about their clothing being too hot, and I told them I think of something else for them to wear. Maybe they'd be happy with short leggings and a shorter tunic." Ayla suddenly thought of Laurana's thin strapped matrimonial dress. Could she do that with a tunic? she thought.

**xXx**

Durc and Ayla spent a considerable amount of time hunting. She did her best to direct him, but let him make his kills. She was impressed with her son's use of his sling. He appeared to have her same ability. She couldn't wait to tell Grov that the boy had brought down, if not killed, two large rabbits all on his own. She let him finish them off with his spear. She didn't think two rabbits would be enough to make Grev a whole outfit, but she'd fix that later, when her son was not there.

"Are you ready for a swim now?" she asked him, now that he'd satisfied himself with hunting.

"Yes, but I am hungry."

"I can spit the rabbit while you swim," she suggested. He nodded.

Ayla led him through the trees, and dropped her pack to start a fire. Durc took off his leggings and tunic and headed for the water. Ayla smiled as she watched her son. He splashed around in the shallow pools while she skinned his kills, and worked to get them cooking. Then, when they were roasting, she stripped down and entered the river to join her son.

**xXx**

Another set of eyes watched the woman and her son. They had followed the two from the meeting, and were hiding in the brush while the woman hunted with the boy, and had finally come to watch them swim. It was Zadneetsia.

He had seen her pass the flintworkers area, and noticed when she had stopped to talk to someone outside Womanhood Camp. Initially he had been disgusted that she had been allowed to remain at the summer meeting, especially after the incarceration she had caused for him. Everyone knew about her vile background, and no one was openly objecting to her presence. _That_ got him curious. Maybe she could be as fun as those flathead females were, he thought as he left the flintknappers.

Zadneetsia was behind a particularly bushy shrub when Ayla pulled her tunic over her head and dropped her leggings to enter the river. He stared at her. She _was_ a perfect specimen, he thought as he looked at her supple breasts, firm stomach and muscled legs. Too bad she has been ruined by those flatheads.

He watched her splash water at her son, and laugh. The boy splashed back, and dove under water. He watched them play for a while. It was obvious that they were communicating somehow, though no words left their lips. He could not see the signs that passed between them. Finally, the woman left the water, dried off and called her son to come eat.

"So what do you think?" she asked the boy with signs.

"Is good, Mama," he said out loud. "I always like what you make." Ayla smiled, then frowned, seeing the brush move behind her son. Her eyes grew wide when she saw Zadneetsia step out.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" he said. "A mother and son outing?" His eyes raked her naked body, making her feel awkward in her most natural state. No one had ever made her feel like that before, not even Broud.

Ayla stared at the man, but didn't reply. What could she say to him? She knew he didn't like her and that he only wanted trouble.

"Did you miss me?" he asked, repeating his question from the night of the matrimonial ceremony.

Ayla frowned. "What do you want?"

"Hummmm, that's a good question? One better answered without words."

Ayla blanched, her mind went immediately back to Broud. She looked around for her rucksack; she had dropped it over by a boulder that was closer to the man than herself. He followed her eyes and crossed the distance to it before she could even react. He picked it up and pulled out her sling.

"I saw you two using these." He held it up between two fingers and stared at it. "Quite efficient," he said disdainfully. He threw it over his shoulder and took a few more steps toward the naked woman, then pulled something else out of her pack. "And this," he said, holding up the knife Brun had given her. He looked at it strangely. "What in the Mother's name is _this_?" He dropped it on the ground and stepped over it, then threw her pack behind him.

Durc looked from the man to his mother, but didn't know what was going on. He knew his mother was upset; his clan upbringing had given him at least _that_ much. "Mama?" he questioned.

Ayla knew full well what this man wanted, and wasn't going to object. She didn't like it, but remembered all too well what she'd gotten when she'd refused Broud. She knew it would be easier this way. _That_ was part of _her_ upbringing.

"Durc," she said, never taking her eyes off Zadneetsia. "Get dressed and go back to the summer meeting." Then she added with silent gestures. "Go get Tinozia." Durc narrowed his eyes at his mother, and glanced at the large, scary man.

"Yeah _Durc_," Zadneetsia sneered. "Go back to the meeting." He didn't even look at the boy.

Durc seemed about to object. As a five year old mixed boy, he was nearer to adulthood than one of the Others might think, but even _he_ knew that he was nowhere near large enough to assist his mother with this problem.

Ayla saw her son's look and shook her head imperceptibly. "Go," she commanded. Durc slowly pulled on his leggings, then picked up his tiny spear and backed out of the grove, reluctantly leaving his mother all alone.

**XxX**

**Not the Kind of Alone Time Ayla Expected**

Zadneesia watched the boy leave, then turned back to Ayla. "I thought he'd _never_ leave. So tell me . . . what's it like to live with those flatheads?" Ayla just stood there not knowing what to say. He was tentatively taking steps toward her. "Oh come on, tell me . . . how can a woman like you stand to have them _touch you_?" he grimaced. Ayla looked at her sling; it was on the ground behind the man. There was no way to get it, or her knife for that matter.

"W-what do you want, Zadneetsia?" she asked again, backing up a bit.

He smirked. "Well, I _figure_ that you owe me, since it was your fault that I had to spend three nights in the tent of the Council of Brothers."

Ayla frowned. "I do not understand how that was my fault. I was just worried about that child."

"That _child_ was none of your concern," he spat back. "You should learn to mind your own."

Ayla looked around, hoping to stall the man. "Is she okay?" Ayla asked.

The man shrugged. "She's back home, where she belongs."

Ayla tried again. "What was her name again?" Ayla pushed. "Danara?"

This time he nodded. "Why do you care?" he demanded.

"I am a medicine woman. When I see that someone is hurt, I react. It is my calling."

The man sneered at her. "That means healer, right?" It was her turn to nod. "You are no _healer_! You are no better than those _flathead_ animals that you live with," he said loudly, crossing the distance to the woman quickly and grabbing her upper arms.

Ayla stared up at him. She had not realized he was so big. "Ouch, that's hurts," she exclaimed, trying to back away, but he held tight. He did not even seem to hear her. She changed tactics. "If you hate the Clan, then why do you force their women?"

Zadneetsia laughed derisively. "Because I can." He ran one of his hands down her arm, while never letting go with the other. "Okay, I've answered your questions, how about answering some of mine . . . what's it like living with those flatheads?"

Ayla's brow furrowed. "Clan," she corrected firmly. "They call themselves Clan. And it is no different than living with the Sungaea." That was the woman's first lie, though she didn't know it. The Clan was much different, but she did not mean it the way it was taken.

"Not _different_," he practically yelled. "They are animals. They are filthy, dirty animals! How can you allow them to touch you? I have seen you with that abominable mate of yours. It is disgusting! You should have been thrown out of here as soon as you got here. What _you_ need, is a man like me." He pushed her backwards, causing her to stumble on a vine and fall to the ground.

Ayla stared up at him. He had a crazed look in his eyes that frightened her. "I still do not know what you want," she replied from the ground. That was her second lie. She knew exactly what the man was planning, but she still needed to stall. Maybe Durc would get to Tinozia quickly.

"Well, let me show you," he said, as he started pulling down his own leggings. Ayla stared at his swollen manhood. She could not see any way around giving him what he wanted, and swallowed hard.

The man was coming closer. He straddled her, grabbed her wrists, held them down on the ground on either side of her head, and stared down at her nakedness. He watched her closely, and saw defiance in her eyes, but she hadn't moved; she wasn't _physically_ resisting him.

"You're not even going to struggle, are you?" he asked, seemingly disappointed. "You're just like those flatheads; they _never_ struggle . . . sort of takes the fun out of it." He paused, as if deep in thought, then looked back at her. "Oh well," he said nonchalantly, letting go of her wrists and leaning down to nuzzle her neck.

Ayla moved her hands to the man's chest, but still did not resist. Now she could smell him, and when his lips touched her neck she shuddered. He pulled back to look at her. He could see her disgust as he hovered over her, then he used his knee to force her legs apart. "Oh come on, I bet you let that abomination touch you all the time," he said as he breathed into her face and forcibly pushed his manhood toward her opening. "Gave you that miniature abomination that you love so much, didn't he?"

Ayla had been lying there, hands on his chest, silently accepting what this man was going to do, but when he mentioned her son, something snapped and she tightened the muscles of her thighs, pulling her knee up into his groin.

Zadneetsia groaned loudly and rolled over, clutching his suddenly no longer swollen member. He looked as if he might vomit.

"That is my _SON_ you are talking about," she yelled angrily. "And Grov, he is my mate. I _love_ them. They are _not_ abominations! _YOU_ are the abomination. What gives you the right to go around forcing women?"

Zadneetsia coughed hard, and looked up at her. She was now hovering over _him_. "All right," he said. "So maybe I'm wrong. Maybe you should show me where I went wrong," he said, then suddenly grabbed for her. She took a step away from him, but not before his hand had wrapped around her ankle, causing her to fall backward again. She was on the ground again, but recovered quickly, and struck out with her free foot, catching him in the face. This time she was able to crawl away, putting more distance between them.

She did not know why she was fighting this man. Iza and Creb would be mortified at her behavior, she thought, and it would have been far easier to just give him what he wanted, but she could not do it. It was just like when Broud had forced her; she could not help but fight him. Only this time, she was a full-grown woman. She did not know that it was adrenaline that kept her going.

Ayla backed away from the downed man. He was still lying on the ground holding himself, but now blood was trickling out of his mouth and flowing freely out of his nose. She had gotten him good.

She watched him for a moment, then worried that he'd regain his strength and come after her again. Slowly, she circled around him to her discarded knife and picked it up, but never took her eyes off the man. Carefully, she put her knife between her teeth as she pulled on her leggings, slipped her tunic over her head, and pulled on her shoes. Then she went to her rucksack, and pulled out her medicine bag.

"Here," she said, tossing the man a small leather pad that could be used to soak up the blood that poured from his nose. She then picked up her sling, slipped it around her head, and finally retrieved Durc's rabbit skins, before quickly exiting the small clearing.

**xXx**

Tinozia had been gone helping Brulenzia and Laurana bring their belongings back to Oak Tent when Ayla and her son had left, so he wasn't even aware of her absence. When they finally get everything put away and he noticed the younger woman was gone, he quickly went out looking for her.

"She said that she was taking Durc hunting, and that maybe they'd swim," Gredenzia informed his acolyte. "She wanted me to let you know that they headed toward that group of trees by the river."

Tinozia frowned. "How long ago did they leave?" he asked, nervously. "I told Grov that I'd watch out for her."

Gredenzia looked up at the sun. "The sun was about there."

Tinozia looked at the sky. "That's a long time," he said.

"What's a long time?" Brulenzia asked, coming out of Oak Tent with his new mate.

"Ayla's been gone since nearly the time I came to help you."

Brulenzia looked alarmed. Tinozia had told him about what Zadneetsia had done to Ayla after he and Laurana had left the matrimonial, and about his promise to Grov before the man had gone on the hunt. Both men agreed that it wasn't like Ayla to disappear for so long, and decided to go search for her.

**xXx**

Durc had run back to the summer meeting as quickly as his little legs could take him. He carried only his tiny Clan spear in his hand, but there was a heavy weight on his shoulders. He was very frightened, and would have cried, if he could, but _his_ eyes were all clan; he had no tears to shed.

Finally, just passed the flintworker's area, he heard someone calling his name.

"Durc!" It was Brulenzia. He and Tinozia had searched several places, and had just talked about heading to the river. "Where is your mother?" Tinozia was with him, the boy was glad to see.

Durc pointed, but had to take a breath before speaking. "At the river. She asked me to come get you," he said, looking at Tinozia. "There is a man there with her." Brulenzia and Tinozia stared at each other. "I think she is scared."

"Can you get yourself back to Oak Tent?" Brulenzia asked Ayla's young son, who nodded emphatically. Both men rushed off.

**xXx**

While still in the trees, Ayla moved slowly, holding her knife in her hand and continually looking back over her shoulder, but after breaking through the trees, she ran hard, tears blinding her vision. And it didn't help that the sun was getting low in the sky either.

She knew she was heading the right way, but only because she could hear the dull roar of so many human voices to the south. She kept looking back over her shoulder, and finally stopped to catch her breath. Zadneetsia had not followed her. She put her hands on her knees and bend over, then collapsed to the ground. She sat there crying for a few minutes, but soon realized she didn't wanted to go back into camp crying, and began to wipe furiously at her tears.

How did I let _this_ happen? she scolded herself. I should have waited for Tinozia to go with me. She continued to fume at herself, not even noticing the approaching men until they were upon her. For a moment, she was startled.

"Ayla, are you okay?" Tinozia asked, but one look at her face told them she was not.

Brulenzia looked toward the trees, and balled his fists. "What happened?"

Ayla took a deep breath. "It's okay," she said, letting them help her up. "I'm fine. I handled him." She swayed and Brulenzia caught her.

"Handled who?" he demanded. "Was it Zadneetsia?" She nodded. Had he not been supporting her, he would have rushed off to find the man, but as it was, he could not.

Tinozia, a much calmer man by his very nature, looked back at the trees. "Ayla, what happened? Did he . . . ?" The man couldn't finish.

Ayla grimaced. "He tried to, but I . . ." She blinked and took another breath. "I . . . Let's just say that I look better than he does." She tried to smile. "Please," she begged, placing her hand on Tinozia's shoulder. "Leave him be. I'll be fine." She leaned against Brulenzia. "Just take me home."

Brulenzia and Tinozia didn't see how they could leave her to go after Zadneetsia, especially since she had asked them not to. Besides, it wouldn't do any good, this was a matter for the Councils. They finally relented, deciding to take her back to Oak Tent by means of the outer path, so they wouldn't have to talk to anyone. Both wished the headman or headwoman could be there to lodge a complaint with either the Council of Brothers or the Council of Sisters, but the hunters were only two days into their trek. Neither man felt ready for this responsibility, but both decided then and there that they'd step up and do what was necessary.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

Out on the southern plains, the hunters finally arrived in the area that the hunt leaders had been looking for, and called a stop for the night. Grov was glad he hadn't had to deal with Janika all day; she had kept her distance, though he didn't know why. _That_ made him nervous.

He had spent much of the day toward the back of the line, but when the halt was called, he quickly caught up, pitched his tent with haste, ate even faster, then retired before the fires could even be lit. This hunt was becoming much too stressful.

**XxX**

**? (titleless again) ?**

Durc had passed through the summer meeting virtually unnoticed, and had slipped into Oak Tent when watching eyes were turned. He knew it was for bigger people to help his mother, and that Brulenzia and Tinozia would be the ones to do that. The boy went to his sleeping place and put away his spear. He realized then that he'd forgotten his sling by the river, but shrugged. It wasn't important.

The five-year-old boy sat down and begged Ursus to keep his mother safe. I wish Grov hadn't gone on that hunt, he said to himself. He always keeps Mama safe.

He sat down for a moment, and waited, hoping they'd get back quickly. After what seemed like forever to him, he stood up abruptly. What was taking them so long? he wondered, starting to pace. The boy was extremely frustrated, and almost decided to go back out to look for them. He quickly abandoned that idea; he didn't want to see anyone else yet. He finally decided to climb into his mother's sleeping place. He felt better immediately.

**xXx**

Brulenzia and Tinozia arrived back at Oak Tent with Ayla by means of the outer path, and took her directly inside to her sleeping platform. She smiled down at her sleeping son, glad that he had found his way there, and wishing that he hadn't had to see what he did. She was sure that he was terrified.

The two men knew that they were going to have to go tell someone what had happened, but Ayla said that she needed to rest first. They both nodded, understanding completely, but after sitting with her long enough to know she slept, they got up to go find one or more of Oak Camp's elders; they needed to know what to do.

Outside, they came across Jendoza, Danie and Laurana, who were sitting down by the fire talking. They had seen the men take Ayla inside and were extremely curious about what had happened.

"Where did Gredenzia go?" Tinozia asked. The older man had been there when he and Brulenzia had gone looking for Ayla, but now, when they seriously needed him, he was gone.

"He went to the Shogur's Tent," Jendoza answered the man. "What's going on?"

Brulenzia frowned at his brother's mate. "Ayla has been attacked."

"What?" exclaimed Jendoza, at the same time that Laurana said, "By what?" Naturally she suspected an animal, but she was about to learn that the animal was human.

"_Who_ actually," Brulenzia continued. "It was Zadneetsia. He tried to . . . to . . . " the man could not bring himself to tell them, but they knew what he meant. Laurana gasped. Jendoza's eyes widened, but her mind went to her brother, and she looked across the fire at Danie.

Danie was utterly shocked and more than a little worried. "Is she okay?"

"Yes, she's fine," Tinozia reassured them. "He didn't actually hurt her, but she's shaken up." He sat down next to the woman. "And I feel _terrible_. I promised Grov that I'd . . . that we'd make sure no harm came to her." He had his head in his hands. "I was only gone for a short time."

Danie touched the man's arm. "It is not your fault, Tinozia. You could not have known this would happen. I'm sure Grov will understand that."

"But what do we do now that it has?" Brulenzia asked. "There is no precedent for something like this. There are no steps to follow to make sure a man pays for hurting a woman."

Danie frowned. "But there should be . . . and not just for women like us." Jendoza looked at her. She knew exactly what Danie was referring to. It made her worry about Ivanolia, but Danie was right; it _shouldn't_ matter what type of woman it was, only that she had been violated.

"So what do we do?" Jendoza asked.

"I don't know," Tinozia said. "That's why I wanted to talk to Gredenzia, he'd know . . ."

"There you are," came a voice. Tinozia looked up to see Gredenzia and Wäglodia approaching, and sighed audibly.

"Thank the Mother you are back," the young man said. "We need to talk."

For the next few moments Tinozia and Brulenzia went through what had happened, giving the men the few details they had. Gredenzia and Wäglodia were as shocked as the young women had been, and decided to go straight over to the Council of Brothers, leaving the women to hold down the fort; they would be responsible for Ayla and needed to let the older women know what was happening, should they return.

As quickly as possible, the four men crossed the meeting and arrived at the tent of the Council of Brothers without speaking to anyone. Once inside the tent they went directly to Bolodenkia and interrupted the conversation he was having with two other men. The man seemed startled, but knew it must be very important if these men were willing to break in, when it was obvious he was busy. The man knew it was his duty to oversee all important matters of the meeting. After all, Bolodenkia was not just Maple Camp's headman this year, but Head Brother as well, since the summer meeting was being held in Maple Camp territory.

Bolodenkia glanced at the men his was talking with, both of whom nodded and moved off. Gredenzia started off without compunction.

"We have a serious matter to discuss," he said.

Bolodenkia raised his brow. "And it cannot wait until morning." It was more of a statement; he could tell that they meant now. "Should I call the Council? What little of them that are not on the hunt, that is." The four men nodded. The Head Brother sighed, then moved off to send runners to the various tents.

After the runners had gone, a young man approached them, saying that he'd show them to a place to wait. The man led them to a curtained off section of the tent where they tried to sit patiently. It was not easy. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime to the Oak Tent men, they were summoned to a larger space so that they could bring up their _matter_.

Looking around, Brulenzia and Tinozia suddenly became worried. Most of the more respectable brothers had gone on the hunt. In fact, of the nineteen camps attending the summer meeting, there were only eight brothers present for this meeting, and four of them were much less than respectable, since they headed Ash Camp, Cedar Camp, Dogwood Camp, and finally, Sumac Camp, the camp that had spawned the man of concern. Brulenzia frowned, leaned to say something to his cousin, then turned to face the Council.

Bolodenkia cleared his throat and extended his hand, giving any, or all of them, the floor.

"We are sorry to bring you all out of your tents this evening, but we have a problem. It has come to our attention that a woman of Oak Camp was attacked by someone at this summer meeting," Wäglodia started, since he was mated to Oak Camp's headwoman. Eyebrows shot up and there was a chorus of angry comments.

Bolodenkia frowned, but held up his hand and cleared his throat again when the men didn't seem able to calm down quickly enough. "Who? What happened?" he asked.

"Ayla," Wäglodia answered. "She went hunting and swimming with her son this afternoon, and they were followed."

"And who attacked her?" the Head Brother asked.

Tinozia glanced nervously at Sumac Camp's headman and frowned. Zadneetsia was his youngest sister's son. "It was Zadneetsia."

Then headman from Sumac Tent opened his eyes wide and shook his head. His name was Ivarsia. "That is not possible, Zadneetsia was working flint all day; I saw him there."

"Well, he must have left at some point," Tinozia exclaimed angrily, "because Ayla said he attacked her; he tried to force her." Tinozia's voice cracked. Several men exchanged looks, but not as many as before.

"Are you saying that you weren't there to see this _attack_ take place?" the Sumac head asked. Tinozia frowned and shook his head, then tried to explain, but Ivarsia scoffed and cut him off. "Well then, you don't really _have_ much do you?"

Wäglodia stood up. "Are you saying that the son of my hearth is lying about this?" he demanded.

"No, I did not say that," the Sumac headman said, shaking his head. "I am only saying that the son of your hearth does not know _what_ happened, because he was not there."

Tinozia looked shocked. "But I . . . _we_ found Ayla north of the summer meeting, crying. She told us what happened. She _told_ us that Zadneetsia tried to force her."

"So, we only have the word of a woman that hasn't lived among us for eleven years, against that of a man that was born and raised here." Ivarsia snorted derisively. "Where is Ayla anyway? And why isn't she making this claim herself?"

"She is back at Oak Tent sleeping," Brulenzia put in angrily. "She was exhausted after what Zadneetsia put her through."

Ivarsia shook his head. "What Zadneetsia has done, and what you say she _claims_ he has done, could quite possibly be two different things."

Now Gredenzia had something to say. "We don't exactly have _his_ word either, now do we, Ivars? Maybe we should hear from them both." Several of the headmen were nodding.

Bolodenkia frowned, but nodded as well. "I think that is all we can do for tonight. We need to hear from both of them. I'd like to ask that both Zadneetsia and Ayla remain within their camps until we have a chance to question them." He paused. "And, let's continue this tomorrow at midday."

The four Oak Camp men stared in disbelief as they watched the headmen stand up to leave. Ivarsia left quickly with the three camps closely related to him, never even glancing back at them.

Bolodenkia went to them, shaking his head apologetically. "I was worried something like this would happen when Vincenzia brought Andreyta back here. She's . . ."

Brulenzia frowned, then corrected the man. "Ayla."

"Yes, yes, I'm sorry, Ayla." The Head Brother looked at each Oak Camp man in turn. "We are definitely in a difficult spot here. _Ayla_ has been gone for so long and doesn't know our ways."

"And what ways do we have that allow men to force women?" Wäglodia demanded.

"I'm only saying that maybe she misinterpreted what Zadneetsia wanted."

Tinozia raised his eyebrows in angry. "_Misinterpreted?_ With all due respect, Bolodenkia," the young man said, "but you did not see Ayla; she was terrified. You do not know what happened out there."

"No Tinozia, I was not there, but as Ivarsia pointed out, neither were _you_." The Head Brother looked more than upset. "Now, if you do not mind, we will meet again tomorrow." He nodded at the older men, men that he had always liked, then picked up his belongings and left for the night. With much frustration, Wäglodia, Gredenzia, Brulenzia and Tinozia did the same.

**xXx**

"They want to speak to Ayla and Zadneetsia tomorrow," Gredenzia informed everyone back at their tentfire. The elder women had returned and were absolutely aghast at what had taken place, and more than furious that the Brothers could not do something about it immediately.

Zarina was sitting, holding Wäglodia's hand and staring into the fire. "I wish Tagnolia was here," she said with a frown. It would have been good to have _their_ headman at the meeting.

"Do you think the Council of Brothers can take care of this?" Fraylora asked her mate.

Gredenzia looked distressed. "Ordinarily I would say that they could, but with so many headmen away on the hunt, it could be difficult."

"Well then, why don't the Sisters just step in," Travie interrupted irritably. "Isn't this something they're more suited to anyway? I mean, we're talking about the protection of women."

The women were nodding, but Gredenzia shrugged. "Yes, probably so, Travie. I know that within the Mamutoi, the Sisters would intervene, but this is going to be difficult. It's all a matter of _he said, she said_, and we really don't know what either of them are going to say yet. It definitely doesn't help that so many of our leaders are gone."

Brulenzia, Tinozia and the other young adults were listening intently to the older, more experienced members speak, and all were worried. Jendoza couldn't believe that Ayla's eleven-year absence might be used against her, and that someone had accused her of _misunderstanding_ Zadneetsia intent. She was more than a little frightened, and didn't want to go anywhere by herself. She wondered if they would be able to solve this problem.

After a little more discussion, the members of Oak Camp went inside to sleep. Travie brought Ayla's girls in, but they didn't want to sleep in their own bed without first talking to their mother, but Ayla was still sound asleep. Braydalana and Crisana offered to let the girls sleep with them, but when tears started to well in their little eyes, Danie suggested that they sleep with _her_, in the bed right next to their mother. Ora looked at her sleeping mother, then at Danie's bed; she really wanted her mother. It looked as if she was still going to protest, but when Annaliza reached up to Danie, Ora relented and crawled up onto the woman's bed platform and lay down. Finally, everyone took to their own beds, and that was the end of the night.

**xXx**

Ayla slept soundly for most of the night, but then, just before dawn, she began thrashing about. "NO! NO! NO!" she cried loudly.

Within moments, someone had a lamp lit, and Brulenzia and Tinozia where sitting on her bed platform trying to wake her.

"Ayla," Brulenzia said, shaking her gently. "Ayla, wake up." She opened her eyes and started to cry. He held her against his chest and rocked her softly. "_Shhhhhh_. He's not here."

Ayla cried for a few moments, letting the man hold her, then she glanced around; everyone seemed to be awake. "I am sorry to have woken everyone." Ora and Annaliza had crawled up beside her, and Durc was sitting up looking at her.

"It is not a problem, Ayla," Travie said, turning to leave the young adult's space.

"Mamma okay?" Ora asked. She had tears in her eyes too.

Ayla smiled sheepishly at her daughter. "Yes, I am fine. I just had a very bad dream."

Ora looked back at Danie. "I want to sleep in Mamma's bed now," she said. Annaliza nodded. She did too.

Danie smiled. "Here, let me help you get under the furs," she said, getting up and helping the two girls to get comfortable. Durc squeezed in too. Ayla watched them for a short time, then put her head back on Brulenzia's shoulder and closed her eyes again.

"Is it morning yet?" Laurana asked, getting up at the sound of her daughter's quiet whimper.

"Almost . . . _I think_," Jendoza replied, leaning to move aside an air flap in the side of the tent. Their tent faced southeast, so she could see that dawn was approaching. "Yep, just before dawn." She too got up; she could hear Teglodia starting to stir.

"I'll make some tea," Danie said, getting up to go to the cooking space.

"No need," Travie said. "I already had it started when _someone_ caused a commotion." She smiled at Ayla. "Here." The older woman handed her a cup of tea, then preceded to give some to everyone else.

Ayla sat up to take the cup from the woman and took a sip as soon as it was in her hands. She looked up at Brulenzia. "Thank you for being here." She looked around at everyone. "All of you, thank you."

Laurana smiled. "Ayla, you are family. We'll stand beside in this and in everything." Everyone was nodding his or her agreement. Ayla smiled, as tears came to her eyes again. She was so happy to have found her people.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

As the sun came over the eastern hills of the southern plain, the hunters rose. They had made their hunting plans the night before, and those that had gone to sleep early needed to be told what would take place. Grov, being one of them.

The hunt leader held a short meeting after the scouts returned, informing everyone that a herd was grazing not too far away, and that a surround would have to be built. There was much work to do. Finally, after the hunters had been given a chance to comment, the leader pushed the hunters out.

The hunters left the campfires burning low and their tents in place. If all went well, they'd be back by evening, fully loaded down from a successful hunt, and they wanted the comfort of knowing they wouldn't have to set up sleeping places again after such a long and exhausting day.

Grov walked with Ivanolia, Donzolnia and several other young men. He carried with him several of the Others-type spears that he had made with Vincenzia back at the Clan's cave, a knife that hung from his belt, his sling, not that he would need it for bison, and finally, the spear he used when hunting with the Clan. Though he probably wouldn't use his Clan spear, habit had caused the man to bring it with him.

The hunters moved along the plain quickly, coming to the place that was believed to be the best place to build their surround, and started working.

For some time, Grov watched, not knowing what to do. He had not heard of _building_ something to assist a hunt; he was used to using the lay of the land and the cunning of men to get the job done. He was extremely intrigued by what had been proposed, but he hadn't moved to help. He was having a hard time picturing it in his mind.

Ivanolia had been working along side the other hunters when he noticed Grov wasn't helping. Then, seeing the man's frown of confusion, he wiped the sweat from his brow and went over to the man to see if he could help.

"Hey, I know you're a strong man," Ivanolia said, clapping the man on the back and smiling at him. "Why aren't you working?"

Grov brow furrowed even more. "I do not know what everyone is doing." He flushed. He hadn't wanted to admit that he didn't know what was going on, or how to help.

"I can tell," Ivanolia replied, continuing to smile. "Okay, do you remember the canyon we drove the aurochs into when we hunted with Lion Camp?" Ivanolia asked. Grov thought about the hunt that had nearly killed Darnev, then nodded.

"Look." Ivanolia knelt down and drew the canyon they had hunted in, showing the Clan man where they had entered it and how they had trapped the aurochs. Then he pointed at what he had drawn. "Does this make sense?"

Grov nodded. "I think so." He paused for a moment. "And this is where Darnev was gored, right?" he asked, touching the dirt just past the entrance to the canyon.

"Yes, that's right. You got it." Ivanolia smiled again. "Okay, so for this hunt, what we're going to _do_ is sort of the same as that, but we have to put manpower into building it, instead of using what's naturally here. We have to construct a canyon; that way they can't get away."

Grov was still frowning.

"Here, let me show you." Ivanolia moved over slightly and started to draw in the dirt again. "It's a lot of work to build a surround, but in some ways it's better, because you can put one wherever you need it. _And_, you can build a gate to enclose the beasts completely."

Grov watched the man draw, noticing that he drew it at the same angle as the previous drawing. He didn't know it, but the drawings were easier to compare that way.

"See," Ivanolia said, pointing to both the back canyon wall in his first illustration and the manmade surround in the second one. "We will use the surround in the same way we used the back of the canyon, as a wall to keep the bison in."

Grov examined the man's diagram, then looked around. He could see the great beasts far off in the distance and frowned. "But there are no canyon walls on this wide prairie. How will we get the bison to go to the surround? Surely they will see it and go a different way."

"For this hunt, _we_ will be the canyon walls," Ivanolia informed him. Grov looked around at the busy people. There were about one hundred fifty hunters at work, possibly even more, but this still did not make sense to him. Ivanolia could still see the man's confusion, and turned back to his drawing.

"Okay, this is the surround, right?" Grov nodded. That much he could visualize. Ivanolia then moved over a bit and drew a shape in the dirt. "_This_ is the bison herd." He turned back to the surround that he'd drawn. "We will leave a large group of hunters here and here," he said, marking the dirt with two lines on either side of the surround. "Perhaps nearly half of us. From there, the remaining hunters will make their way around the herd, on both sides and pretty far off." Ivanolia looked up at Grov. "We don't want to frighten them too soon, or they'll bolt and the hunt will be lost."

Grov nodded, he completely understood that part, after all, he _was_ a hunter.

"They probably already know we're here, but they don't feel threatened yet, because we're so far away." Grov nodded again. That also made sense.

"So, as the hunters move east to the far end of the prairie, to get behind the herd, a series of hunters will drop off here and there," Ivanolia continued, drawing a bunch of dashes in the dirt on either side of the herd. This marked the distance between the surround and the herd. "These hunters will form a line to flank the animals, so they cannot escape either north or south, while the rest of the hunters continue on."

Grov was examining the drawing and listening intently.

"Once in place behind the herd, _these_ hunters," he said, drawing yet another line, this time east of the herd, "will begin to drive the bison back here." He pointed at the surround. "Then, at the hunt leader's signal, all hunters will light torches, starting with the drivers. This will cause the bison to start moving west, toward the surround. Once the drive has begun, the _flanking_ hunters will light their torches, and slowly move in to prevent the herd from going north or south. And finally, when the bison draw near, the west-end hunters will light their torches too."

Grov smiled. "So the west-end hunters will be responsible for keeping the animals from bypassing the surround," Grov concluded. He could finally see what they were doing.

"Yes. It's not too complicated, but it takes a lot of manpower," Ivanolia said. "Now, we better get to work, before they send us home for not helping." Grov smiled. Ivanolia handed him an axe and showed him where to start.

**XxX**

**? (looks like I completely abandoned naming my chapters) ?**

The hunters spent a great deal of the morning building the surround. It was an enormous construction that was roughly the shape of a pentagon, with one side missing so that the bison could be driven in, and a gate that could be closed so that they couldn't get out. It wasn't, however, the only place that the beasts would be killed. A great number would be downed before they even reached the hunter's trap. The surround would just be the end of the line, a final wall to insure positive results and protect the hunters.

When the surround was finished, the hunt leader discussed who would be where, giving the people at least some voice in what part they played in the first hunt of the season. Then, when several hunters had the position he or she wanted, the man issued orders as to where everyone else would go. He chose the drivers first, which included four of Oak Camp's elders, then those who would flank, and finally the hunters that would wait.

Being unsure where he wanted to be, or where he was needed most, Grov was glad the decision was made for him. After all, that was how it was in the Clan; the leader always directed the hunt, so he had never chosen a position before, except for when he hunted alone, and that wasn't that often.

As it turned out, Grov was selected to flank the north side of the herd, as were Ivanolia, Donzolnia and Janika's brother, Jondaria. This pleased the Clan man greatly since he still didn't know much about an Other's hunt, and he thought it would be nice to have at least three men he knew to help him learn. He did not want to make the Clan look bad, or appear stupid himself.

Vincenzia and Darvie were also selected to flank the herd, but they were being sent to the south. Before leaving the area at the surround, Vincenzia stopped Grov. "Be careful out there, and don't worry," he said with a smile, seeing the man's nervous look. "This is a standard summer hunt and relatively simple. We should have many to bring back to the meeting."

Darvie smiled up at Ayla's mate. "Just have your spears ready to throw," she added. Though she was born Mamutoi, this was far from her first Sungaean drive and knew just how it went.

Just before midday, the hunt leader gave the signal and the drivers headed out. A group went north and a group went south, making a wide arc around the bison so as not to spook them. The others watched and waited.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

The sun was directly overhead when Ayla stepped into the tent of the Council of Brothers. Only Tabita and Fürlasa did not accompany her; they stayed at Oak Tent to watch the children. Ayla, along with her entourage, waited in the same space that the four men were brought to the evening before, and again, it seemed like they sat there forever. Ayla sat between Brulenzia and Tinozia, nervously chewing on her lip.

When Bolodenkia finally stepped out from behind a curtain, he frowned slightly; he saw ten angry adults waiting with Ayla. He hadn't counted on this becoming so involved, and wished they could just put an end to it. He looked at the daughter of Vincenzia's hearth; she looked nervous.

"Good afternoon," he said to them when they looked up at him.

"What's so good about it?" Brulenzia said under his breath. Bolodenkia didn't hear him.

"Well, let's get this thing started," the Head Brother said, indicating that they follow him. The group of Oak Camp members stood up and followed Ayla, who followed behind Bolodenkia.

As they entered the same partitioned off room where the men had come the evening before, Ayla glanced around, taking in her surroundings; it was a full house. She did not immediately see Zadneetsia, but when she did, she blanched. She knew he'd be there, but seeing him made her uncomfortable, especially when he turned to stare at her. She noticed that he sported a swollen lip and bruised nose, and that somehow his left eye seemed to be blackened too. She frowned.

Zadneetsia was sitting just behind a tall, older man whom she did not know, but was talking to a younger man next to him. He had his arm draped rather casually over the other man's shoulder, and he was sitting with a number of people from Sumac Camp. She noted that he didn't appear too upset by this at all. Somehow, she felt like the person that had done wrong.

"Well, I guess we need to hear from Ayla," Bolodenkia said, turning to look at her.

Tinozia stood up. "We've already told you what happened," the young man said.

Ivarsia rolled his eyes and stood up. "No, _you_ told us what she told you. I think we deserve to hear the story from her." Many people nodded. He sat back down.

Ayla swallow and stood up. All eyes turned on her. She tried to speak, but had to take a deep breath and lick her lips. "I . . . " she started, then stopped. Zadneetsia had turned to talk to one of the men sitting with him, and both stifled a laugh.

"Yesterday," she began, "I took my son hunting and swimming . . ."

"Where?" Ivarsia cut in.

Ayla looked at the man. "Just north of the summer meeting," she answered. "We hunted first, then went into the trees by the river to swim. Then . . ."

"How long were you there?" the man asked again.

Ayla frowned. "Hunting or swimming, or both together?" she asked. A few people snickered.

Ivarsia looked around annoyed. "Both."

Ayla nodded. "I'd say we spent more time hunting. I am working on my son's sling hunting skill," she tried to explain. "It is a difficult weapon to master, but he killed two large rabbits," she said proudly, then tried to continue. "By that time the sun was . . . "

"_Fascinating_," the man said with a feigned yawn. "But how long were you _there_?" he asked again.

Ayla was starting to get annoyed. Why was he interrupting? she wondered. "Do you want to hear this or not?" she asked the man in frustration. A few people smiled again.

Ivarsia flushed slightly. She sure has nerve, he thought, then gave a thin lipped smile and nodded.

Ayla took a deep breath. She had to think for a moment. _How long were we there?_ "I'd say it was well past midday when we finished hunting, then we went into the trees so that we could swim. I . . ."

"And how long did you . . ." the Sumac man cut in again, but this time someone cut _him_ off.

"Is Ayla going to be able to tell us what happened, or is Ivarsia going to keep breaking in to ask her questions?" Wäglodia asked irritably. He was standing up facing the Council and looked none too happy that Ivarsia wouldn't even let the woman get a full sentence out. "Because _I_ was under the impression that you wanted to hear from _her_."

Many people shifted their position. Ivarsia sat back in his chair and raised a hand, as if to say, _Go ahead. Don't let me stop her_.

Bolodenkia nodded, then turned back to Ayla. "Go on."

Ayla smiled at Wäglodia with gratitude, then turned back to the assemblage. Swallowing hard, she began again. "So, m-my son and I hunted, then we went into the trees by the river. I skinned his rabbits, spitted them over a fire, then we swam for a while." She looked at Ivarsia. "I can't say _exactly_ how long that took. The position of the sun was blocked by the trees." A few people tried to hide their smiles when Ivarsia scowled. "That is when Zadneetsia showed up," she said, looking over at the man.

"And what did he do, Ayla?" Bolodenkia prompted her.

Ayla brow creased heavily, but she never took her eyes off the man. "He tried to force me to share pleasures with him," she accused. "Though I cannot call being forced any kind of pleasure."

Everyone looked over at the man, including Bolodenkia. "And, is this true, Zadneetsia?"

The man smirked at Ayla and started shaking his head. "Of course not," he lied. Ayla's jaw dropped open.

"So, you did not see Ayla yesterday while she was out hunting and swimming with her son?" the Head Brother asked.

"Oh, I _saw_ her. I saw _a lot_ of her," he said. "We both did." He was indicating the man sitting next to him. Ayla did not know who this other man was. "But I don't remember her son being there, do you?" he asked the other man. The man shook his head.

Bolodenkia looked back at Ayla. "You did not mention that Kurvlodia was there," he said.

"That is because he was _not_ there," Ayla said nervously. She did not understand why Zadneetsia would say words that were so obviously untrue, or why this other man, whom she had never seen before, would attest to Zadneetsia's lies. She was getting angry and looked at the Council. "I have never seen that man before. Only Zadneetsia tried to force me."

Zadneetsia laughed. "Oh come _on_, Ayla. You were a perfectly willing partner." He looked at his friend again, elbowing him. "Wasn't she?" Kurvlodia smirked and nodded.

Ayla just stared at him. Had he just insinuated that she _had_ shared pleasures with him? That she had _welcomed_ his advances? Her eyes grew wide; he had indeed, and worse, the other man had implied that she had shared pleasures with the _both_ of them. She was speechless. She could hardly move, but glanced around at the people. They were staring at her and shaking their heads. She blushed. Couldn't they see that he was lying? That both men were? She frowned. This was not going very well. Suddenly she wished Grov was there, or that she had gone on the hunt, or that they'd never even come to this summer meeting. She started to tear up.

Suddenly Brulenzia stood up, glaring at Zadneetsia in fury. "Are you saying that the _both_ of you shared . . . her?"

Zadneetsia smirked again. "We sure are, and she loved every moment of it."

Brulenzia turned red. He was seeing red. "I find it hard to believe that _this_ woman would look for pleasure in _him_. I mean, look at him; he's filthy," he spat with disgust. "And besides, this woman isn't accustomed to _sharing pleasures_ with anyone except her mate, and he's not here. I'd have had better luck with her than _him_."

"Brulenzia, you're just upset because the focus isn't on _you_ anymore," Zadneetsia countered. "This one wanted _me_." He pointed at Ayla.

Brulenzia blushed at the pointed comment about summers of the past, and looked at Laurana. She didn't look upset by the man's comment. "Okay then," Brulenzia started again changing tactics. "If Ayla _wanted_ you and she agreed to share pleasures with you, as you claim, then why is your face all bruised up?"

"She's wild; what can I say?" he commented nonchalantly, throwing his arms in the air. His friends laughed.

Ayla shook her head, upset that they were talking about her as if she were not even there, and stood up again. This was too much. "I did not share _pleasures_ with this man," she said coldly, pointing at him. "He tried to force me, but it did not happen. I kneed him in his manhood to get him off of me. Why don't you examine him to see if he has any bruises there! I also kicked him in the face to get him to stop. _That_ is why his face is bruised."

"See, I told you she's wild," he repeated. "Probably comes from being raised by those flathead animals."

Now Ayla looked furious. "The Clan is not a bunch of animals . . . _you_ are the animal, Zadneetsia," she began, then stopped and looked at the headmen. "I do not understand why we are even doing this. You have no intention of punishing him for what he did to me. And _you_," she said, turning on Ivarsia, "just want to defend him because he is part of your camp."

"That is not true, Ayla," Bolodenkia said calmly. He did want to get to the bottom of this. "But we have to determine what happened. And unfortunately your story and Zadneetsia's differ substantially. He claims that you were alone and that he and Kurvlodia both shared pleasures with you. _You_ say you were with your son and that Zadneetsia, alone, tried to force you. There is a huge discrepancy here."

The Head Brother glanced at Zadneetsia, who looked as if he wasn't really paying attention, then his eyes went back to Ayla. "If only there was someone else there who witnessed what happened, or there was some kind of evidence on either side, then maybe it would be different." He paused.

He was very confused. Even if she _was_ telling the truth, and Zadneetsia _had_ tried to force her, what should be done about it? This was not something the Sungaea had ever had to deal with before. He was so much more upset by the situation than he sounded. He didn't know what to do or who to believe. He had been watching them both closely, trying to make a decision. The woman seemed so hurt and angry. And why wouldn't she be? if she was telling the truth, he asked himself. He glanced at Zadneetsia again. He was lounging about, only taking a mild interest in what was going on; the man is just too full of himself, Bolodenkia thought. Suddenly he realized that Ayla _was_ being truthful.

"Maybe we could bring your son in here. Maybe he could add something to your story," the Head Brother suggested.

Ayla frowned. "My son is only five. He has been through enough. He does not need to be brought in here, to be brought before people that think him less than human." The Oak Camp members were nodding. She was right.

"Well then," Ivarsia said. "You can't prove that Zadneetsia did what you claim, so I guess we need to vote and be finished with this. Who believes Zadneetsia?" he asked the eight brothers. Four of them, Ivarsia being the first, immediately put their hands up, and though quite reluctantly, Bandolia from Pine Camp did as well. He was not a fan of the flatheads and distrusted anyone that had contact with them.

"And who believes _Ayla_? Ivarsia asked, knowing the vote was now five to three in Zadneetsia's favor. The Willow Camp headman put up his hand. Ayla did not know who he was, but she was grateful. His name was Vardasia and he was a cousin of Vincenzia; their mothers had been sisters, and he felt it was his duty to support kin, especially since she looked so trustworthy. I never did like Zadneetsia, he thought, holding his hand high.

The other Ayla supporter was the headman from Spruce Camp. Though he did know Vincenzia, he was not related to the man, or the beautiful young woman. He _was_, however, related to Vardasia, and felt the same way about kin. He had watched Ayla closely during the whole process; something about her spoke truth.

Finally, Bolodenkia chose not to vote because, though he now believed Ayla, he felt that he could not take sides. _And_, after seeing the first part of the vote, he figured that it didn't matter; Ayla had lost.

Ivarsia smiled. It was now five votes to two in their favor. "So, I guess this is over then." He stood up to leave.

Bolodenkia continued to frown. "I'm afraid so, unless anyone has anything further to add," he said hopefully. It looked as if it was over, then Travie stood up and placed her hand on Ayla's upper arm.

"I do not have anything to _add_, but I will be taking a complaint to the Sisters. This is absolutely ludicrous," she burst out angrily. "What is wrong with you people?" she demanded. "And you!" she exclaimed as she turned to face Bolodenkia. "You did not even vote. What kind of _Head Brother_ are you?"

The man took a deep breath. He did not blame her. "We understand your frustration . . . Travie, is it?" She nodded. Her arms were now folded across her chest, but she still stood next to Ayla. "But there is nothing else we _can_ do. You are quite welcome to take this matter to the Sisters."

"Oh, we _will_. I guarantee it," she said. She was shaking with angry. Ayla watched the woman, then smiled slightly and put her hand on Travie's arm; Ayla's touch was able to get through the older woman's anger, causing her to look at the young woman. She suddenly relaxed. It was the first smile that she'd seen on Ayla's face since they'd arrived at the tent of the Council of Brothers.

Bolodenkia saw how the younger woman's touch calmed the older woman, and he could see her strength and resolve. This definitely wasn't over, but at least Ayla was not going to take it lying down. She is a strong woman, he thought.

**xXx**

After they left, Travie wanted to march directly over to the Council of Sisters, but Zarina and Wäglodia suggested that they wait for the hunters to return.

"It's going to be the same with the Sisters," Zarina said. "With so many Sisters gone, we'd be lucky if we got half of them to side with Ayla.

"Well, that's better than with the Brothers," Travie said.

"Yes, better, but not enough," Wäglodia put in. "We need a majority here. I think we should wait too."

Sighing, Travie reluctantly agreed.

**xXxxXxxXxxXx**

During the meeting that was taking place in the north, the hunters to the south were steadily driving the great herd of bison across the plains toward their death. Grov could see them coming now. The bison were slowly moving in a westerly direction. The man carefully watched the long line of people flanking the herd. Occasionally someone would wave his or her torch at an approaching beast, causing it to return to its brethren.

Grov stood still, gripping a torch in one hand and a spear in the other. He had tied his other spears to his back, the way he had seen Donzolnia do just before the hunt. They didn't feel right there, cumbersome, but he could see that most people had done the same thing.

Looking down the line of hunters Grov saw that closer torches were being lit. He waited patiently. Donzolnia's was now lit and the man turned to Ivanolia. Ivanolia turned and touched his torch to Grov's and Grov did the same to Jondaria. For a moment, Grov watched the fire spread west, then noticed that the southern fires were doing the same thing. It was time to go.

Grov followed the lead of the two men beside him. First they walked south, to close in a bit, but then they started walking west to keep in line with the bison trail. They were using their bodies as a wall and the fire to keep the beasts moving. It was rather effective, Grov thought. Soon he could see that the hunters that had waited behind the surround were approaching as well, but much more slowly. They couldn't afford to turn the bison back toward the drivers; they wanted as many as possible to go into the surround.

During the drive, the hunters took shots at the bison, killing a couple here and there, and some, of course, were either _allowed_ to escape or got away on their own. That was just the way it was, and they didn't want to kill the entire herd, just enough so that each Camp there had something to show for their hard work.

Grov watched Jondaria begin to stalk a cow that had wondered off toward them. He glanced back at Ivanolia, but the man was gone; he had moved in to assist someone else. Grov decided to stick with the man near him, and circled the animal.

Jondaria waved his torch at the animal, then threw his first spear. It plunged deep into the upper part of her rear leg, but it was not fatal, and only served to anger her. The bison roared in pain and turned on the man. Jondaria reached around for another spear, ripping it easily from its tie, but the bison had turned again, and was heading slightly away from them. When she circled back he threw hard. His second spear hit at an odd angle, grazing her and bouncing off. She stopped, snorted, and pawed the dirt, trying to decide which man to go after. She stayed with Jondaria.

Grov took his chance and aimed carefully, and sent his first spear deep into her belly. She bellowed, circled around, then continued toward Jondaria.

Jondaria reached for yet another spear. This time it wouldn't break free from the tie that bound it to the man's back. The man was yanking hard with one hand, waving his torch with the other, and backing up. Grov could tell that the man was panicking. Without thinking he picked up a stone, pulled out his sling, and cast a stone quickly. It hit the cow in the rump, distracting her enough to give Jondaria the time he needed to work his spear free.

Grov had seen the other man struggling with his spear holder, and stopped as soon as he'd flung the stone to remove his own spears; he had not liked the there in the first place.

Jondaria, who now had his third spear in hand, charged the evading cow, stopping just short and throwing with all him might. This time it went through her neck. Grov watched the spear point come out on the other side, but she was still standing. He threw a second spear. It hit the cow's neck too. She roared in anger and pain, and took off running toward the open prairie and away from them. Both men thought they had lost the kill, but suddenly she veered back to begin a slow and exhausted, yet steady, charge. She was heading for Jondaria _again_. He had another spear in his hand, but she was coming straight at him. He had to take a stand.

Grov watched her coming, trying to judge her speed and the distance between her and the other man. He thought he was closer to the animal by at least half the distance, but he was not in her line of charge. Quickly, and without thought, the man grabbed his Clan spear and countered the beast's charge. He kept his eyes on the animal as he ran hard to head her off, then thrust his spear into her side, plunging it through the thick skin and between ribs, where it settled in the animal's heart. Grov slammed into the side of the dead beast as it crashed to the ground just short of Jondaria.

Jondaria exhaled loudly. He was still holding his spear, but had not had to use it. Grov was lying on the ground breathing hard, but grabbed Jondaria's hand when it was extended out to him. "Good chase," the man exclaimed, pulling Grov to his feet.

Grov smiled. Their hunt had not been too much different than a Clan hunt, he thought. They had tired her out, while continuing to wound her, then finished her off. "Thanks," Grov said, brushing himself off.

Jondaria scoffed. "I should be thanking you. She would have trampled me for sure if you hadn't killed her. And look at her," he said, pointing. "We got her five times before she died."

The two men grinned at each other, and looked around at the other hunters. Many of them were finishing off their own bison, while others were already skinning. Grov could see that there was much activity at the surround, but he could not see what was actually happening. Hunters were everywhere and the bison that had managed to escape were moving off in the distance. The hunt was over. Now the butchering began.

**XxX**

**? (sorry about the lack of chapter names) ?**

The two men worked together to butcher the animal, though Grov had to ask a few times what he needed to do. He was still used to letting the women do this part, but he learned a lot about the process from Jondaria, and gained a friend in the man during the job.

"Do the Clan women _really_ do all of this for the men?" Jondaria asked, stopping for a moment.

"Yes, the men cannot do this kind of work," Grov answered.

"But, you're doing it." Jondaria was confused.

Grov stopped to look at the other man. "There is not much Clan in me," he said with a frown. "I am a little different. As far as I know, my mother's mother was only half Clan, possibly even less, so I am really more Others than Clan." Jondaria nodded. That was why the man was nearly passable.

"And what about hunting? I've heard that Clan women do not hunt."

Grov was up on his knees, leaning over the dead animal, but sat back on his feet to answer the man. "No, they do not participate in the hunt; they do not know how to hunt."

"They really don't hunt?" Jondaria asked, incredulously. He shook his head. "I don't know how we'd stop _our_ women." He was pulling out the cow's entrails and moved to put them on the carrier that Grov had made.

Grov smiled. "All of them, except for Ayla. She is a good hunter, possibly the best I've seen."

Jondaria smiled, thinking about the beautiful woman that was mated to this man. "Is she really _that_ good?" he asked. They were talking about one thing, but the man's eyes spoke of more. He was definitely attracted to the young woman.

Grov grinned. "She is better," he replied, thinking about his mate and wishing she were there too.

**xXx**

For quite a long time, the two men worked alone, talking happily, laughing often, and learning a lot about each other. Jondaria was glad he had not listen to what people said about the Clan man; he was a good man, a hard working man, and it would be good to call him friend.

Grov's thoughts were not very far from the other man's. _He_ was glad that he had not listened to his own misgivings about this man. Jondaria was, after all, _not_ his sister. Grov shook his head to dispel the pestering woman's image from his mind. No, Jondaria was a good man, Grov thought. _And_, he was pleased that he'd made a friend on his own. So pleased, in fact, that not even the approaching Janika bothered him, well, not too much.

Jondaria saw his sister crossing the plain with two of her friends. He knew his sister was quite persistent and had her sights set on Grov. He hadn't understood her fascination with the Clan man until he'd gotten to know him. Now he wondered what was going on in his sister's mind; what was she planning? She didn't seem to be able to take no for an answer. How many times did she have to hear it? he wondered. He looked at Grov, who was watching the three women with a slight frown. "We _could_ use the extra hands," he said.

"Huh?" Grov said, turning to face him.

Jondaria nodded toward the women. "Hands . . . we could use the help."

Grov looked down at the cow, then back at the women. "I guess so . . ."

Jondaria smiled, then looked up at the women. "Have you come to help us?" Grov looked up at them too, shading his eyes against the sun.

Janika smirked, and shifted her position so that she was blocking the sun from Grov's eyes, and looked down at him. "We were just at the surround. They're still killing there, but we weren't needed." She looked at her friends. "You know my brother, don't you?" They nodded. She turned back to Grov. "And this is Grov," she said. She didn't bother to give him their names, but her friends smiled down at him. He smiled back at them.

"Well, we're glad you're here," Jondaria said, hoping Grov didn't mind. "We could use some help butchering or we're going to be here all night." The three woman pulled out their tools, knelt down, and went to work.

**xXx**

After several hours of work, they'd finished butchering the cow and had her loaded onto a couple of small stretchers that Grov had suggested. Jondaria and the women hadn't known what the man was doing when he started building the strange contraptions, but when it was finally built and loaded, they understood and smiled with happiness; they wouldn't have to carry so much to the campsite on their backs.

"I still think this animal is _your_ kill," Jondaria said, as they trekked along.

"No, I could not have killed her alone," Grov said, shaking his head. "I think it is _our_ kill." He paused for a moment. "I would like to have the hide though, if that is okay." He smiled. "Ayla asked me to bring her back something furry."

Jondaria glanced at his sister. She was scowling and mimicking the man . . . _Ayla asked me to bring her back something furry._ One of her friends giggled, causing Grov to look over at them. He narrowed his eyes at them, but could not see Janika's face. Jondaria gave his sister a dirty look, then directed his words to Grov. "That is fine. I have a bison hide from last year's hunt; I do not need another one."

**xXx**

Back at the campsite, everyone unloaded. A portion was selected to dry and was placed on racks near fires that were lit for that purpose. An even smaller portion was taken away by people that were planning the evening meal. They would have a feast that night. And finally, most of the meat was placed far enough away from the fires so that it could begin freezing over the cold night. Janika and her friends helped the two men, but quickly disappeared afterward, much to Grov's relief.

**xXx**

After all the meat and other bison parts had been handled, the hunt leader stood up and declared the first summer hunt officially over. It didn't seem to matter that they still had to carry everything back to the meeting. "It was a very lucky hunt," the man exclaimed loudly. "Let us thank the Mother that no one was hurt, and that we have much to bring back!" Everyone bowed his or her head for a moment, giving thanks to the Mother. Grov did the same, thanking Ursus as well.

It _had_ been lucky, he thought; they had killed nearly three dozen beasts. The kill would feed many for a long time and provide many needed materials. He smiled and looked around at the happy people. He was standing with Ivanolia and Donzolnia again.

"So, Jondaria told us that you singled-handedly killed a bison," said Donzolnia with a raised brow. "Impressive."

Grov shook his head. "No, Jondaria and I share that kill. Didn't he tell you that he . . ."

Coming up beside them, Jondaria cut in. "This man is too modest. It was _his_ spear that ended the cow's life, not mine. I was the one in her path, cowering."

Grov frowned. "You were not cowering." Why did the man say words that were not true? he wondered. "You held your spear, ready to fight."

Jondaria grinned and put his arm around Grov's shoulder. "Yes, I stood there spear in hand, poised and ready to be trampled, but you saved me of that fate."

The men smiled. Grov was about to protest again, but Ivanolia spoke up first. "Well, either way, you will be able to bring back the hide Ayla wanted. She will be very happy."

Grov grinned. "Yes, I think she will."

**xXx**

Later that night, after everyone had eaten, the fires were built high so that the hunters could tell of their hunts. Many skins of wine and bouza came out, and the people drank freely. After drinking a few cups of bouza and listening to several hunt stories, Grov and Jondaria took turns telling of their hunt. It was one of the most exciting stories; everyone was amazed at the Clan man's strength and bravery.

"Then Grov charged the beast, and that was the end of her," Jondaria finished. Grov was smiling, the man had, after all, been pretty close to accurate this time, with only slight embellishments here and there.

As they sat back down to listen to another hunt story, Grov picked up his cup and emptied it into his mouth. He was having a good time and he was happy that he was getting on so well with Ayla's people. He was in such a good mood that he even smiled when Janika sat down next to him and refilled his cup.

"I enjoyed your story," she said, smiling up into his eyes.

Grov looked at the woman's dark eyes, and tensed up a little before responding to her. "Thank you. Your brother is a good hunter." Grov looked over at Jondaria, who had recently gotten up and was now sitting on the other side of the fire with one of Janika's friends. He then looked for Ivanolia or Donzolnia, but both seemed to be off somewhere for the moment. Grov sighed, guessing that he'd have to talk to the woman.

"And thank you for your help," he continued. "It made the work go so much faster."

Janika beamed at him, happy that he was finally talking to her. "I'm glad we were of assistance," she replied, trying to flirt with the man.

"We'd probably still be out there, if you and your friends had not shown up," he said, trying to be friendly.

Janika giggled. "Oh go on," she said, putting her hand on his arm. "You would not." She giggled again.

Grov stiffened slightly and looked down at her hand with a frown. Why is she always touching me? he wondered. It's not like I've encouraged her. His mind went to the times he'd told this woman no. He did not think that she'd just been disappointed. Then he thought about Ivanolia's words. _Just give her a turn and be done with it_, the man had said. _That's all they really want; to see what a new man is like._ Grov wondered if that was all it was, but then he remembered the dark look of anger he'd seen in her eyes, and the mean words she had spewed that one foggy morning. He was still a little nervous around her.

"How about some more bouza," she offered. She was smiling sweetly at him, and she started pouring before he could answer one way or the other. He tried to smile back as he watched her pour some into her own cup. "Did I tell you my mother's mate made this?"

"You did," he replied, taking a sip. "Last night. It _is_ good. It tastes less bitter than what I have tasted before." He took a breath and brought his cup to his mouth to down the bouza again. He tried to relax.

"That is why I like it. Most bouza is too much for me, but my mother's mate has perfected his." She smiled again and touched him again. This time she put her hand on his leg. "More?" she asked, snuggling up to him.

Grov frowned, contemplating her offer. More what? he asked himself, looking down at her hand on his thigh. He looked around at the other people nervously, then considered the offered bouza. He'd already had five cups of it and things were starting to look just a bit distorted.

"Oh come on, Grov," she whined. "We're supposed to be having fun here; the hunt was a success."

He looked back at her and nodded acceptance to more bouza. He watched her as she poured. She didn't seem so bad to him at the moment, and the brew _was_ good.

"So, where did you put the hide that you saved?" she asked him.

"I rolled it up and left it out next to my tent," he answered her, pointing toward his tent.

She turned her head to look in the direction of his tent; it was just out of the ring of firelight. "It's going to get stiff if you do not work it," she said with a frown.

Grov shrugged. "I do not know how to work it."

"Why not?"

Grov shook his head. "Men of the Clan do not know how to do women's work," he answered.

Janika's eyebrows shot up. "Women's work?"

The man smiled, knowing that the Others didn't have gender-defined jobs. "Yes, in the Clan, men hunt and protect, and women cook, clean and take care of the children. Ayla will work the hide for me."

Janika frowned at the mention of his mate, then brightened. "I could do it for you." She started to get up, as if she was going to do it at that very moment, but Grov put his hand on her shoulder.

"No, that is not necessary," he said. "Ayla can do it." The woman frowned again. "Besides, I do not know what she wants it for, so it's better to just let it sit. She can soak it and work it later."

Janika nodded, then changed the subject; she did not want to talk about Ayla. "Hey, can I see that spear you used to kill the bison?"

"Uhh . . . well, okay," he replied. "But I'll have to go get it. It's in my tent." He got up and headed toward his tent, noticing that she got up and followed.

As they weaved their way across the campsite, in a rather drunken manner, Grov watched the blurred people around him. Everyone seemed quite happy and busy with those around them. Some told hunt stories, while others listened. Some sang songs or played small bone instruments that had been brought along for post-hunt entertainment, while others danced in tune to the music. Everyone was busy.

It only took moments to cross the campsite area, going from the brightly lit up space near the fires, to the dimly lit area where the tents were. When they got to his tent, he handed her his cup. "Wait here," he said, and knelt to enter.

Inside the tent it was almost completely dark. The man crawled across the furs that were on top of one of Ayla's thick hides, and over to the place where he'd put his Clan spear. He had tucked it under his fur, but on top of the hide. As the man touched the hide, he thought of Mog-ur One-Eye, and wished he could have met the man that had died before he had joined Brun's clan. He knew that _this_ particular hide had once been Creb's hide shelter, and that Ayla had turned it into a nice waterproof ground covering.

He shook his head and searched in the darkness, finally grabbing the lonely spear. He would have placed all his spears there, but the Others' spears were too long to fit in his tent. Turning around, he crawled back toward the entrance, noticing that he could see Janika's silhouette. She was just standing there waiting for him to return. He sighed, wishing Ayla was there, then pushed aside the tent flap and exited.

Once outside, he stood up and brushed off his knees. Janika was still holding his cup, so he took it and handed her his spear. "I guess it's too dark over here. Let's go back over to the fire so you can see it." He smiled down at her, and put his free hand on her arm as if to guild her over there.

She hesitated for a moment, taking the opportunity to lean into him as she looked over at the fire. She wished she could think of a reason to stay where they were, now that he was finally paying attention to her, but she couldn't. Janika looked at the spear in her hand. She _was_ interested in seeing his spear, but she had other interests too. Finally, unable to come up with something plausible, she nodded.

As they headed back toward the fires a group of people from Hill Camp stopped them, wanting to see Grov's spear as well. Janika handed it to them to inspect. One man hefted it above his head, making a mock throwing motion. "How can you throw this?" he asked. "It's too heavy."

Grov smiled. "The Clan does not throw their spears. They are only for thrusting," he explained.

The man's eyes widened. "Wow, That must be very dangerous. I don't think I'd want to get so close to anger animal."

"You should have seen him kill the bison," Janika said, as if she had. "He saved my brother from being trampled." Grov started to object, but someone else started talking first; it was the man of Janika's hearth and he did not look happy to see her with him.

"So I've heard," the man said flatly, looking from Janika to Grov. What is she doing with this flathead? he wondered. I have told her to stay away from him. He eyed the man, then turned back to Janika and said, "Don't you think it's getting late?"

Janika smiled coolly at the man of her hearth, thinking that he was being a pain. She did not want to sleep and had no intention of doing so. After all, she was a grown woman now and didn't have to go to bed early if she did not want to. "We are celebrating," she exclaimed, taking a gulp from her cup. "It's much too _early_ to go to sleep." The older man frowned and turned to eye Grov again.

Grov stared into his cup, then drank so that he did not have to look at the penetrating eyes of the older man. At the moment, he wanted to run. He didn't really want to spend time with Janika anyway, especially now that the man of her hearth was scowling at him. It was obvious that _this_ man did not like him, and that he wasn't happy that Janika was with him. Then someone else walked up, redirecting Grov's thoughts.

"Hey, I was looking for you," said a torch wielding Ivanolia, who had come up out of breath. "I was wondering if you had any Clan knives with you?"

Grov thought for a moment, swaying slightly from the large amount of bouza he had consumed. "I might," he said uncertainly, looking embarrassed. "Ayla was the one that packed my bag, so I'll have to go check." He turned to face the other people. "Excuse me," he said, accepting his spear back from the man that still held it and walking away with Ivanolia. Janika gave the man of her hearth a quick glance, then followed the two men before he could object.

Ivanolia looked back over his shoulder at Janika and watched as she ran to catch up with them, then he glanced at Grov. Grov rolled his eyes as if to say, _I'm trying to be nice_. Ivanolia hid a smile. "I thought that maybe you'd gone to bed, but Vincenzia told me you had just gone by."

"Janika wanted to see my spear."

Ivanolia nodded, then silently signed so Janika wouldn't understand him. "I'll bet."

Grov's face reddened at the other man's reference, but looked surprised to see him signing. He hadn't known Ivanolia had picked it up.

**xXx**

Back at Grov's tent the man set his cup down and handed his spear to Janika, then crawled inside again. Hurriedly, he grabbed his pack, went back out, and dumped the pack's contents on the ground. Rummaging through it quickly, the man smiled. "Here's one," he said, picking up the best one there and handing it to Ivanolia.

"Do you mind if I borrow it? I was just telling a few people about Clan tools and they wanted to see one."

Grov didn't think they'd be too impressed with Clan tools when they made such beautiful ones themselves, but shook his head anyway. "No, go ahead. In fact," he said, looking down at the pile. "You can keep it; I have several here." Ivanolia smiled, then turned to leave.

"Hey, Ivan," Janika said sweetly. "Can we have your torch?" The man shrugged and handed it to her, then left.

As the man left, they watched him melt back into the fray of people. When he was out of sight Janika leaned Grov's spear against the tent and squatted down to look at one of the other blades. "This is a knife?" she asked skeptically, eyeing what looked to her to be a sharp piece of flint.

Grov understood her disbelief; there was a huge difference in their people's technology. Slowly, he took it out of her hand and held it the way it was supposed to be held so that she could see it properly. "Yes. It's rather crude compared to your knives, but it works well enough," he said, slipping his belonging back into his pack and standing. "I'll just put these away, then we can go back to the fire."

Janika waited while he was inside, wishing he'd invite her in. Then, when he came out again she started giggling.

He frowned. "What?"

"You have something caught in your hair," she said, reaching up to pull it out. It was a leaf. How'd _that_ get there? he wondered. He hadn't been anywhere near a tree, he thought with a frown. Janika smiled up at him and let the leaf flutter out of her hand, then she moved in closer to caress his cheek.

The man stiffened at her touch, using his hand to pull hers away. "We should get back," he said, taking the torch back from her.

The woman stood there holding tight to the hand that was brushing her off again. What is _wrong_ with him? she kept repeating in her head. Here I am, offering myself to him and he keeps pushing me away. A muscle twitched in her face. She was getting angry again, but was forcing herself to be nice. She stood there for a moment, staring up at him, then let herself sway closer and brushed his lips with hers.

Grov saw it coming, but too late to pull back. He let her kiss him, but when she dropped his spear and tried to wrap her arms around him, he backed off again. "Janika," he said, taking a step away. She opened her eyes and frowned. In the torchlight he thought he saw that angry look flash across her face, then disappear. It had come and gone so quickly, he questioned whether or not he'd really seen it. "We should get back," he repeated, starting to pull her toward the fire again.

"Wait," Janika said, bending over and grabbing his spear. "You still haven't shown me your spear."

Grov frowned at her. He knew she had seen it perfectly well when they were with that group from Hill Camp. Why did she want to see it again? "It's really nothing special," he said, taking it from her and holding it up to the torch she was now carrying. "Just thicker and shorter, and much heavier."

She looked and nodded, not _really_ that interested. "Here, let me put it back for you," she said, grabbing it back and thrusting the torch at him, then entering his tent before he could object. She had hoped he would follow her, if only to ask her to leave his tent, but he didn't; he just stared after her.

Though Janika had done this in part so he would come after her, she also wanted to see inside his tent and took the chance to look around; his torchlight outside was just enough to see her surroundings. Setting his spear down, she noticed that she was kneeling on his bedding. Running her hand along the thick fur, she closed her eyes, trying to imagine herself lying next him. And image of Grov's mate came to her mind causing her to frown. She shook her head to push it away. Then, opening her eyes again, she saw his pack at the far side of the tent, but not much else. He only had what he could reasonably carry. She sighed and left his tent.

Outside, he was just standing there. She picked up their cups. "Let's go back and get some more bouza," she smiled at him again.

"Maybe just one more," he replied. "Then I need to sleep."

**End of Part SIX!**

* * *

><p><strong>Post Script<strong>

As stated at the top of this page (part six)—and every other part—there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is **unfinished**...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an **"in progress"** story...which has very little hope of ever _being_ completed. Continue at your own risk!

Okay. It took me over part of a MLB game and one Law & Order: CI to transfer part six from the site where I originally posted it to this site (which means...copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste...and so on), so it might be a while before I transfer parts seven through ten. I promise that I'll eventually get it all moved over—I do NOT, however, promise to finish the story.

Thanks for reading and for your patience!


	7. Part 7

**Author's Note**

**Reminder** – this fic is **UNFINISHED**...so when you get to (and through) part ten, don't bitch at me that you weren't warned! In fact, you are being warned at both the top AND bottom of each and every part, so...yeah!

Anyway, I worked _really_ hard to make sure all the scene breaks are there...but again, I apologize if some are still missing. They were definitely there when I uploaded this document...I swear! But this site is weird about NOT including everything I write (especially if the breaks aren't the exact characters that the site wants). So VERY aggravating! *sigh*

And further...**sorry** about the typographical errors (spelling, grammar, and the like). This was written _years_ ago, when I was new to writing and just didn't know any better. I have, since learned A LOT! However, not all the errors are mine, as this site seems to make changes without my knowledge and/or consent. It's WEIRD!

**After the Death Curse – Part Seven (of ten)**

**Ranking of Sungaean Camps**

**Pine** – refer to Panther's listing for list of other names (may post them at a later date if I feel like I need to)

**-~- **Bandolia (Headman) - stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, voted against Ayla

**-~- **Bidena (Headwoman)

**Alder**

**-~- **Andovia

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Elm**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named yet, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Beech**

**-~- **Tegassia (Headman) – brother of Tagnolia and Tiflona of Oak Camp, and Tegaria and Temina of Birch Camp

**-~- **Tarana (Headwoman) – sister of Tagnolia and Tiflona of Oak Camp, and Tegaria and Temina of Birch Camp

**Oak** – a full list of characters for Oak Tent is forthcoming

**-~- **Tagnolia (Headman)

**-~- **Tiflona (Headwoman)

**Maple**

**-~- **Bolodenkia (Headman) – Head Brother because Maple Camp is hosting the summer meeting, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, chose not to vote for or against Ayla

**-~- **Breidara – Head Sister, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Banyan**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Willow**

**-~- **Vardasia (Headman) – cousin of Vilognia and Vincenzia (mother's were sisters), stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, supported Ayla

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Birch**

**-~- **Tigaria (Headman) - brother of Tigassia and Tarana of Beech Camp, and Tagnolia and Tiflona of Oak Camp

**-~- **Temina (Headwoman) – of Tigassia and Tarana of Beech Camp, and Tagnolia and Tiflona of Oak Camp, Dimia's mother, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Hill**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Spruce**

**-~- **Sardovia – related to Vardasia, but not Vincenzia, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, supported Ayla

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Poplar**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Linden**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Cypress**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Larch**

**-~- **Headman – not named

**-~- **Headwoman – not named

**Cedar**

**-~- **Headman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, voted against Ayla

**-~- **Headwoman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Dogwood**

**-~- **Headman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, voted against Ayla

**-~- **Headwoman – not named, stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Sumac**

**-~- **Ivarsia (Headman) - stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, voted against Ayla

**-~- **Iyena – stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

**Ash**

**-~- **Kazaskia – stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt, voted against Ayla

**-~- **Kazara – stayed at summer meeting during first summer hunt

Camps **not** attending this summer meeting – **Acacia, Aspen, Hemlock, Sequoia and Syamore**

**XxX**

**A Night of Dreams  
><strong>  
>Grov did just what he said he was going to do; he drank one more cup of bouza with the woman, then left the fire to go to bed. It had been a long, hard day, and though the hunt had been successful, the work wasn't over yet, and wouldn't be until they got the meat back to the meeting.<p>

After saying goodnight to several people, the man crossed the space and entered the shadows that hovered beyond the edge of firelight. His destination was his tent and the furs that would hold him throughout the night. He wished Ayla was there waiting for him, and hoped she was doing all right.

Just before reaching his tent, he turned and slipped between the tents to the open space behind; he needed to pass his water. For a moment, he fumbled with the tie that kept his leggings on, thinking that the clothing of the Others made things like this much more difficult. Had he been wearing a clan wrap, he could have just lifted it to do his business, but instead he struggled with drunken fingers in the darkness.

When finally the knot was loosened, he lowered his leggings, pulled out his member and let his stream flow. It was at that moment that a chill breeze blew from the north, reminding him that the Others did indeed make decent things to wear; his Clan wrap would not have been enough.

**xXx**

Janara had stared after him again, clearly frustrated that he wouldn't accept her advances, but no one noticed. Everyone else had either paired off and gone to bed, or were still enjoying themselves. She watched him, until he went between the tents, then she looked back at the fire. She knew where he was going.

Why won't he take pleasure in me? she asked herself tearfully. I am a perfectly good woman. I'm young and beautiful. I have high status. She sniffled. Her feelings were hurt, but with the hurt, Janara's thoughts were becoming twisted. She pushed angrily at the wetness on her face. And look at him . . . he is just a mixed up flathead. He is _lucky_ that I'm so interested. She had to fight hard to control the anger that was building up. She took a deep breath and turned to look back in the direction the man had gone. He had just appeared again, and though darkness shrouded the tent area, Janara could see enough to know that the man had pulled off his tunic and entered his tent.

**xXx**

Grov crawled across his furs and lay down. His head was spinning slightly. Nothing too bad, but enough so that he just wanted sleep to take him. He was _so_ tired that he didn't even realized he still clutched his tunic.

**xXxXxXx**

Despite all that had happened that day, or as Ayla thought about it, all that had _not_ happened, she had been in a rather good mood that evening. She had eaten with Seriana and Dimia, over at Beech Tent, accompanied by Brulenzia and Laurana, of course, since the man was not allowing her out of his sight again, even for a moment.

Ayla had smiled. _"I am sure Zadneetsia wouldn't try it again, Brulenzia."_

"Well, we're not taking any chances," he said firmly. "Besides, Dima is my cousin, I'd like to share a meal with them." Ayla had shrugged. She had been glad for the company.

Now, as she looked down at her sleeping children, she sighed and turned toward her own bed. She was very tired. It had been a long, hard day. She quickly slipped off her leggings and climbed into bed. She was asleep almost instantly and dreaming within a very short time.

_A woman stood in the center of a long, sheltered valley watching the two horses before her. The dun yellow mare was closer, and the woman was standing completely still, holding out a small apple and making quiet horse sounding nickers, trying to gently coax the large animal to brave the extra few steps to come within her reach. The horse was not fooled, whinnied loudly and pranced away._

As the yellow horse tossed her head and galloped a short distance away, the lighter horse came forward, stomping her hooves on the ground in front of the woman. She could tell that the horses wanted them to release the younger horse, but they would not relinquish the prize they had so recently gained.

The woman stood patiently, continuing to hold out her treat-filled hand. She watched the pale horse paw the ground roughly a short distance from her, causing the yellow horse to whinny loudly and prance around. The yellow horse had retreated halfway across the valley, and wasn't very happy, but the lighter horse was coming closer; she was more interested in the woman and what she held in her hand. After pawing the ground again, a little less harshly this time, the curious mare came up and snatched the apple out of the woman's hand, then trotted away exuberantly to enjoy the treat. The woman touched her palm where the horse's lips had nibbled her and giggled with delight, then she reached into her pack to get another apple, hoping to lure in the other horse.

The yellow horse went to sniff her sister's muzzle, then nickered softly as she cautiously approached the apple-holding woman. The woman held her breath and stood perfectly still. She waited for the yellow mare, but the lighter horse came forward again and quickly snatched a second apple. This time she did not move too far off, deciding instead, that the woman with tasty treats might be safe.

The woman pulled another apple out of her pack, and held it out again. This time, when the lighter horse approached, the yellow horse nipped her, then braved her fear of the human and slowly came forward. The woman relaxed her arm slightly, trying to make the horse come just a little closer, but the mare held up a bit and nickered, then finally took the apple like her sister had done. The woman smiled widely and glanced back at the man, who, with one hand, still held the end of a small rope that restrained the younger horse. He was scratching the horse's neck with the other hand.

"Did you see that?" she signed to him. He nodded and smiled at her. She was about to say something else to him, when she felt a not-so-gentle nudge on her left arm.

Ayla opened her eyes and reached to touch her left arm. The touch almost felt real. She smiled, glad that her sleep was filled with dreams of horses. She had been wondering about her visions.

"Are you okay, Ayla?" a male voice asked.

Ayla was startled for a moment. It was Brulenzia. He was sitting on the edge of his and Laurana's bed platform watching her. "Oh yes, I am fine," she whispered. "I was just dreaming."

He nodded. "I thought you were. You were moving about a bit, but you didn't seem to be upset."

"No, it was not a bad dream," she said with a smile. She wondered how long he had been watching her.

"Do you need anything?" he asked. He and Tinozia were taking turns watching her sleep, but there was only one more night until the other man's Shomata. It would be up to Brulenzia after that.

Ayla thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I do not think so." She smiled at him. "You do not have to watch me, Brulenzia. I am fine now."

She saw him blush in the low lamp light, but he smiled. "I am glad you are fine, Ayla, but it makes me . . . _us_ . . . feel better to know you are . . . okay. I still cannot believe what happened, or that they didn't do anything about it."

Ayla frowned; she could not believe it either, but for her, she knew it could have been a lot worse; she had lived through a lot worse. She shuddered at the thought of Broud's forceful penetration, then blinked her eyes to bring her back to the present, and sat up.

"Brulenzia, what happened _was_ bad, but I _really_ am fine." She had taken his hands and was smiling at him. "Please don't worry. I have been through much worse."

He blushed again. Yes, this woman knew what it was like to be forced, but that only made him worry more. He shook his head. "You have lived through so much, Ayla, and you are very strong, but please don't ask us not to worry."

She smiled again. "Fair enough."

"I am also worried about what will happen when the hunting party returns." His brow was knotted in a tight frown. "What is Grov going to think?" Ayla shrugged. "We have let him down," Brulenzia finished.

"No you haven't. He did not expect you follow me around constantly. If anything, he will be proud of Oak Camp for taking such good care of me. This is _not_ Oak Camp's fault. There is only one person at fault and that is Zadneetsia." She patted the man's hand and stood up. "I am going to go check on my children."

Brulenzia watched her go, then got back into his bed. Unconsciously, Laurana snuggled up to him.

**xXxXxXx**

Grov had stared up at the tent top for a short time, thinking about Ayla, but had fallen fast. His sleep was filled with dreams as well, dreams of Ayla.

_Ayla smiled and looked at him teasingly, then ran down the dimly lit cave passageway. He ran after her, catching her around the waist and pulling her in close for a kiss. She allowed it for a moment, then pushed him back and ran for their hearth. He smiled and followed._

At the hearth, the woman was suddenly naked, waiting for him to take her. He could not resist pulling her into his arms, and kissing her hard. When he opened his eyes, it was dark; the fire must have gone out, he thought.

Somehow they ended up in their furs, both groping in the darkness. She was kissing his neck; he felt his body shiver. She moved to his chest, then sat up to untie the knotted string around the waist of his leggings. He gasped and nearly sat up. "Let me do this," she whispered, pushing him back down and grasping his hard member. He groaned and opened his eyes to see her. He could see again, but not very well. Maybe the hearth fire hadn't gone out completely. He groaned again and closed his eyes. She leaned down and kissed him, but something wasn't right. He opened his eyes again; it was so bright Grov thought he was outside in the sun. Ayla was gone.

The man sat bolt upright in his tent. It was still night. He was confused. It took a moment to remember where he was, and then he realized he wasn't alone in his tent. He couldn't see well and he was still dizzy from the bouza, but he knew who was there; he could smell her.

"Janara!" he exclaimed. "What are you _doing_ in here?" She didn't answer at first. Suddenly his dream came back to him. Ayla! He had been dreaming of Ayla, but Janara had been there touching him. "I _said_, what are you doing in here?"

"I . . . I wanted to . . . " she stammered.

"It's quite obvious what you _wanted_ to do," he hissed angrily, yanking at his leggings and snapping the tie shut. "You need to leave; I did not invite you here. Please go." He pointed at the tent flap.

Janara was shocked by his vehemence, and her feelings were more than hurt. She knew she had done wrong, but she just could not understand a man telling her no and meaning it. There had been many men in the past that said no, but they always gave in. What made this man so different?

Slowly, she started to move back. She had pulled off her own tunic and had to put it back on before leaving. She had tears in her eyes, but he couldn't see them; the light was too low. Not that it mattered, he was so angry. She was too. It hurt that he kept telling her no, but she was furious that he had made her cry. She didn't like to cry. Quickly, she exited, and ran to her own tent.

Grov held his breath as she left, then let himself fall back into his furs, sighing loudly. How did he let this happen? he angrily asked himself. He thought about the hunt and how nice she had been afterwards. Extremely helpful with the butchering of the cow, and friendly during the evening; overly friendly, he now realized. Now he understood that she had been planning this?

The man lay there for quite some time, but slowly, sleep finally overcame him.

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla slept deeply the rest of the night, and awoke very early the next morning thinking of her dream. She desperately wished it was time to go find her horses, but the sign to leave had not come yet. She glanced over at Brulenzia; the man finally slept, but she could hear others stirring. No doubt Travie was up making tea. Ayla decided to rise.

Slipping on her leggings and camp shoes, she made her way toward the small cooking area. Passing her daughters, she noticed that Ora still slept, but Annaliza was awake. She was just lying there.

"Do you want to get up?" Ayla gestured. The girl nodded and extended her arms. Together, they went to see who else was up.

**xXx**

Ayla was indeed correct, Travie was there making tea. She could not sleep.

"Good morning, Ayla," the older woman said when Ayla appeared. "Can't sleep?"

Ayla shook her head. "I am usually up early."

"Hummm, me too." Travie handed Ayla a cup of tea and grunted, her mind straying to what had happened to the young woman. "No nightmares?"

"No . . . I _did_ dream quite a bit, but no, no nightmares." Ayla sat down and smiled, and sipped her tea. Travie looked skeptical; she did not know that Ayla could not lie. "Really, no nightmares," Ayla promised, making Travie smile.

"Good, good," she said. "So, what will you do today?"

"You mean, if they let me out of their sight?" Ayla asked, grinning.

"Do you _really_ expect them to?"

Ayla thought for a moment, then shook her head. "But I will be fine. And they can't just follow me around, can they?"

Travie smiled at the young woman. "I suppose not. So, what will you do?"

"Actually, I want to make the girls a new outfit," she answered the woman. "I have a few nice skins, but I would like to see how others make clothing for their children. Is there a place where that is done?"

"Yes, the leather worker's tent is on the west side of camp, just south of the healer's tent," Travie informed her, then she frowned. "But it is close to Sumac Camp . . . maybe you should work here, Ayla."

Ayla had no desire to run into Zadneetsia, but she also had no intention of staying at Oak Tent for the remainder of the summer meeting. "No, I will work there with everyone else."

The older woman continued to frown. "But, Ayla . . ."

"Travie, if I hide from him, then he wins," Ayla explained. "Besides, I'm sure I'm perfectly safe; there will be so many people there."

"You are right, of course, but . . . but I still don't like it." Travie was giving up her protest. It was obvious Ayla had made up her mind. Travie smiled at the young woman's stubbornness.

**xXxXxXx**

Grov woke up the next morning in quite a foul mood. He knew they would be leaving, so immediately upon rising, he threw his belongings into his pack, then stepped out and dismantled his tent, causing his spears, which had been so neatly leaning against the outside of his tent, to fall to the ground with a clatter. He left them sitting in a heap with the rest of his things, and stomped off to pass water.

**xXx**

Jondaria, who was over at the morning fire, turned at the noise. He saw his new friend's frustration and glanced over at his sister. Janara was sitting with her two friends, and she was not even looking in the direction of the man. Jondaria shook his head.

**xXx**

"You better go talk to him," insisted Darvie, leaning in to kiss her mate good morning. They had heard what transpired in Grov's tent the night before. There was no question in their minds that he had done nothing wrong, but if he carried on the way he was, others might be inclined to believe otherwise.

Vincenzia kissed the woman back. "Yes, I know," he said with a sigh. "I'll go now." He left their tent to go find the young Clan man.

**xXx**

When Vincenzia did find him, it appeared that the man was just standing at the place where the men relieved themselves. The older man did not want to interrupt, but it soon became apparent that Grov wasn't planning on coming back any time soon. Finally, he walked forward, and clapped Grov on the back.

"Quite an evening, huh?" Vincenzia said.

Grov was startled for a moment, and worried about what this man might think of him. "Uh-ha."

"You know, I just wanted you to know that I . . . well, Darvie and I, actually . . . heard what Janara did."

Grov stared at him. Then, realizing they had probably been in bed, in the tent right next to his, when the young woman had entered his tent to molest him. They had heard the whole conversation, he thought. He blushed and looked away.

"She should not have done that Grov, and you did nothing wrong. A man does not have to honor the Mother with a woman just because she is the chosen of Sumata." Vincenzia waited for the man to take control of his emotions, then he continued. "Come, let's go back. Darvie will have tea ready for us."

Grov nodded. He did not want to go back, but he knew he had to sooner or later, and tea did sound good.

**xXx**

As the hunters began their trek back to the summer meeting, Grov mostly kept to himself. He carried all of his own belongings, his share of his shared kill, plus Darvie's large pack. Most people did not know why he was so upset, but they kept their distance.

Janara watched him from a fair distance away as well. When she went to bed the night before, she was sobbing. She knew she had been sneaky and that she should not have gone into his tent, but she could not help herself. She was deeply hurt that he _still_ did not want her, and she had cried herself to sleep.

By morning, she was embarrassed that she had gotten so upset, and then angry that he had embarrassed her. She did not understand that _she_ had embarrassed herself, or that it didn't even matter because only a very few even had a clue as to what had happened the night before, and they _only_ had knowledge of it due to the proximity of their tent.

As she watched him walk, she was seething with anger, and wishing she could get back at him for making her look bad.

**xXx**

Another person, or rather, people, that had heard the exchange were Jondaria and the woman that he took to his bed. Jondaria chose not to walk with either his sister or Grov that day. Grov was in no mood to converse; not even Ivanolia and Donzolnia were with him, and Jondaria was feeling some sort of pull, because Janara was his sister.

However, the man also didn't want to go anywhere _near_ his sister. He felt that she was wrong, and he was disgusted with her behavior. He wanted to talk to his mother's mate, but wondered if it would do any good; the man of his hearth was clearly opposed to Grov even being at the summer meeting. Jondaria didn't know what to do. He believed his sister needed to be reprimanded before her behavior got any worse, but if not by the man their hearth, then who?

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla spent the day in the leather-working tent, and managed to make a summer outfit for each of her daughters. When she returned to Oak Tent in late afternoon, and dressed them, several people smiled as they showed off their new clothing. Ora twirled around, in what was to most there, a very short skirt and very short sleeve tunic. In actuality, Ayla had just fashioned for the child what would be a male breechclout in the Clan, then she had wrapped more leather around it, using a cut that a Sungaean girl might like, so that the child would not object to wearing a _boy's_ wrap. Annaliza's was not much different, except that it needed room for the absorbent padding that she still wore most of the time, and easy access for changing her.

Many commented on the outfits and wondered why no one had thought of such simple attire. True, most young ones didn't wear too much anyway, but everyone noticed that Ayla's two girls liked having something cute to wear, and perhaps liked even more that people were watching them.

The day ended with several planning variations for older members of the meeting, and Ayla and a few others talked about something similar for boys. She had promised Durc that she'd use his rabbit skins to make something for Grev, and now she had a vision of what she wanted to make.

**xXxXxXx**

The hunting party stopped at dusk. It had been another long, hard day, and they had not gotten very far. The hike back was going to take much longer than the hike out, but that was to be expected with heavily loaded people.

The hunt leader ordered fires to be set, for a bit of warmth, but mostly to keep predators away. After the fires were going, tents were put up, most ate a quick meal, and everyone went to bed. Though it had been fun to celebrate their success the night before, everyone knew that they still had a great distance to go, and wanted to be rested. Another day was finally over.

**XxX**

**A Dinner Guest  
><strong>  
>The next day passed quickly for everyone. Ayla spent much of the day sewing again, and made a similar summer outfit for Durc and Grev, using, of course, a less feminine style, so that the boys would not object to them. Several other women in the leather working tent were curious about the woman's activities and made no qualms about sitting close enough to see, though most didn't comment much.<p>

Ayla did have a nice conversation with a shy, woman that sat off to the side working alone. Ayla felt there was something familiar about her, but couldn't place her finger on it. She observed her unobtrusively for quite some time, noticing first that the woman had shoulder-length, light brown hair and that she was, perhaps, a little older than herself. Ayla's trained eyes saw a sadness about her that made her heart go out to the woman even without knowing who she was or where she came from.

Ayla's eyes turned next to the woman's dress, which was an indistinct brown color, and totally void of decoration. Much like her own clothing, Ayla thought, as she looked down at the plain, slightly yellowish tunic and leggings she had chosen that morning. Ayla's mind went to the rest of her wardrobe. She did not have much. Then she looked over at the woman again.

From her place across the tent, Ayla continued her surreptitious observation. It was hard to tell with the woman sitting down working, but the dress she was wearing appeared to come down to her knees and was cut straight across at the bottom. Ayla could see that it had short sleeves and a square neckline, both of which, she thought to be very flattering on the woman.

The woman wore no jewelry, other than two plain bands around her right arm. Ayla tried to see them better, but the distance was too far and the light too low. They seemed out of place against the woman's drab attire.

Ayla then looked at what the woman was working on and noticed that she was _also_ making an outfit for a child, or rather, that she was trying to reuse an old outfit to make a new one. From where Ayla was, she could see that the piece of leather had some fine beadwork on it, but that the beading was falling off, and the woman was carefully placing the beads in a pile, most probably to replace them later. Ayla also saw that she was using some rather old tools, hardly serviceable, as far as Ayla was concerned. Finally, she decided to go talk to her. She approached slowly.

"Hallo," Ayla said, coming up to her and smiling. The woman looked up at her. "May I sit down with you?"

The woman just stared up at her for a moment. Most people did not make offers to sit down with her. "Ah . . . of . . . of course," she stammered. The woman watched Ayla kneel down gracefully, wondering what the woman could possibly want.

"I am called Ayla." Ayla waited, expecting the woman to introduce herself, but she didn't, so Ayla continued. "I am first daughter of Vincenzia's hearth, born to Annalisa of the Snow Leopard Hearth of Oak Camp, found and raised by the first healer of the Clan of the Cave Bear, protected by the spirit of the cave lion, trained to serve as a healer of the Clan, mated to Grov, mother of Durc, Ora and Annaliza, and friend to the meat-eater Shriek."

The woman just stared again. She already knew who this woman _was_, everyone did, but she hadn't heard her ties before. Some of them sounded strange. Finally, she found her tongue. "What is a Shriek?"

Ayla smiled and picked up her leatherwork. "Shriek is my hawk." She stopped and frowned. "But he has been gone for several days." She shook her head. "But, he does that . . . take off, I mean. Sometimes I worry." The woman nodded. Ayla looked down at her work, then made the final stitch. "So, what do you think?" she asked, holding up her finished product.

"It is nice," the woman replied. She glanced at her own work, then back at Ayla. "Who is that for?"

"This one is for my son, Durc," she said, then picked up a nearly identical outfit. "But _this one_, is for my son's friend. We promised to bring something back for him when we go home to our cave, after the summer meeting." Ayla looked at the woman's work. "That is very nice beadwork. I do not know how to do that."

The woman frowned. "You don't?" Who didn't know how to bead a tunic? she wondered, suddenly aware that Ayla's clothing bore no decoration as well.

Ayla shook her head. "No, the people I am from do not decorate their clothing, so I never learned." Ayla was still looking at the other woman's work, and now that she was closer, she could see that though the woman's _work_ was decent, the outfit she was reworking was so old that it was in tatters.

"You know," Ayla started in slowly, not wanting to offend, "I am finished with my work, and I have extra leather. Would you like to have it?"

The woman frowned. Why was this woman being so nice to her? She looked around to see a few people watching them. "I don't know . . . "

Ayla thought she knew the problem and tried again. "I would be happy to trade it to you, if you would show me how to bead a tunic."

The young woman just stared at her again, contemplating the offer and wondering why she didn't just get someone from her own camp to show her how to do beadwork. After all, despite being raised by flatheads, the woman came from a very highly ranked camp; there had to be a dozen women that could show her how to work with beading.

She again looked at the pieces of leather that Ayla was holding up, and wondered if they were as soft as they appeared. Then she looked down at the outfit she was repairing. She would definitely like to have the woman's leather. It was far nicer than the scraps she had been working with, but what would people think. She looked up at a woman that was rudely staring at them, then back at Ayla.

"Okay," she said with a smile, then she frowned again. She had not thought it through. "But I do not have many beads to trade for your leather, only these that have fallen off."

"That is okay. I can get more beads; I just want your skill." Ayla was excited. "You will show me?"

The woman smiled and nodded, then gingerly accepted the pieces of leather that Ayla held out to her. They were softer than she had anticipated, and such a nice color.

Ayla smiled, happy that she had convinced her. "So, who are you making this outfit for?"

"It is for my daughter. She is wearing something that has been too small for too long. This outfit," she said indicating what she held, "belonged to my sister's daughter . . . but she died last year."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Ayla said sadly. "It must be hard to lose a child." The young woman nodded, not adding that she had lost her sister too. Ayla looked at the size of the outfit, and considered what needed to be done. Though she hadn't seen the child yet, the work the woman had already done made it appear that the outfit would probably still be too small for the child.

"How old is your daughter?" Ayla asked. She wanted to help her, but she was curious about the shy stranger as well.

The woman appraised her for a moment. "She is four," she finally said.

Ayla thought about Ora and frowned; the outfit looked too small for her three-year-old. "Well then that's probably too small for her. Maybe we could start over."

Now the woman frowned. She did not have any extra leather, only the old outfit and the extra pieces from Ayla. "She _is_ very small."

"Maybe we could make her a summer outfit, like the ones I made for my daughters yesterday. They look similar to these," she said, indicating Durc and Grev's new clothing. "And I hardly used _any_ leather to make them. What do you think?"

The woman looked at the boy's outfits and smiled. "Do you think we could?" she asked hopefully.

"Sure," Ayla said, then suddenly remembered where she'd seen this woman before, but she could not remember her name. This was the woman that had come out to pick up the hurt child at Sumac Tent that first day. She looked different, cleaner, but Ayla was sure of it. Was that child she had picked up her daughter? Ayla wondered, trying to recall the child's size.

**xXx**

Ayla and the woman worked together for a while, talking mostly about their children, and only touching a few superficial topics. The woman still had not given Ayla her name, and Ayla was reluctant to ask; the woman obviously didn't want to give it. When they were finally done, the woman held up the outfit and smiled. Her daughter would be proud to wear this, she thought.

"Thank you, Ayla" she said. Ayla smiled at her, but didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say, and the woman seemed to be struggling as well. She too didn't know what to say. "When can I show you how to do beadwork?" she asked, wanting to hold up her end of the trade.

Ayla thought for a moment. "What are you doing this evening?" she asked.

The woman's forehead knotted. "I am not sure, why?"

"Why don't you join me at Oak Tent for an evening meal. We can discuss it then."

The woman frowned. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked.

Ayla was surprised. "Why wouldn't I be nice to you?

"Well . . . because . . . I am from Sumac Tent," she replied, and glanced around at the women that thought it okay to stare at them. "I know what Zadneetsia did to you. I am sorry." She looked down at her hands.

Ayla looked at some of the staring people and then back at the woman. "Yes, I know what camp you are from. I remember seeing you there." She paused. "But what he did is not _your_ fault."

"I know, but you don't even know me. I don't know why you have helped me."

Ayla smiled. "I haven't," she said. "We helping each other. I gave you leather and you're going to give me your skill, remember?"

The woman looked down at the outfit again and nodded. "My name is Danta," she finally said, extending her hands in greeting. "In the name of the Mother, I greet you. And I would be honored to share a meal with you at Oak Tent. May I bring my daughter?"

"Of course, Danta," Ayla said, letting out her breath.

**xXx**

After leaving the leather-working tent, Ayla went straight back to Oak Tent. The sun had passed beyond its highest place in the sky, but it was not dropping fast yet. Tinozia and Brulenzia had agreed to let her go alone, with the condition that she'd return early and make no side trips. As it was the two men worried about her.

When she arrived at Oak Tent they sighed with relief, and tried to act as if they had not been counting the moments until she returned. She smiled at them as they left to do whatever it was they were going to do, then she sat down with the women. Jendoza and Laurana were sitting there nursing their babies and Danie was sitting there with them.

"So, how'd it go? Did you make what you wanted to make?" Jendoza asked.

Ayla grinned and held up her work. "Yes. I think they turned out nicely. What do you think?"

Danie took one from her. "I think you will have _all_ the children dressed in these soon."

"Speaking of children," Ayla said. "Where are mine?"

"They are inside with Travie and Fraylora," answered Laurana. "It think they were going to feed them."

"Oh, maybe I should go help." Ayla stood up. "I need to talk to them anyway." She paused. "I have invited someone to our evening meal."

"You _did_? Who?" Jendoza asked curiously.

Ayla's brow wrinkled. She hoped they wouldn't object. "Danta."

Jendoza's eyes opened wide. "_Danta_?"

"Why did you invite _her_?" Laurana asked. There was a bit of repugnance in the young mother's voice. Danie was frowning too. She had been with Jendoza and Ayla when they'd come across Danta, and she wasn't impressed. The Mamutoi had similar camps among them, most of which, people tried to avoid if at all possible.

"Well, she was at the leather-working tent and I started talking to her. She was making an outfit for her daughter, but she was using such terrible old leather that I decided to make a trade with her."

"A _trade_? For what?" Jendoza asked. "She can't possibly have anything that you'd want."

"I traded my extra leather for her skill. Is that not okay?" Ayla asked, wondering if she'd done wrong.

Laurana was frowning. "_Her skill_? What skill does Danta have?

"She has agreed to show me how to bead a tunic. By the way, are there any beads I can trade someone something for? I told her I could get some."

Jendoza smiled. "Of course, Ayla, but you do not have to trade for them. I have plenty. I like making them during the winter; it passes the time." Jendoza eyed the woman. "But why did you trade for Danta's beading skill? I could have shown you how to do it again."

"Well, when I saw her there, working so hard with such awful leather, I felt bad for her." Ayla looked sad. "I started thinking that just because she's from Sumac Camp doesn't mean that she's happy there." Jendoza was nodding, that was true. "And her bead work _was_ nice," Ayla finished.

"Well then, you should go tell Travie and Fraylora. They haven't started the meal yet, but they are likely too very soon."

"And here I thought the only skill Sumac Camp had was drinking bouza," Danie replied, as Ayla walked away.

**xXx**

Danta had gone back to Sumac Tent by means of the outer path. She didn't relish a chance meeting with someone from another camp; people could be so cruel. It was just as Ayla had told the young women of Oak Tent; she did not enjoy being part of Sumac Camp. She had always wished she could find some other camp to take her in, and had been close, once. For a moment, she thought about the young man that had wished to join with her five summers before, then frowned. His mother had not been happy about her son's choice and had done everything to stop it. Then, when she found out she was blessed, the man finally stood up to his mother and declared for her. That was just before the summer hunt that had taken his life. Since then, she had turned inward, trying to shut out everything and everyone. Most at Sumac Camp just ignored her. They didn't seem to care about anything except making and drinking bouza. She could see why people didn't want her around. She didn't want to be around _herself_. Her only joy was her daughter.

When she neared Sumac Tent, she used the back entrance to slip inside without being noticed. She looked around for her daughter. She had left her napping with the other small children. Kneeling down, she touched the child's head and smiled. Danara had always been tiny. She had been born early; Danta always thought it was a miracle she'd even survived.

"Sleep, little girl," she whispered, kissing her daughter's light brown hair. "We are going to have some fun tonight." Danta looked at the other sleeping children, then tucked the new outfit into her pack and shoved it under her daughter's sagging bed. She needed to clean herself up, so that she didn't look so bad. Grabbing the cleanest leather towel she could find she started for the tent entrance.

**xXx**

"You should have seen her face," a man said. Danta stopped and listened. It was Kurvlodia. "She was shocked that I backed you up," he went on.

"I _did_ see her face. It was hysterical. And thanks for that, by the way," she heard Zadneetsia say. "There is _no way_ the Sisters will come up with a different decision, as long as I have your word." The men laughed.

"Too bad you couldn't get her though," Kurvlodia said. "I would have liked to watch _that_ struggle.

"Humph, she didn't even struggle," said Zadneetsia. "She just lay there like those nasty little flatheads . . . until I mentioned the dirty animals, then she kneed me." Danta could almost hear the pain in the man's voice. "I was _so_ close," he said to the other man.

Danta frowned and backed away. She had been wondering if what she'd heard about Ayla was true. Apparently not, she thought. Quickly, she turned around to go use the other exit. She didn't want to run into Zadneetsia and have to explain where she was going, not that he'd even ask.

**xXx**

Danta hurried to the river to wash. Once there, she decided to wash her dress as well. This was the best one she had, but it looked dirty and she wanted to at least look presentable. She washed it first, then wrung it out and put it in the sun to dry. Finally, she waded into the water herself. The water was cold, but refreshing; she felt much better when she was finished.

When she got out of the river, she dried herself off and shook out her hair, then spread her towel out to sit in the sun. She spent some time reworking the leather of her dress, so that it did not dry too stiff. It dried quickly in the summer heat, but her working hands helped it along. By the time it was dry, so was her hair, and her skin had turned slightly pink from the sun. Danta held up her dress, wishing again that she had something else, then dressed hurriedly. It was the best she could do.

**xXx**

Back at Sumac Tent Danara had woken up, but she didn't _get_ up. Though this camp was all that the four-year-old had ever known, she didn't like living there either. Most of the people scared her, even her grandmother, who came and went without saying much to the child.

After looking around to see that her mother wasn't there, she just closed her eyes again and tried to go back to sleep. She did that a lot.

**xXx**

Danta was able to slip back in without being seen again. That wasn't really a hard thing to do at Sumac Tent; everyone was always busy drinking, but she worried anyway.

Inside, she went to Danara's bed and frowned. She's still sleeping? she thought worriedly, then bent over to touch the child's forehead. Danara instantly opened her eyes.

"Hallo, Mama," she said, sitting up.

Danta smiled. "Were you faking it again?" she asked. Danara nodded and slipped her thin arms around her mother's neck. Danta hugged her tiny daughter tight. There wasn't a day that went by that she did not worry about her. Finally, she pulled back. "I have a surprise for you," she said. Danara's eyes got wide, but she did not say anything.

Danta reached for her pack. "I made you a new outfit," the woman said, pulling it out.

Danara smiled as she looked at what her mother made for her. "It's pretty."

Danta grinned again. "And I have another surprise for you. We have been invited to eat with someone."

Danara frowned, remembering the last time they'd been invited to eat with someone. It had been a man from Ash Camp that had turned out to be not very nice. "Who?" she asked guardedly.

Danta recalled their last invitation and shuddered. What had she been thinking when she brought her daughter with her that night? That man had clearly only been interested in one thing, and it wasn't _her_. She could still see her daughter's frightened eyes.

"Well, you don't know her, but her name is Ayla, and she is from Oak Camp. Do you want to go?"

Danara frowned. "Ayla is a woman?" The child wanted verification.

Danta smiled and nodded. "Yes, Ayla is a woman. Actually, she helped me make this outfit for you. Would you like to go there and meet her?" she asked the child again. Danara smiled and got up to get dressed.

**xXx**

Ayla had gone inside to see her children and talk to the women that would be cooking the evening meal. She found the children playing in the small central space where the children's sleeping places were, and sat down to see what they were doing. Some of the boys were wrestling, and the girls were watching. Annaliza was on Crisana's lap, but got down and came over when Ayla appeared.

"Hallo Mamma," she signed, and reached up. She was holding her doll, but dropped it quickly to nurse. Ayla held her nursing one-year-old and watched the others play for a while, then went to see the older women.

**xXx**

"You invited who?" Travie questioned. She did not know who Danta was.

Fraylora frowned and quickly explained who Danta was, then turned back to Ayla. "But why?" Fraylora asked.

Ayla gave them the same explanation she'd given the younger women, and wondered why no one wanted to help. It seemed to her that assisting the people that _wanted_ out of that destructive lifestyle could only benefit the Sungaea as a whole. They seemed to agree, but admitted that they would not have invited her, or anyone else from Sumac Tent for that matter.

**xXx**

As it became late afternoon, Danta and her daughter left Sumac Tent. Again, no one questioned them about where they were going, though several noticed their departure, _and_ the way they were dressed. Danta would have liked to bring something to Oak Tent, but that would have required requesting more than her share of meat from someone that would then question why she wanted it, and she did not want to bring attention to them and their activities. She considered bringing a skin of bouza; that would have been easy to acquire since it was quite plentiful around Sumac Tent, but she did not want to come bearing that, so she went with nothing, and hoped they wouldn't think too badly of her.

Mother and daughter slowly strolled through the summer meeting, feeling shy and awkward. They had not spent much time out with others and were nervous to be out in the open. They walked east, passing the tent of the Council of Sisters, then turned south to get to Oak Tent.

Then, a short distance from their destination, Danta stopped and knelt down in front of her daughter. She pulled on the child's tunic and smiled. "If you want to leave, just let me know, okay?" Danara nodded. Danta smiled and picked her up, then started walking again.

Danta held her daughter tight; both of their hearts were pounding. They were almost there. They stopped just short when they saw the crowd of Oak Camp people around their tentfire. There were many adults sitting there talking and laughing, and even more children running around playing.

"Danta!" a woman called. It was Zarina who had spotted her first. "Come on over," she said, getting up to bring the young woman over. She had been worried about having the woman over, but Ayla's so obvious conclusions about people wanting to improve themselves had won her over.

Danta took a few steps forward, and tried to smile, but she was very nervous. This was Oak Camp's headman's mate. Zarina stopped in front of her. "And who is this?" she asked sweetly, holding her arms out to take Danara from her mothers. Danara only hesitated for a moment, then surprised Danta by allowing herself to be taken.

"This is my daughter, Danara," replied Danta, with a smile like none that had ever graced her face.

Zarina smiled back. "Welcome to Oak Tent," she said. "Let's introduce you to everyone."

Danta followed the woman back to the fire and nervously took each person's hands as they were offered to her in greeting, then she smiled at Ayla, who had made it possible for her to be there. She was glad she had taken the time to wash her dress and bathe.

**xXx**

"I still have not shown you how to bead a tunic," Danta said with a frown, as she stood up to leave. It had been a good evening, but she worried about not making good on the trade. She already felt like she had gotten the better part of the deal and she didn't want Ayla to think badly of her.

Ayla shrugged. "Then we will have to do this again. Maybe you could come back tomorrow. What do you think?"

Danta looked over at Danara, who was sitting with Ayla's daughters and playing with some of the older girls. She saw her little girl giggle with pleasure. "I think we would like that, Ayla. Thank you for having us."

Ayla beamed at her. "You are most welcome."

**xXxXxXx**

Grov's day had been difficult. He was still brooding over what had happened the night before, but at least, he thought, Janara had not come within his sight. He was glad for that, because he did not know what he'd say to her.

He walked with Ivanolia and Donzolnia, but mostly in silence. The other two men talked a little about the hunt, but their conversation quickly turned to their mates, both were longing to get back quickly to see them. Grov listened to them, also wishing to be back with his mate. He had decided that he would not go on another Others hunt, unless she went with them. He might even make it a requirement when they went back to the Clan, he thought. He wondered what Brun would say if he insisted on bringing Ayla to every hunt. That thought actually made him smile. It was his first smile all day.

"What _are_ you smiling about, Grov?" Ivanolia asked the man.

Grov turned to look at him and blushed. "I was just thinking about Ayla," he said, answering the man's direct question. "I miss her."

Both men nodded. They missed their mates too.

**XxX**

**? (Okay, the tangent continues...no chapter title, sorry!) ?  
><strong>  
>Ayla awoke the next morning thinking about Danta and her daughter, and wishing there was more she could do to help the woman out. She couldn't understand how the people of Sumac Camp, or the other lower ranked camps, could allow themselves to fall so low, or why the higher ranked camps did not help them. In the Clan, no one would have had to suffer if hunting was good and natural growth was plentiful, which it was at the moment. Ayla just couldn't see that camps like Sumac had other priorities, and the <em>other<em> camps did not see it as their business to intervene.

Ayla lay there thinking about her new friends. They seemed to enjoy themselves. Danara had joined the children's games, laughing and playing like all the rest, and Danta, though a little shy at first, had fit in just fine. Ayla thought about the reactions she had gotten from the people of Oak Camp. No one seemed to understand her desire to have the woman over, at first. But later, everyone had agreed that Ayla had been right; Danta was a good person. It was obvious the woman didn't like where she was and wanted to do better. Ayla smiled, glad that she had invited them over. She was happy to have made a new friend.

"Good morning, Ayla," Danie said. She was still lying in bed as well, but had noticed that the younger woman was awake. Ayla turned her head.

"Good morning yourself," she said with a smile, then looked around. Most were up already. "I guess it's time to get up. I don't know why I've been sleeping so late. I'm usually up early."

Danie smiled. "Well, with Ivanolia gone, _I'm_ sure sleeping more than usual. Maybe that's it; with Grov gone, you don't have to get up to take care of him."

"_Maybe_," Ayla responded. "But I better get up to take care of the children." Danie absently stroked her belly and smiled. "You seemed to be feeling better, Danie. No more morning sickness?"

Danie shook her head. "Not for a few days now. I am so glad."

"It _can_ be awful, but each one is different," Ayla said, thinking back. "Annaliza was much easier than Durc. "I hardly ever got sick with her." Ayla paused and looked at Danie. "Are you and Ivanolia . . . doing okay?"

The dark-haired woman sat up and shrugged. "I guess so. I have decided to give it some time. I am still angry, but I do not want to leave him."

"He does know that what he did was wrong," Ayla said. She was still trying to convince Danie that she'd made the right choice.

Danie smiled. "I know . . . I think we will be just fine." Ayla smiled.

"Oh look, they're up," Brulenzia said, coming into the tent with several others. The man sat down on a circular shaped bench in the middle of the sleeping area. "Tinozia has to leave us today, to start his Shomata. I was going to go over there with him. Gredenzia's going too, and we'll probably be there for a while . . . but I wanted to check on you first."

Ayla smiled at the man. "I am fine, Brulenzia. Go!"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "No hunting today, right?"

Ayla rolled her eyes at him. "If I go hunting, I'll take someone with me . . . I promise." He smiled at her, then turned to kiss Laurana and left the tent. The women watched him go, then turned back to Ayla.

"So, are you going to invite any _more_ guests over, Ayla?" Jendoza asked.

"I might," Ayla replied. "I _am_ going to see Danta again today. She still needs to show me how to bead a tunic."

Jendoza smiled. "You know, I wasn't sure at first, but Danta turned out to be pretty nice." The other women were nodding.

Laurana was nodding too, but frowning. "But I feel sorry for her. She's too nice to be living with _Sumac_ Camp." Everybody's thoughts turned to Zadneetsia.

"You're not going over to _Sumac_ Tent, are you, Ayla?" Danie asked with a concerned tone. "I'm sure Brulenzia wouldn't want you over there."

"Well, no. Danta and I agreed that she'd come back here today. If that's okay with everyone?" The women nodded.

"Yes, that is fine," said Jendoza. "You can invite anyone you like. Is she bringing Danara with her?"

Ayla frowned. "I did not ask her, but I would assume so. I wouldn't want her to leave her _there_."

**xXx**

Danta woke up later than she had planned, and looked over at her daughter. She expected to find the child with her eyes closed, either sleeping or feigning sleep, but she didn't. Danara was staring up at the tent ceiling and clutching something in her hands. Danta couldn't tell what it was. The woman quickly looked around the tent; nearly everyone was still sound asleep, sleeping off the night before. It was pretty typical of Sumac Camp to sleep well into the day.

Slowly, the woman got up and went to her daughter's bed. Danara smiled and moved over, so that her mother could climb in with her. "Hallo Mamma," she whispered. She had picked up the extra sound that Ayla's daughters used when they spoke to their mother. It made Danta smile.

"Hallo back," she whispered. "What do you have there." She had slipped her arm behind her daughter, and was looking at what the child was holding.

Danara pulled it out and offered it to the woman. "It's a doll. Crisana gave it to me."

"That was nice of her."

The child nodded. "I liked them Mamma. Can we go back there?"

"Well actually, we _are_ going back there today," Danta informed the child. "I have promised to show Ayla how to bead a tunic."

Danara grinned, and sat up. "When?" she said excitedly. "Can we go now?"

The woman looked around that the sleeping people and frowned. A couple had stirred at the sound of her daughter's excited voice. They were likely to get quite upset with her if they found out where they were going. She put her finger to her lips and said, "_Shhhh_," then sat up to whisper in her daughter's ear. "Let's not tell anyone where we're going." Darana nodded her understanding. Then, getting up quickly, Danta dressed her daughter, and then herself, both in the same outfits as the night before, and left their tent.

Once outside, Danta realized that the sun was higher than she thought it would be, and she got worried when she saw several people milling about their area. Someone was making some tea at Dogwood Tent's fire, and there were a few women from Ash Tent by _their_ tentfire, but none of them even looked over at her. She glanced back at Sumac fire; no one was there either. "Good," she whispered to herself. She was just about to head out of camp when she noticed Igorvia coming from beyond the outer path. He was still tying his waist thong. He must have gone to pass his water, she thought with a shudder and wishing she had hurried away before she saw him. She did not like Igorvia at all, though he seemed to try hard to get her attention. He noticed her immediately.

"Danta!" he called from a short distance away. She stopped to wait for him; she couldn't just pretend she didn't hear him and walk away, he would only follow her. She knelt down and faced Danara.

"Danara," she said quickly. "Whatever I say, please don't say anything, okay?" The child nodded. The woman stood up and watched the man approach. He didn't seem any more sober now than he was the night before when she had gotten back from Oak Tent. At least he had left camp to pass his water, she thought. He _was_ one of the few that had the courtesy to do that, though that's where his courtesy ended. As he staggered up to her, she shuddered, knowing he was going to put an arm around her.

Ignoring the child, Igorvia slipped one of his large arms around the woman and pulled her close. "Hey, why didn't you come to my bed last night, Danta?" he asked, bending down to kiss her roughly. "Didn't I tell you I want'd you?"

Danta tasted bouza on his lips and grimaced. I wonder if he sleeps with a skin of it in his bed, she thought, as she squirmed out of his arms and took a step backward. "Actually Igorvia, you didn't," she answered him honestly. She hadn't been there for him to ask her, thank the Mother, she thought.

He seemed stumped for a moment. Why hadn't he asked her to his bed? he wondered. Then he remembered, he hadn't been able to find her the night before. "You weren't here last night, were you?" Danta shook her head. "Well then, come to my bed tonight!" It almost seemed like a command. Danta shuddered again.

"Igorvia, I've already told you that I'm not interested."

He narrowed his eyes at her. She _always_ said that, but he'd convinced her to come to his bed several times in the past, so he figured if he kept asking, she come again. "But you've come to my bed before. Why not now."

_Because I'm sober!_ she wanted to scream at him, but she didn't say that; he would only get angry. "I'm _just_ not interested anymore."

He frowned. "Why not?"

She shrugged. She wouldn't tell him that she couldn't stand to see her daughter's sad face the morning after sharing the man's bed, even one more time. She didn't want to tell him that he was dirty and he smelled, or that he scared her, or that she hated Sumac Camp and all the men around it, or that she wished they'd all just disappear, or that sometimes, she even wished she'd never been born. She couldn't tell him _that_, though it was the truth.

"I'm just not," she said, wishing he'd just leave them alone.

The man was watching her closely and moved in on her again. "Is there someone else?" he asked, leaning down to nibble on her ear.

Danta put her hands on his chest and pushed him away with a little force. "Igor! Stop!" she demanded.

He stopped immediately at her tone and looked down at her. He was a big man and he scared her. "Well, is there?"

Danta had stepped back when he let go and was now holding Danara's hand. "Is there, what?" she asked. Her mind was a little jumbled.

Igorvia looked angry. "Someone else . . . I asked if there was someone else." She didn't respond immediately. "Well, _is there_?"

Danta frowned and shook her head. "No. There is _no one_," she answered the man. "I am interested in _no one_." She hoped that she was being clear; no one meant him too. "Now, if you will excuse us, we're going for a walk."

Igorvia watched the woman and child walk away. They headed south around Cedar Tent, then northeast toward the arena. He wondered where they were going so early in the morning, but shrugged and went back into Sumac Tent. He had a headache and wanted to go back to sleep.

**xXx**

Danta and Danara went northeast in the direction of the arena and turned to go around it, and the musician's tent. She glanced back over her shoulder twice, but didn't see the man following her. She didn't want Igorvia to know where they were _really_ going.

As they came to the flint worker's area, she worried that they'd run into someone else from their camp, or that someone from Sumac Tent would see them across the distance. She kept a watchful eye on the working flint knappers, but didn't see anyone she knew. It was really much too early for anyone from her camp to be out yet, but she worried all the same. Then, as she was walking, someone called her name.

"Danta!" a male voice called out. She froze, then knelt down in front of Danara again.

"Do you remember what I told you before?" The girl nodded. "Good. Same thing now, okay?" The girl nodded again. Danta turned to face whoever it was, then smiled. It was Brulenzia.

The man came up to her and hugged her, then ruffed the hair of the child. "How are you two this morning?" he asked her, smiling down with his beautiful sky blue eyes.

"We are good," she said, blushing slightly. It was not often that someone she thought was decent gave her a hug. "We were j-just on our way to see Ayla, if th-that's _okay_," she stammered.

He continued to smile at her. He was quite aware of the effect he had on women, though he'd given up those things for the woman he loved. "Of course it is. She's waiting for you, I'm sure. I'd walk you there myself, but I told Tinozia that I'd be right back. Sorry."

Danta smiled. "That's okay. We're almost there." The man hugged her again, then walked off. She watched him go, then continued on her way.

**xXx**

Ayla was sitting by Oakfire, feeding her two younger children and worrying about Danta and Danara when they finally arrived. Durc and Brenevia were playing off to the side and saw them first.

"Mama," Durc said, causing his mother to look up and see them too. Ayla smiled and stood to welcome them.

"I'm sorry it's so late," Danta said. "I did not mean to sleep so long."

"That is okay. And it is not really late," Ayla said, squinting up at the sun. It was nearly overhead. Ayla looked back at the woman; she looked a little on edge. "Is everything all right? I _was_ starting to worry." Danta frowned and looked down at her daughter. Ayla understood right away.

"Danara, why don't you and Ora go inside to play," Ayla said, thinking the girls would have more fun in there anyway. Danara looked up at her mother, who nodded, then the two girls ran off to play.

Annaliza pouted. "Me too, Mamma," she gestured.

"Of course you too, Anna. Go ahead." Ayla and Danta watched the one-year-old toddle off after the older girls, then Ayla looked back at her guest.

"I'm sorry I worried you."

Ayla shook her head and waved her hand. "Is everything okay?" she repeated.

Danta looked behind her and scanned the area. "I think so . . . I guess I'm just worried about being here. I'm sure some people wouldn't be too happy about it."

Ayla nodded. "Probably not . . . but we're just trading, right?" she said with a smile.

Danta frowned. "I guess so." Ayla could tell that she was still worried when she looked behind her again. Then, when she looked back, she pulled out a small piece of beaded leather. "I brought this. It's just a piece of beadwork that I cut off an old tunic. My sister did this a couple of years ago."

Ayla reached out and took the small square and examined it carefully, then pulled out a pouch that Jendoza had given her earlier. "These are some shells that Jendoza shaped into beads two winters ago. She said we could have them."

Danta took the pouch and waited while Ayla spread out a blanket for them to work on, then both women sat down. Ayla continued to inspect the beading, trying to figure it out on her own, and Danta opened the pouch and poured the shell beads into her hand. "These are very pretty," she exclaimed. "Jendoza should trade her beads. She could get a lot for them."

Ayla smiled. "That's what _I_ said, but she likes to keep them for the people of Oak Camp, so that they have something different than everyone else. If you look at the Oak Camp people, you will see that nearly everyone has these shell beads on their clothing."

The woman was disappointed, but she nodded understanding. Most camps had at least one thing that was unique to their camp. She would have liked to trade for some, so that she would appear to have more wealth, not that she had anything decent to trade, but she did understand.

"This is very nice work," Ayla said, holding up the square again. "You said your sister did this?"

Danta nodded. "Yes, that is a piece of her matrimonial tunic," the woman said, then suddenly looked very sad. Ayla wondered why the tunic had been cut up; women generally saved their matrimonial tunics, or so she had heard, but one look at Danta's face stopped her from asking.

Danta was fighting hard to control her emotions and was blinking to stop tears that seemed about to fall. Ayla averted her eyes to give the woman time.

"I am sorry, Ayla," the woman finally apologized. "My sister is dead. She and her daughter died last year of spring sickness. She and I were very close." Her voice cracked and her tears began to fall. "Danara and Dätara were too."

Ayla reached out to hold the woman while she cried, wishing she could have been there to help. "I'm sorry, Danta."

Danta pulled back a little and wiped her face. She hadn't meant to start crying and was embarrassed. She hadn't cried for her sister in front of people since the day of her death.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Ayla asked.

Danta shrugged. "There's not much to tell; they had spring sickness. Many people got it, but they were the only ones that died."

Ayla looked sad and wondered what had made their sickness so bad. Usually only the very young and the very old succumbed so easily. "How old were they?"

"My sister was eighteen, but her daughter was only two." Ayla nodded, thinking that that explained the child's death, but wondered why Danta's sister had not lived.

"It is most sad when the young die," Ayla finally said. She did not know what else _to_ say.

Danta nodded, then held up the beads she had chosen. "Let's use these to practice," she said, changing the subject. Ayla agreed.

**xXx**

The two women worked for a long period of time without being disturbed. A few people returned to Oak Tent and some left, and all the while the women worked. After spending time practicing, Ayla began to get frustrated.

"This is impossible," she exclaimed, tossing the leather down and frowning. "The holes are just too small. I was hoping to be able to bead a tunic today, but I just can't do this."

Danta smiled. "Yes you can," the woman said. "Go get your tunic. I will help you."

Ayla hesitated, then smiled and turned to go inside to get a tunic. She really wanted to do it herself, but she'd just have to practice more before she could. She was happy Danta was so willing to help her.

"Will you come with me?" Ayla turned around and asked. Danta nodded, happy that she'd get to see inside Oak Tent.

Inside, Danta looked around. She was awed at how well organized their tent was and how clean they kept it. She thought about Sumac Tent and all their dilapidated belongings. It was awful. She followed Ayla to the third bed on the right and waited while the woman pulled a tunic out of a pack that was sitting on the bed platform.

"I want to bead this one," Ayla said, shaking it a little and holding it up. "This is the first tunic I ever made."

Danta looked at it and smiled. It was brown in color, but not very dark, and it was completely undecorated. "That is nice."

"Thank you," Ayla said, quickly putting her other things back in her pack before heading for the tent entrance.

**xXx**

"I saw her, Igorvia!" the woman sneered. She didn't like that the man had woken her up and sent her on _his_ errand. And she was furious that he was so interested in the other woman. Hadn't _she_ been enough comfort for him? she wondered.

Igorvia's forehead knotted in a frown. "_Oak Tent_?" he said questioningly. "She went to _Oak Tent_?" The woman nodded angrily. "Are you sure, Laska?"

"Of course I'm _sure_! I know which tent is which!" she snapped at him. "Do you think I'm stupid?"

He didn't answer her, but continued on instead. "Who was she with?" he asked her. The woman looked uncomfortable and glanced away, causing the man to grab her arm roughly to turn her around. "Who is she _with_, Laska?" he said angrily through clenched teeth.

"Ow," she said, yanking herself out of his grasp and glaring at him. "Ayla. She was with Ayla."

Igorvia's face turned red. "Where's Zadneetsia?"

While rubbing her sore arm and continuing to glare at him, Laska spat, "How should _I_ know? I followed her like you asked me to, but you can go find Zadneetsia yourself!" she yelled, throwing her cup onto the ground and stomping away. He smiled at her retreating back. He knew she wouldn't go far, or stay angry long. She'd be back in his bed that night, he was sure of it. But right now, he needed to find Zadneetsia.

**xXx**

**Okay...here's another translation for you...**

**Laska** - means weasel (in Russian)...spelled ласка in the Cryllic Alphabet.

**XxX**

Hey, there was a name typo in the last post...Bätara should have been Dätara. I'll go back to fix at some point.

**? (another unnamed chapter) ?**

Igorvia hadn't been able to find Zadneetsia right away, so he stormed out on his own. When he was a short distance from Oak Tent, he stopped. He didn't see Danta at their tentfire and wondered if Laska had lied to him. That would be just like her, he thought, the little weasel. He was just about to turn away to leave when he saw Ayla and Danta come out of the tent laughing. He froze and watched them.

The two women walked over to a blanket and sat down. Igorvia could see that they exchanged a few words, but he was too far away to hear them. Then Ayla handed Danta a piece of leather and leaned in close to watch. They were attaching beads to a tunic, he realized.

**xXx**

"See Ayla, it's not so hard," Danta said, showing the woman the line she had created around the neck of the tunic.

"For you maybe," Ayla said. "But I just can't do this."

Danta stopped. "Didn't you tell me that your people don't decorate their clothing?"

Ayla shook her head and laughed. "We hardly even _wear_ clothing. I did not learn how to make _that_ tunic," she said, pointing at what Danta was holding, "until last year when I met Jendoza."

"It's so strange how you found Oak Camp again," Danta said. She had only heard rumors about it until the night before when Ayla told her the whole story herself. "Amazing really."

Ayla smiled. "Yes, I am happy to have met my mother's mate's people, but I love my Clan family too. I can hardly wait to see them again after this summer is over."

Danta smiled. "What are they like?"

"Different, I guess, but still good people."

**xXx**

Igorvia frowned as he watched them working and talking. What in the Mother's name was Danta thinking? he thought. This woman was going to taint her, and possibly draw mixed spirits into her. He couldn't hold back any longer.

**xXx**

Danta had sewed on another line of beads when a shadow fell across the blanket. Both women looked up and blanched at the sight of Igorvia, standing with his arms folded across his chest and his face red with anger.

"Just going for a walk, huh?" he said, reaching out and pulling the woman to her feet. Ayla was up immediately, hand on her sling. She didn't know what the consequences were for using a weapon against someone, but she didn't think he was allowed to treat this woman the way he was either. She held still, waiting to see what would happen next.

"Igorvia," Danta whined. "You're hurting me."

A few people turned to look at them, causing the man let go and step back, as if suddenly aware that he'd done something wrong in public. "What are you doing here?"

Danta looked frightened. "I made a trade with Ayla."

The man looked down at what they were doing and scowled. "You told me you were going for a walk."

Danta frowned. "I did, and we ended up here." She was clutching her arm where he had grabbed her. Ayla could see a bruise already starting to show.

"And last night, you were _here_, weren't you?" he demanded. She nodded meekly and looked down. "You do not belong _here_. Come back to Sumac Camp!" he said harshly.

Danta looked at Ayla. It looked to Ayla as if she was going to leave with him. "But we are not finished with our trade," Ayla blurted.

The man gave her a dirty look. "_So_, she doesn't need to trade with _you_." He turned back to Danta. "Get your things!" he commanded.

The woman looked apologetically at Ayla, then back at the man. "I do not have anything here. I will go get Danara; she is inside."

Ayla watched the woman walking toward Oak Tent and was frantic. "NO wait," she called, then turned back to Igorvia. "Danta doesn't _want_ to go back to Sumac Tent," she finished lamely.

Igorvia stared at her. "Oh _really_. So now you're speaking for Danta."

Ayla blushed. She didn't want to be speaking for the woman, but Danta wasn't speaking up for herself. She _didn't_ want to go, _did she_? Ayla wondered. "Ah, well . . . " Ayla stammered. "Maybe you should ask her if she wants to go back there."

"Ask her?" he scoffed. "Why would she want to stay here when she has a home with Sumac Camp?" Ayla didn't say anything.

Danta frowned. She didn't _want_ to go back, but the man was right about one thing; Sumac Camp was her home, and though she didn't want to be there, that was all she had. "It is okay, Ayla," she said, then went to get her daughter.

Ayla's eyes followed Danta as she stepped through the opening into Oak Tent, and then she looked back at the man. He was gloating and it made her furious, but there was nothing she could do if Danta wouldn't say she wanted to stay.

Igorvia waited, as patiently as was possibly, and continued to sneer at Ayla. When Danta returned, he put his hand on her shoulder, as if to lead her away, but Danta immediately pulled away from him. "Don't touch me," she snapped. "I told you I'm not interested." Then she looked at Ayla and said goodbye before taking Danara's hand and walking off.

Danara had stared at the man with a terrified expression, then looked back over her shoulder at Ayla; her were eyes begging for help. Ayla had tears in her eyes, but she was at a loss. What could she do if Danta wouldn't speak up?

**xXx**

Danta was walking quickly, much too quickly for Danara to keep up, so the woman stopped to pick her up. Neither had wanted to leave Oak Tent and both had tears in their eyes, but Danta didn't feel she had a choice; Sumac Camp _was_ where they belonged. That was a cold hard fact, even if they hated it.

Igorvia walked just behind the woman and child, to make sure they made no further detours. Zadneetsia was going to be very angry that she'd gone over to Oak Camp, especially since the man still had to face the Council of Sisters. And Igorvia was still fuming that she'd lied to him. _Walk_, he scoffed in his head. What did she take him for?

**xXx**

"He just came here and dragged her away?" Laurana asked.

Ayla frowned. "Well, not _really_, she did go on her own. He told her to come and she went. It reminded me of the men of the Clan."

"Did she want to go?" Danie asked with a note of concern in her voice.

"I don't _think_ so, but I think she just didn't want trouble." Ayla was looking around at everyone. "And I feel terrible. Maybe we should have met at the leather-working tent. He wouldn't even have followed her if she'd gone in there."

Jendoza was frowning. "Maybe, but you don't know that for sure, Ayla. This isn't your fault. And besides, that wouldn't really solve anything. You two would have probably finished your tunic today, but Danta would still have had to go back to Sumac Camp tonight." The young woman paused. "That's the problem, I think. She has nowhere else to go, so why fight it? It would only cause more trouble and unhappiness for her."

**xXx**

That evening they continued to discuss Danta's situation over their evening meal, bringing it up with the elder members of Oak Tent. They didn't seem to have a solution either.

"Well, maybe she'll meet a young man from another camp, then she can move away from them," Travie said.

Ayla frowned. "She tried that, but he was killed before they could mate, and she hasn't had any other offers since then."

"That's because no one looks at the women from those camps," Brulenzia said. "They are, well . . . undesirable." He grimaced.

"It's not just the women," Zarina said with a disgusted look on her face. "The men there are even less desirable, and they're _always_ drinking bouza. I wouldn't want my daughters to consider a mating to one of them." Zarina thought about Danta and looked sad. "It's really a shame though, Danta cleaned up nicely and she seems to be a decent person. There are probably others like her; we just can't see it through the filth and drink."

"Maybe we haven't been looking," Wäglodia put in. "Maybe we just ignore what's bad so we don't have to do something about it." Everyone considered the man's words, thinking that he was probably right, but no one could come up with any solutions to the problem.

**xXx**

Danta had gone back to Sumac Tent just ahead of Igorvia and went directly inside the tent. She knew Danara was going to want to go to sleep, so that's where she took the child. At least she ate at Oak Tent today, the woman thought, wondering when she'd be able to get the child to eat again. Most days she only ate once or twice, and even then, she only nibbled.

Danta frowned down at her daughter, then glanced back at the tent entrance; Igorvia was standing there, arms folded across his chest again, watching her. Is he going to watch me constantly? she wondered. She had wanted to go get a drink of water before lying down, but didn't want to deal with him, or any of the other staring people. It would be easier to ignore her thirst. She lay down instead.

**xXx**

The woman lay there for a while, watching Igorvia watching her, then finally rolled over. She couldn't stand to look at him any longer. Finally, she fell asleep.

Moments later, or so it seemed, she awoke to a hand on her arm and the smell of bouza at the back of her neck. More time must have passed than she thought; the light of the sun shining through the tent was rather dim, and the dampness of evening was setting in.

"Go away, Igor!" she said through clenched teeth. The hand was not removed. Instead, she felt what she thought was the man's head, pressing against the back of her arm. She tried to shake him off. "How many times do I have to tell you no?" she said, rolling over. It was not Igorvia. It was her brother.

"Davaria," she said, wrinkling her nose at the smell of him. "What do you want?"

"Why did you have to go over to Oak Tent, Danta?" he asked, taking another sip from his cup. "Mother is very upset with you."

"When isn't she upset with me? She doesn't even like me," she said angrily. Trata had never put any effort into raising her last born child. "No one does."

Davaria frowned. He knew Danta was just feeling sorry for herself again, not that he blamed her. It was true that their mother had never liked Danta. She practically despised her.

"That's not true, Danta. _I_ love you. And I even _like_ you sometimes," he said with a smile, then pushed her over to get into the bed next to her.

Danta smiled too and leaned her head on his shoulder. No, he was right; he did love her. At least someone did, she thought.

They lay there for a while, staring at the tent ceiling, then he finally spoke again. "And Igorvia likes you too, Danta. Why won't you just accept him? I'm sure he'd give up Laska if you'd go to his bed again."

Danta grimaced and turned her head to look at her brother. "Are you joking?" she asked incredulously. "I don't care if he takes Laska to his bed. I don't want to have anything to do with him. I wouldn't accept _that_ man if he were the last man left. I would rather be alone."

"But why, what's so bad about him?"

Danta stared at her brother. Of course he didn't understand, he wasn't much different than Igorvia himself. How could she tell her brother that she thought Igorvia was a loser without telling _him_ that _he_ was one too? "He's mean and I don't like him. Isn't that enough?"

Davaria shrugged. He knew what she was saying, but there weren't a hell of a lot of choices around here. _He_ certainly didn't have any prospects either. "Well, you can't just go off and meet up with some people, Danta! You can't do things that are against the people of Sumac Camp!" he said, feeling a little defensive. He hadn't missed her cut, though she'd tried to veil it.

"Why in the Mother's name not?" she asked angrily. "If I ever want to get out of here, I have to do something." She sounded desperate.

Davaria sat up and looked down at her. It was getting pretty dark in the tent and he'd forgotten to bring a lamp. "So, you're just going to leave me? First Dreena and Dätara, and now you too," he said with hurt in his voice.

"Dreena and Dätara did not _leave_ you, Davaria. They are dead!" she said coldly. Danta was suddenly angry, and wished her brother would just go away. She did not need him to remind her that Dreena was gone.

Davaria got up, but continued to look down at her. He obviously wasn't too happy with her reminder of where Dreena was. "I know that," he said angrily. "You are not the only one hurting over them. A third of me died with Dreena too, Danta. I am no different than you are." The man finished off his drink.

Danta got to her feet to face the man. They were nearly the same height and looked very much alike. "No, you just fill yourself with bouza to forget what we lost, don't you?" Danta said, poking him in the chest. "I did too, at first, but I don't want to live like that anymore, Davaria. It doesn't help me . . . or Danara," she finished, then glanced at her daughter. "I have to think of Danara. I don't want her to grow up _here_, or worse, die here," she whispered, her voice choking. She had tears in her eyes. Davaria knew she was right, but he couldn't stand the thought of losing another sister. He looked over at Danara, then walked away.

**xXx**

**Trata** - means waste...трата  
><strong>Davaria<strong> - sort of means wreck...авария - really it should be Avareea

**XxX**

**? (sorry for the lack of chapter names) ?**

Danta awoke in the middle of the night to the sounds of someone sharing pleasures. She could tell immediately that was Igorvia and Laska, and not just because the man's sleeping place was so near to hers or that they had not constructed privacy screens; Igorvia was doing his best to make himself heard and Laska didn't bother to keep her cries within a polite range.

The woman opened her eyes and glanced over at them, expecting to only see darkness or perhaps vague shapes moving rhythmically in the darkness, but the man had lit a small lamp, which illuminated the area. Danta rolled her eyes, knowing he had done that on purpose. It had been his intention for her to hear and see them. He didn't seem to understand that she _really_ did not care. She rolled over and went back to sleep.

**xXxXxXx**

The next morning, Grov woke up and struck his tent. He was pleased that he hadn't had to deal with Janara for two days, but as he packed his bag, he caught sight of her approaching him again. He sighed heavily and tried to slip through the tents to go pass his water before she reached him.

Janara saw him go and hesitated a moment, then decided to follow him. Coming around the tents to the open area, she stopped and waited. He had his back to her.

"What do you want, Janara?" he asked, without turning around to face her; he was still making his stream, but was completely aware that she was watching him.

"I . . ." she began, then stopped, deciding to let him finish. When he was finally done and he still did not turn around, so she crossed the short distance to stand there with him. "I . . . I wanted to say . . . that I'm sorry."

Grov hadn't looked at her, but she was standing right beside him. He looked at her then, and only saw dishonesty; she was _not_ sorry. "Janara, I come from a people that cannot tell untruths, because they can be seen. I can read you very easily and what you have just said has no truth to it. You are _not_ sorry, and I want you to stay away from me." Grov finished by walking away, leaving her standing there alone.

Janara stared after him for only a moment, then she ran after him. When she caught up he was packing his rucksack. She grabbed his arm, and was about to spew something mean, but changed her mind. Instead, she grabbed him and kissed him hard.

Grov was shocked for a moment, then reacted by grabbing her arms and pushing her back roughly. "What is wrong with . . . " he began, but suddenly her hand reached up and slapped him hard across the face.

"Keep your hands OFF of me!" she screamed at the top of her voice and struggling to pull back from the man who still had one hand on her in shock. Several people turned around to stare at them and _to them_, it appeared as if he was forcing himself on _her_. Suddenly he was surrounded by several angry looking men, one of which was the man of Janara's hearth.

"What is going _on_ here?" the man demanded furiously, standing in front of the young woman.

Grov was in shock and said nothing, but Janara was ready with her accusation. "He kissed me!" she said, pointing at Grov. "He grabbed me and forced himself on me."

Grov's jaw dropped open. "What?" he said. He was astonished. "That is _not_ what happened." He was shaking his head vigorously. "I have not touched her," he said, finally removing his hand from her arm. "She is the one that has been trying to force herself on _me_."

The man of Janara's hearth scowled at him. He looked ready to tear Grov's head off. So did several of the other men standing there. "Yes, that is what you'd like us to believe, isn't it flathead?" A few men nodded.

"Hey, watch what you're calling people of Oak Camp, Jeeteria," Ivanolia snapped, stepping up to the older man.

"_He_ is not a member of Oak Camp," Jeeteria said angrily. "He is not even Sungaea. He is just some mixed up flathead that the daughter of Vincenzia's hearth had no sense to mate."

Vincenzia was now frowning. "The daughter of my hearth has much sense," he insisted, calmly looking at Jeeteria. "And Grov is a good mate to her."

Jeeteria looked at the tall, blond man. "Yes, _so_ good to her that he has to force himself on a woman that does not welcome his advances? _That_ is not a good mate."

"Now wait just a moment," Vincenzia said with more than a hint of annoyance in his voice. He was a calm man by nature, but Jeeteria was going too far. "Have you _not_ been watching and listening, Jeeteria?"

"What are you talking about?" the man snapped.

"It is the daughter of your hearth that has been pursuing this man; it is not the other way around. Open your eyes."

Jeeteria narrowed his eyes at Vincenzia. "Are you calling Janara a liar?" he asked.

Vincenzia didn't say anything at first; he didn't want to call the woman a liar, though she obviously was. Janara had the decency to blush; she hadn't wanted this to be blown out of proportion. She was just hurt and wanted to hurt back.

Darvie leaned over and said something in Vincenzia's ear, which caused the man to nod. "I do not want to call Janara a liar, but we overheard a conversation between her and Grov the other night." Many had turned to listen to the man. "She was in his tent, without being invited, and he asked her to leave. _No_, demanded is more like it."

"Sounds to me like _she_ is the one making the advances," Darvie added, standing tall with her mate and glaring over at the now hiding young woman.

Jeeteria chose to ignore the daughter of his hearth, but did frown. "Well, seeing as you are the man of Ayla's hearth, I can understand why you would defend this man, but I think you might be a little biased.

Vincenzia laughed. "And _you_ are not? Tell me you are not biased and I will back down."

Jeeteria didn't deny it; there was no way to deny _that_ fact, so instead, he decided to switch to insulting Darive. "Well . . . Darvie is not even Sungaea. Are we supposed to believe someone that was not even born to us?"

Darvie folded her arms across her chest. "Being born Mamutoi does not make me a liar, Jeeteria," Darvie stated coldly. "I am from a brutally honest people, more honest than most would like sometimes."

"And _that_ should not matter anyway," Vincenzia put in. "Darvie has been adopted by the Sungaea. She is just as much a part of us as anyone. And you should know that I would not mate a woman that isn't completely forthright."

"Strange how you always choose foreign women, though, isn't it?" Jeeteria said. "First Annalisa. What was _she_? Rosantio? And now Darvie, a Mamutoi. Are the Sungaea lacking?" he finally asked.

Vincenzia was starting to look angry. "And what in the _Mother's_ name does _that_ have to do with _this_. My choice in mates has nothing to do with the daughter of your hearth being a over indulged and overgrown child," he finished hotly, throwing in his own insult.

Jeeteria knew the man spoke the truth; he had known this about Janara for some time, but he continued to support the young woman by going back to putting down the mixed man. "Well, I do not believe the story you tell, Vincenzia. We have all heard about these flatheads; they are animals. It is not right that he is even here. I plan on taking this to the councils when we return . . . no matter what you say Vincenzia."

Jondaria was watching the man of his hearth and his sister. Jeeteria was making a fool of himself and Janara was letting him. Was she really going to stand there and allow Jeeteria to make things worse? He knew she was selfish and spoiled, but she was messing with a man's life. He shook his head. The man looked around, nearly everyone was there watching now. He couldn't stand it; he had to say something.

"Wait!" he called, giving his sister a regretful look. She was going to be angry, but he had to do the right thing. Grov was a good man and he wouldn't let Janara ruin him. "I heard this conversation too. I was in the tent on the other side of Grov's and I heard him tell Janara to leave. He has never given her even the slightest bit of attention, Jeeteria."

Jeeteria stared at the son of his hearth. It looked as if he was going to reject Jondaria's word as well, but then a young woman stepped forward. It was one of Janara's friends.

"I am sorry, Janara," she said, looking directly at her friend, "but I was with Jondaria. I heard it too. I cannot let you do this." Janara glared at them, but seeing that everyone was now looking at her and shaking their heads, she hung her head in shame. She had been exposed and she knew it.

Jeeteria turned to stare at her, hoping she'd step up and deny what they said, but she didn't. The man turned red with embarrassment. He did not enjoy being made a fool of. He would definitely have some words for her later, but right now he only gave her a dirty look and breathed in deeply. Slowly, he looked Grov up and down. He still did not like that the man was there, but it appeared that he had not done anything wrong, that he had just been part of one of Janara's games.

"It seems I have jumped to conclusions," Jeeteria stated coldly. "I apologize."

Grov nodded. There was no more sincerity in _this_ man's voice than Janara had had in hers when she had apologized for sneaking into his tent, but he nodded anyway. Finally, the crowd of people dispersed.

For a while, Grov just stood there, angry that he'd been accused of something he did not do, something he would _never_ do, even in the Clan where it would not have been considered forcing himself on a woman. _And_, he was angry that no matter how decent he was, people kept referring to him as a flathead. Would he _always_ be an animal in their eyes? he wondered.

He did thank Jondaria for supporting Vincenzia's claim and for backing _him_ up against his sister. He knew that must have been a difficult choice, but he was glad the man had been raised better than his sister.

Grov glanced over at Janara once or twice, and finally saw a look of contrition on her face. Jeeteria had pulled her aside and scolded her like a small child, and she was now crying while she finished packing her belongings. That dissolved his anger somewhat. _That_, and the hike home, that began shortly after the scene.

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla woke early and got up quickly. She went first to check on her children, all of which still slept soundly, then she pulled out her medicine bag, selected her favorite herbs, and went outside to make her morning tea.

Oak Camp's tentfire, though not flaming, was still smoldering from the night before, so she tossed on a log and built it up. It did not take long to have roaring fire going again, or water boiling for her tea. When the tea was finished, she sat back with a cup, and watched the people beginning to stir around her. Her mind quickly turned inward.

She thought about her dreams. She had had them all night long. Dreams of poor Danta and Danara, stuck at Sumac Camp, unhappy forever, and dreams of horses, carrying her across the hilly plains. Dreams of Uba and her twin sons, and dreams of Oga, Grev and Agra.

Ayla hadn't known she would miss the Clan so much, but she truly did. They were her family, just as much as the Sungaea now were. Even more so, really, she thought, since they had raised her. She wondered how big Uba's boys were getting and smiled at the thought of them. How long has it had been since I've seen them? she thought with a frown, then shook her head, unable to figure it out.

Her mind went to Broud and Oga, and she wondered if the man was still being decent to her and if Oga was still happy. And she wished more than anything that she could see Agra. Ayla smiled at the thought of the child that was of Grov's spirit and how easily Broud had accepted her. For a brief moment, a painful memory of the man crossed her mind, but then it was gone. That time was gone. She smiled again.

Then, as her thoughts turned to Danta and Danara, she stared into the fire. She wished she could do something, anything, but she could not, not unless Danta asked for help. She knew that Danta was suffering from more than just lack of food, but what else, she was not sure. The loss of a sister was painful, Ayla was sure, but this seemed to be more. It made her sad to think of people suffering, especially when they did not have to. Ayla shook her head, then sipped her tea. Her mind moved on.

_The young horse was a short distance away from the two people and was breathing hard from the run. The people were too, but they were determined. The man stood still, holding the long length of rope they had made, and the woman approached slowly, holding out a small apple, hoping to entice the animal._

The horse, which they could now tell was male, was a shade darker than the dun yellow mare in the distance and

nearly _his full grown height, though he had not filled out yet. He was still quite young, they realized._

The young horse pranced away from the woman, then turned around again; there was nowhere for him to go except back toward the people. The woman nickered softly, which caused him to perk up his ears and nicker back. The woman nickered again, this time holding up the apple again and inching toward him. He was too young and curious not to be tempted.

As the young animal took the treat, the woman chanced touching his shaggy fur. And when that was accepted, she scratched his neck and gave him another apple. She smiled as she watched him chew, and when he finished the second apple, he nosed her for another.

"Are you daydreaming again, Ayla?" a voice came. Ayla had to shake her head to focus. It was Brulenzia smiling down at her. Ayla grinned back.

"I guess I am," she answered. She watched the man pour himself some tea and sit down, then she spoke again. "I think I will be leaving soon."

Brulenzia stared at her. "What? Why?"

"Oh, not permanently." She shook her head and waved her hand, realizing that she'd worried him again. "Let me explain." She took another sip of her tea, then continued. "When we were staying with Lion Camp, Mamut had a vision." She frowned, then shook her head again. "Well, actually, that's not right. We _both_ had a vision. We shared one. Or part of one, I think." She frowned again, then looked into the man's eyes. "Anyway, there is somewhere I have to go this summer, but I will be back."

Brulenzia frowned. "Where are you going?"

"Mamut said it was a small valley west and slightly south of here. He did not think he had been there, or maybe he had, but not for sometime. I am not sure which. I am not sure _he_ knew which." She grinned.

Brulenzia smiled too. "That is often the way with those that serve," he said. "But Ayla," he went on, obviously still worried. "I do not think you should go off _alone_. It can be dangerous out there."

Ayla was still smiling. "I will not be alone. Grov will go with me; I have discussed it with him. I have talked to Gredenzia and Travie about it too. And Tinozia knows as well."

The man nodded. "I guess those are the right people to know of such a vision. When will you go?"

"I don't know that part yet. I have had a vision of what seems to be a darkness in the middle of day." She frowned. "I have not figured that part out yet, but I think I will know when the time comes."

He nodded again. "The ways of the Mother are always strange to those that do not study them. Do you know how long you will be gone?"

"I do not know, but there is something special waiting for us in this valley. I am very excited, but we will hurry back. As soon as we can, we will return."

Brulenzia eyed her, wondering what could be so special for them to travel away from the summer meeting just to see it. He wanted to know more and knew she would tell him if he asked, but her tone made it sound as if _she_ wanted to keep this to herself. He decided to let her.

**xXx**

Danta opened her eyes the next morning to Danara staring down at her. She wondered how long the child had been there and then sat up worriedly; Danara did not get up, _ever_, unless something was wrong.

"Are you all right?" the woman asked quietly.

Danara nodded. "Can we go see Ora today, Mamma?" she asked.

Danta sighed in relief, but frowned, then lifted her fur, indicating that the child should climb in. "I do not think so," she said, holding the child tight in her arms. "Do you remember that I wanted you not to talk about where we were going, because some would not like us to go there?" The child nodded. "Well, they do not want us to go there anymore."

Danara's eyes filled with tears. "But why, Mamma? I like them."

Danta held her daughter close. "I don't know why, but this is where we live, so we have to do what makes people here happy." Danara did not understand. She only knew that she hated where they lived and the people there, and that she liked being with the other people. Slowly, the child drifted back to sleep.

Danta lay there for a while, until she realized that Danara slept again, then she carefully got up. She needed to relieve herself, so went to do that.

The woman had gone to the night basket, but could immediately tell from the buzzing of insects that it had been overused again and that no one had bothered to empty it. The woman shook her head in disgust, then hefted it to take out.

Carrying the basket of waste, Danta left the tent and headed away from camp toward the place that she'd dumped the basket on several occasions. It was not a difficult job, but most left it for someone else to do. Many times it fell to Danta, who didn't want the stench sitting in their tent.

After dumping the contents of the basket, the woman dunked it in the small body of water that was nearly dried up and set it aside. Finally, she took care of herself and started back to camp.

Upon returning, she found Igorvia, along with a couple of other people, at the fire. One of the men was Zadneetsia. She tried her best to ignore them.

"Hey! Danta!" Zadneetsia called, as she started to walk by without even looking at them. "Do you mind telling us why you were over at Oak Tent with that abomination of a woman?"

Danta stopped and stared at the man. "Where I go and who I see is none of your concern," she snapped.

"_Oh really_," the man went on. "I thought I was just showing _concern_ for someone from Sumac Camp. My mistake." The group laughed at the man's comment.

Danta frowned at him, at all of them. Kurvlodia was lounging about, along with a few other Ash Camp people that she didn't know very well, and Igorvia had his arm draped over a leering Laska. And Davaria, well, her brother was sitting there, laughing with the rest of them and drinking something. They are at it again, she thought. The sun was hardly even up and they are already at the bouza. She shook her head

"What are _you_ doing up so early?" she asked sarcastically. "Didn't you drink enough last night to keep you miserable hyenas in bed for half the day?"

That got their attention. Everyone stopped laughing and looked at Zadneetsia. The man got up slowly and came to stand in front of her. Then, using his body, he backed her away from the group and up against their tent.

"Look Danta," he snarled. He was breathing down into her face and speaking so quietly that none of the others could hear him. "No one outside of Sumac Camp is ever going to want you, so you better get used to us." He held her and pressed himself up against her, then he grabbed her by the chin and tilted her face up to his. She shuddered and tried to look away, but he held fast, forcing her to look into his eyes.

"I kn-know what you did to Ayla," she whispered back defiantly. "You cannot fool me with your lies."

The man stared at her for a moment, then countered with an evil smile. "Then you know what I am capable of, don't you?" he asked. She did not respond. His face was so close to hers that she felt his stubble scratch her chin. "I would be careful if I were you, Danta, because you have _no one_ here that would stop me." Danta glanced over at her brother who just sat there with his friends, watching them and doing nothing. Zadneetsia followed her gaze and smiled. "Not even Davaria," he said, shaking his head. "You are utterly alone. But it doesn't _have_ to be that way. I'm sure Igorvia would take you . . . _I_ might even take you, if you promise to behave yourself."

Danta's eyes filled with tears. She knew her brother could not hear them, but it made her furious that he would sit there and watch Zadneetsia do this to her. This is not how people are supposed to be, she thought angrily. This is _not_ how the people of Oak Camp treat each other. She looked back at the man that held her, and suddenly the woman snapped. She angrily pulled herself out of his grasp, and slapped him hard across the face.

"Do NOT threaten me, Zadneetsia, or _you_ will be sorry," she spat with such venom that the man took a few steps back and stared at her, before turning back to his friends to laugh it off.

Danta stormed away. She headed west and away from the summer meeting, back toward the small pool. She just wanted to be alone for a while. She wished she could just run away somewhere and never come back, die even, but she couldn't; she had Danara to think about. She couldn't bear the thought of raising her child among such rotten people, but what choice did she have?

The woman ran for a short distance, until she found the small patch of growth that surrounded the pool. I can hide here, she thought, at least for a while. She sank down and cried.

**xXx**

Davaria had laughed with the rest, but his eyes followed his sister until she passed beyond his sight. Other than Danara, he was probably the only person that cared what happened to her, though at the moment, he wasn't willing to stand up to Zadneetsia to show her he cared.

The man had watched Igorvia's eyes follow her too, but he did not see any love for her in the man, only lust, and he suddenly realized that Danta was right. There was nothing here for her, or Danara, or _him_ for that matter. But what could they do about it? he wondered. This was their life. The man focused on his drink.

**XxX**

**? (no chapter name) ?**

On the day the hunters would return to the summer meeting, their first task was to break camp and get everyone to the river's edge. Next, they needed to load their burdens into Maple Camp's boats and cross Big River. It would take many trips to get everyone and everything across, but everyone was pleased that the hunt would end shortly, and that they could all see loved ones again.

No one was quite as happy as Grov. It seemed that his trouble with Janara had finally ended, though it had gotten quite serious. The man was not just physically drained from the traveling and hunting, but mentally and emotionally worn as well due to the young woman's constant advances. But it did not matter to him; he pushed it away. No exhaustion could keep him from thinking about Ayla. He could hardly wait to fall into her arms.

Several noticed a difference in the man as they crossed Big River. Whereas others were at a point of exhaustion that they didn't seem to be able to come out of, he appeared to regain some of his strength, and was of great assistance getting the meat across.

Janara watched him from afar, as Jeeteria had instructed her to stay away. He did not want any more trouble, though he did not expect any anymore. She seemed to have learned a lesson.

Even Jondaria thought she had, and he hadn't thought it possible. He tried to talk to her once and thought her rebuff was still anger, but later realized the woman was mortified that she had been caught lying.

Jondaria helped Grov pile the last load of meat in a boat, then the two men got out to let others take it across. They turned to the second to last boat and climbed in with some of the people left, then they glanced up. Janara was still standing on the river edge. She appeared to be waiting for the last boat.

Grov frowned at her, but finally waved her over, extending a hand to help her in. She hesitated for a moment, then stepped up and took his hand. Silently, she sat down at the back of the boat and stared down river as they crossed. How could he be nice to her after what she had done to him? she wondered.

On the other side of the river, he helped her out again, but turned away quickly to begin unloading. Once everyone was ready, they moved out once more. They would be back at the meeting very soon.

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla had spent most of the morning at the music tent with Jendoza, Laurana and Danie, but now the four women were sitting on the top steps of the arena, eating their afternoon meal and watching some of the wrestling matches. Ayla handed a strip of dried meat to Durc, and listened to Laurana.

"I do not understand why men do this," she said. She was nursing her daughter and shaking her head. "Why does it matter who is stronger?" The women all laughed.

"Men of the Clan do this too, at our Clan gatherings," informed Ayla. "I think it has something to do with proving they are strong enough to take care of us."

Jendoza watched quietly for a moment. "I'm glad Donzolnia isn't into this. I don't need him to prove he can take care of me by smashing another man's face into the ground."

Danie laughed. "What about Ivanolia? Would he be involved if he were here?" the woman asked, suddenly aware that she had no idea.

The man's sisters looked at each other, then shook their heads. Both held back on reminding Danie that Ivanolia usually spent his summers drinking lots of bouza and disappearing to rustle up other sorts of trouble. They didn't need to go through that again; Danie already knew what kind of trouble, and Ayla didn't need to hear any more about Zadneetsia's group.

The women were just finishing up when Vegodia came running up to them. "The hunters are almost here," he informed them. The boy was out of breath from running. "Some . . . one . . . just saw them . . . from . . . Beech Tent. They are heavily . . . burdened," he finished.

The women smiled. "Thank you for coming to tell us, Vegodia," Ayla said, getting up quickly and herding her children. She was quite anxious to see her mate, and a little nervous about the upcoming Council of Sisters meeting that would be inevitable now that the hunters were back. The other woman got up as well and they started back.

**xXx**

Back at Oak Tent Ayla realized that a great number of people had come to the south end of the meeting to see the return of the hunters. She, of course, did not want to mix in too much with the loud people, but chose instead to wait by their tentfire. They did not have long to wait.

**xXx**

Grov was walking at a fast pace, nearly at the front of the pack of hunters, and was astonished at how many people were there to greet them. He looked around for Ayla, but figured she would not want to be in the crush; she still did not like large crowds. Neither did he, he thought, as someone took his end of the stretcher out of his hands. The meat would go to the hunter's tent, to be divided fairly before being distributed. The man kept hold on the bison fur he had saved for Ayla, then started toward Oak Tent with Jondaria.

**xXx**

Ayla waited patiently, but when she saw him coming, she was up and running. He had been gone for almost seven days and she had missed him. It had seemed like so much longer to her. To him too, but she did not know that.

When she reached him, she didn't even look at Jondaria, but threw herself into her mate's arms and kissed him. Grov caught her up and kissed back, forgetting his friend was standing there.

The man laughed at them. "Well, this is the first time I wish I was mated," he said.

Grov and Ayla both pulled back and laughed. "Hallo Jondaria," she said, brushing the man's cheek with her own. "You are both back safely, I see."

"Only because of this man," Jondaria said, and was about to go into Grov's heroics again, but the man stopped him.

"Oh no, not again," he said, holding up his hand. "Ayla will know you don't speak the truth, so don't bother."

The words died on Jondaria's lips, but he smiled. "It was a good hunt and an _interesting_ trip back," the man finished.

Grov raised his eyebrows. "_Interesting_ wording, my friend." He shook his head. Ayla watched them, knowing that more had gone on than they were saying, but she did not ask. She too had plenty to tell her mate, but wanted to get back to Oak Tent before going into any of it.

Instead, Ayla pulled the man's pack off, and slung it over her own shoulder, and the three continued on to Oak Tent, where Jondaria said goodbye and moved on. He watched them for a moment and smiled. It's no wonder my sister could not sway him, he thought.

**xXx**

Janara was also watching the man and his mate, and blushed again at the thought of her feeble attempts to tempt the man. This couple was truly in love, and she could see why he had spurned her crude advances.

She had watched her brother hug the woman as well and could see his attraction for her, attraction that didn't seem to bother Grov at all. Then she remembered that Ayla had been the same way; it hadn't bothered Ayla in the slightest that she had tried to attract the man. She was suddenly embarrassed at how she had treated Grov's mate when she had been introduced to her. Ayla had not deserved it.

Janara followed slowly as she headed back to Spruce Tent, and saw them come up to Ayla's children, who were playing happily outside. Grov grabbed the two girls and swung them around, producing a string of delighted giggles before he put them down to greet the boy. She couldn't understand what they were saying, because they were using Clan gestures, but she could tell they were communicating. Grov then handed the child something, possibly a knife, and followed Ayla inside.

**xXx**

Ayla dropped his pack inside the large storage area and then continued on to their space to put away the rest of the man's things. Ayla took his things one by one, putting each item in its correct spot, then she turned to look at the man.

"Did you bring me back something furry?" she asked.

The man raised his eyebrows and grinned at her. "That all depends," he countered. "What do you have for me?" Ayla smiled and threw herself into his arms again, then kissed him. Grov kissed back and maneuvered her toward their sleeping place. Ayla stopped him for a moment, pulled her long tunic over her head, then reached for the drawstring of his leggings. She had missed him so much.

Grov noticed that she was wearing something he had not seen on her before. She was not wearing leggings with her long tunic, and now stood before him without a thing on. He smiled, realizing that he was so eager he could hardly control himself.

The two fell onto their bed platform, yanked their curtain closed and went about honoring the Mother in their own private ceremony. Both promptly fell asleep afterward.

**xXx**

The rest of the hunters returned more slowly. They had stopped to talk to people and hadn't gone inside immediately. By the time Donzolnia and Ivanolia unloaded their meat, reached Oak Tent and then dropped _their_ packs off in the storage space, Grov and Ayla were already asleep.

The young people entered the tent, and laughed at the closed curtain of the sleeping couple. "Well, that was fast," Ivanolia said, looking from the closed curtain to Danie with a smile. _They_ still had not shared pleasures since he had told her about forcing Oda, but at least they seemed to be back together. The two of them lay down on their bed as well, and Ivanolia put his hand on her belly.

"How's the baby doing, Danie?" he asked her, hoping to feel the child move within her.

"Fine, I think," she answered. "I have not been sick for few days now."

Ivanolia smiled. "That is good. Where is Braydalana?"

"She is out with some of the other girls . . . and mother," she added. "There has been some trouble here, so we have been making sure no one is left alone."

"Trouble? What kind of trouble?" he asked her.

Danie was frowning. "Well, I think we should probably all meet to discuss it."

Ivanolia sat up and looked at her. "Danie, what is going on? What trouble has there been?"

At that moment, Zarina came into the space. "We need everyone from Oak Tent to gather so we can discuss what has happened while the hunters have been gone." Everyone nodded, but Ivanolia turned back to Danie before getting up.

"Danie?" he questioned again.

Danie looked at Ivanolia and frowned. "It is your _friends_," she said irritably.

The man blushed. "They are not my friends anymore, Danie."

"I know that, but they were," she retorted angrily. Then she touched his arm. "I'm sorry. I did not mean to snap at you. It has just been . . . difficult while the hunters have been away." Ivanolia hugged her. The woman got up to join the others, and the man followed.

**xXx**

Ayla had been the hardest to rouse. Partly because she hadn't slept well the night before and was tired, and partly because she just didn't want to go through this again. The woman entered the small cooking space and stood at the back, not wanting to say anything.

Brulenzia wished that Tinozia was there to help him with this, but since he wasn't, it was going to fall to him to explain it as he saw it; he had been the first on the scene. Brulenzia went through what happened slowly, watching Grov closely. The man was shocked, but showed no anger toward him for not being there to protect his woman, and only held Ayla when she leaned against him for support.

Gredenzia spoke next, talking about what had happened at the Council of Brothers, and how the issue had not been solved. And how the four camps had banded together to shut them out. Gredenzia glanced at Vincenzia, who was standing just behind Grov and Ayla, a hand on each of them. The Shogur could see the pain in the man's eyes as he thought about what the daughter of his hearth had been through in her lifetime.

"So," Travie said. "What do we do now? We have to put a stop to this, before that man _succeeds_ in forcing some young woman."

Tiflona glanced at Tagnolia and sighed. "It is a shame that so many headmen and headwomen were gone on the hunt. This should have been cleared up immediately. This should not have happened at all." The woman turned toward Ayla and frowned. "I am sorry that you have had to deal with this, Ayla. I am embarrassed for my people."

Ayla shook her head and tried to smile. "Don't be, Tiflona. Every people seem to have a few bad ones, and I was not hurt."

Danie had been watching and wanted to interject the part about these men forcing women of the Clan as well, but she didn't know how to bring it up without informing everyone about Ivanolia's summer activities. Then she noticed that Ivanolia wasn't even there anymore. She looked around, then slipped out herself. Where could he be? she wondered.

**xXx**

Ivanolia had heard enough. Zadneetsia had tried to _force Ayla_ . . . that was all he needed to know. He couldn't believe his ears. Up until this very summer he would have said that it was one thing to force those Clan women, but quite another to attempt to force a _Sungaean_ woman. _Now_ he was all together disgusted that any man would attempt to force any woman. He thought about all his cousin had lived through and planned to do something about Zadneetsia's abuse, even if it killed him.

The man quickly crossed the summer meeting and arrived at Sumac Camp in time to see Zadneetsia making crude gestures at a passing woman. Ivanolia tapped the man on the shoulder then promptly punched in square in the nose when he turned around. Zadneetsia, though a big man, went down.

Igorvia, along with several others, was on his feet quickly. "What in the Mother's name are you _doing_, Ivanolia?"

Zadneetsia was slowly getting up, but the large amounts of bouza weren't helping the man right himself. It was hardly noon and they were well on their way to the end of the evening.

Ivanolia went after him again, this time kicking him before he could get to his feet. "That is for Ayla!" he shouted. Then he turned around quickly to face Zadneetsia's friends.

"This is about _Ayla_?" Igorvia growled, shaking his head. "Are you out of your mind? If you would have checked with the Council of Brothers, then you would know they sided with Zadneetsia, not Ayla. Zadneetsia gave them the facts and Ayla couldn't offer any proof of her claim."

Ivanolia scoffed. "Oh yeah, and _he's_ an honest man. I wouldn't trust him as far as he can stagger."

"Well, he has a witness," Igorvia spat.

"Yes, I heard. Kurvlodia. Some witness. A witness is someone that saw what happened, not someone that claims to be involved." Ivanolia glared at Kurvlodia. "_You_, are a liar!"

That was enough to make Kurvlodia charge the man. Both went down throwing punches.

**xXx**

Danta had heard the shouting and came out to look. When she saw Ivanolia there, she headed out of camp. She was running as fast as she could and looking back over her shoulder, when suddenly she ran into someone else and fell to the ground; it was Danie.

"Danie!" Danta exclaimed from the ground. "I . . . I . . . " but she couldn't continue.

"Have you seen Ivanolia?" Danie asked.

The woman nodded and pointed. "I was just coming to get someone from Oak Camp. I do not know what is going on, but he came into Sumac Camp, and he punched Zadneetsia and now he's fighting with Kurvlodia." Danta did know what was going on, sort of, but she hadn't let anyone know she knew yet.

Danie looked worried. Fighting was not tolerated among the Mamutoi, and she thought it was the same among the Sungaea. Both women ran back to Oak Tent to get some help.

**xXx**

When the two women got there, Danta stopped, thinking she should wait outside while Danie went in, but Danie grabbed her arm. "You have to come in with me, Danta," Danie exclaimed. "Come on!"

Danta didn't argue and ran inside with the woman. They didn't have to go far, Oak Camp's meeting was breaking up; everyone was coming out. The people that had been away on the hunt were shocked to see Danta there, but all could tell it was an emergency.

"What's wrong, Danie?" Serana asked, looking at her son's mate and suddenly realizing that _he_ was nowhere to be seen.

"He's at Sumac Camp," she told them breathlessly. "Danta came to tell us that he's fighting."

Vilognia frowned. "We should have known this might happen," he said, looking at Serana. "We better go get him."

"I am sorry about this," Ayla said worriedly. She was close to tears. "This would not have happened if we had not come."

Vilognia looked down at her. "No Ayla, this is not _your_ fault. Something like this has been coming for a long time," he said, glancing at Danta and wondering why the Sumac woman was there. "Ivanolia should not be over there fighting, but something _does_ have to be done about those camps."

Danta blushed and looked down. Vilognia was right, she thought. This was _her_ fault, or rather, her camp's fault, but wasn't that the same thing? she thought.

**xXx**

A few people stayed, to look after the children, but most of the adults went over to Sumac Camp. When they got there, Ivanolia was still in the mix, but wasn't doing so well, since there were several more Sumac men there and only one of him.

Tagnolia and Vilognia went immediately to the two fighting men and pulled them apart. Tagnolia stood holding Kurvlodia, who had a bloody nose and black eye, while Vilognia held the son of his hearth.

Ivanolia spat on the ground, then wiped his bleeding lip on his tunic sleeve and retreated. "This is not over!" he shouted angrily, standing next to Vilognia.

"You can count on it!" Kurvlodia yelled back.

"There will be _no more_ fighting!" Tiflona said calmly, noticing that Ivarsia was just lounging about watching. "Fighting is not allowed. What is going on here?" she demanded.

Ivarsia started to get up. "They are fighting," he stated plainly. "What does it look like they are doing?"

Tiflona gave him a withering look. "I can _see_ that Ivars, but why?"

The man shrugged. "Because sometimes, men need to get some aggression out. It's nothing more." A few bystanders laughed. "Besides, I think you know why."

Tiflona glanced at Zadneetsia, who was sitting back, sporting a severe abrasion on his cheek and holding his ribs. "Where is your healer?" Oak Camp's headwoman asked. "That man needs attention."

Ivarsia looked at his sister's son and frowned. "We do not have one at the moment." He did not mention that they hadn't had one for a long time, not since the last one died.

Tiflona looked back at Danie. "Would you please go get your mother." Travie had stayed behind to care for the children, but she was needed now. Danie nodded.

Ayla, who had been standing with Grov, but was now squatting down next to Ivanolia, stood up. "That is not necessary," she said, slowly approaching the injured man. Grov scowled, nearly ready to deny the man care, but he didn't say anything. He knew his mate would help any man that was injured, even one as nasty as this one.

Danie stopped and looked at Tiflona. The headwoman held up her hand, indicating that Danie should wait.

Ivarsia also seemed about to object, but Zadneetsia did not look very good. Zadneetsia, on the other hand, did not want the woman to touch him.

"I am fine," he snarled up at the woman when she got to him. He didn't want anything from her.

Ayla glanced at Tiflona, who shrugged, then at Ivarsia, who was sitting again, then knelt down to examine the man. She opened her medicine bag and pulled out another piece of leather. "I need hot water," she said, looking around for help. No one moved. The members of Oak Camp didn't come forward. They did not know where the water was kept; this wasn't their camp. And no one from Sumac Camp offered water either. Finally, Danta went to get Ayla the water she needed, then started it boiling.

While she waited, Ayla felt the man's ribcage, much to the man's displeasure.

"_Ouch_!" he exclaimed loudly, pulling away from her. "Watch it! That hurts!"

Ayla shook her head and looked back at Tiflona. "This man has two broken ribs."

Zadneetsia glared over at Ivanolia. "It is his fault. He came out of nowhere and punched me, then started kicking me while I was down." He winced as Ayla began wrapping his ribs.

Ivanolia had been sitting with Donzolnia and Grov, holding a piece of leather to his lip, but stood and had to be restrained again. "You deserved it!" he hollered. "If you would have kept your hands off Ayla, then I wouldn't have had to beat you down. What is wrong with you?" Zadneetsia only smiled.

Ivarsia started shaking his head and stood again. "We have already gone through this," he stated, looking at Ivanolia. "The council believed Zadneetsia, not Ayla. You can't go around accusing people of things they did not do." He glanced over at Ayla, who was still working on Zadneetsia.

"We all know what the Brothers decided, Ivarsia," Tiflona said coldly. "And I'm sure you know this is going to the Sisters too. We will not stand for this."

"Yes, it certainly is. _We_ will not stand for this either," the Sumac headman said. "We will be making a claim against Ivanolia. And we expect restitution for the injuries he has inflicted on Zadneetsia."

Tiflona's face turned red with anger, and she was about to say something else when Tagnolia put his hand on her arm to stop her.

"That is fine with us, Ivars. Ivanolia was _wrong_ to come over here like this," the Oak Camp headman said, looking pointedly at the young man to let him know he was not happy about this turn of events. "But do not think for one moment that the issue between Zadneetsia and Ayla is over. Just because the Brothers could not handle it, doesn't mean the Sisters won't be able to. I have confidence that she will be vindicated."

Ivarsia shrugged again and sat down. "Suit yourself." He didn't seem concerned at all.

Tagnolia turned to look at Ayla. "What else to you need, Ayla?" he asked.

Ayla had just finished wrapping the man's ribs, and was now wiping his face with the piece of leather she had dipped into the water that Danta had brought for her. He was filthy. "I do not need anything else," she said, glancing at Kurvlodia. She needed to attend his wounds too, but first she needed to finish with Zadneetsia. She turned back to the man.

Zadneetsia was in pain, but as he looked her up and down, he began to enjoy the woman's attention, or more accurately, he was enjoying how Ivanolia was _reacting_ to Ayla attending his injuries. He flashed a gloating look at Ivanolia, who seemed to be struggling against Donzolnia and Grov again.

Zadneetsia looked at Ayla's mate and he wondered why the flathead was not the one putting up a fight. Then he thought about how Ayla hadn't fought him either . . . until he had mentioned her family of flatheads. Was that the way of _all_ flatheads? he wondered. He hadn't come across any of the males before. They purposely had only gone after lone females or small groups of females, so he did not know.

"This man should not move around too much," Ayla stated, bringing Zadneetsia out of his musings. "A broken rib can causing internal bleeding, which I cannot fix." She looked back at the man. "His face will heal on its own." Ayla then looked up at Danta, who was standing there with a hot cup of water. Ayla smiled and took it, then made the man a painkilling tea.

"Here," she said, handing the man a cup of tea. "This will take your pain away." Zadneetsia looked at the cup and grimaced. He hated tea, especially any tea with painkilling herbs in it; it always tasted terrible, but he accepted it anyway. Ayla then went to Kurvlodia.

Kurvlodia was sitting with another man now, and was just letting his bloody nose drip on the ground in front of him. Ayla knelt down with a piece of leather and told him to hold it on his nose and tilt his head back. There was nothing she could do about the black eye; that too would have to heal on its own.

Ayla glanced at the other man. She had not met him before, but he looked familiar. Then it struck her; this man is related to Danta. He must be her brother, Ayla thought, and by the looks of him, he might have been in the fray of the fight too, though he wasn't bruised or bleeding anywhere.

Danta suddenly came up and confirmed what Ayla had been thinking. "This is my twin brother, Davaria," she said, giving the man a dirty look.

Davaria frowned at his sister. That was not entirely correct, he thought, but nodded at Ayla anyway. No one had mentioned to him that the woman was beautiful.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Ayla asked him.

He shook his head. He liked her voice. It was deeper than some other women and she had a strange accent. "No, I am fine," he replied.

Ayla nodded, then got up to go stand with the people of Oak Camp.

**XxX**

**? (more lack of chapter names, sorry) ?**

Both issues were brought to the Councils immediately and two meetings were going to be held the next day; First, Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia would make a claim to the Brothers, and second, Ayla would be expected to restate her claim for the Sisters. And no one was looking forward to the meetings, least of all, Ayla

It was evening by the time the people of Oak Camp left the tents of the Brothers and Sisters to return to their tentfire to try to relax. Again, several had stayed behind to care for younger children, and those that did, had prepared the evening meal.

Ayla sat disconsolately with her plate of food, thinking about the meeting. It was going to be hard to go through the whole thing again, and Ayla did not want to do it. But they are right, she thought. If I don't make a claim, then Zadneetsia is likely to do this again, and possibly be successful. She closed her eyes. I _have_ to do this, she told herself.

Grov watched her and once again wished he had not gone on the summer hunt. "What can I do, Ayla?" he asked.

Ayla opened her eyes and tried to smile at him. "Nothing," she said, leaning into him. "I am okay. I just don't want to go through this again. It's bad enough that it happened, but then I had to talk about it, and not be believed . . . now I have to talk about it again." She shook her head. "What will make this time different?"

Grov took her into his arms. He didn't know what to say, and there was nothing he could do; that was the hardest part.

**xXx**

Ivanolia sat on the other side of the fire watching Grov and Ayla, and wishing that _he_ could do something. He had to admit that he'd not made a smart choice by storming over to Sumac Camp, but he could not have helped himself if he had tried, which he hadn't. He couldn't believe he used to hang out with those men.

Danie was being rather attentive, he observed. She had fixed him a plate of food and was trying to get him to talk to her, but he just didn't feel much like talking. Besides, his lip hurt and he was tired from the hike back to the meeting.

Finally, he could not stay there any longer, he had to leave. Giving Danie a kiss, he excused himself to go to bed. He didn't even look back to see Danie frown with concern.

**xXx**

Ayla was chewing on a small bite of food when she saw Ivanolia get up to leave. She watched Danie frown and sit back down, then turned to Grov.

"Do you mind if I go talk to Ivanolia?" she asked.

Grov looked over at Danie. He hadn't seen the woman's mate leave. "No," he said. "Go ahead."

Ayla gave him her most beautiful smile and got up to follow her cousin into the tent.

**xXx**

Inside the tent, Ayla found Ivanolia lying on his bed, eyes closed, but she knew he was not asleep. She sat down on her own sleeping place. "I wanted to thank you, Ivanolia," she said. He opened his eyes. "For standing up for me."

The man smiled at her. "Yeah, but I've made more of a mess of this now, haven't I?"

Ayla shrugged. "For you maybe," she responded, smiling. "I don't think it will affect me much." She paused. "But it's good to have your support."

Ivanolia sat up and faced her. "He really doesn't think he's done anything wrong," he said, referring to Zadneetsia. "Ayla, I was just like him." He shook his head.

"But you're _nothing_ like him now. You are a good man."

"Thank you," he said, smiling at her. Then he changed the subject. "So, it looked like maybe you've made a friend in Danta," he said. Ayla nodded and he continued. "I could tell you two knew each other."

"Yes, we made a trade a few days ago, and I ended up inviting her over for an evening meal, but that's as far as it went. When Igorvia found out she was here, he came and made her leave."

"I am not surprised," Ivanolia scoffed. "After all that's happened, he probably expects her to be loyal to Sumac Camp. Not to mention, he's been after her for years. I'm sure he doesn't want her off somewhere where she could find a decent man."

Ayla wrinkled her nose at the thought of Igorvia and Danta being together. "I feel sorry for both Danta, and Danara too," Ayla said.

"I don't know her daughter too well," he said with a frown. "If I remember correctly, the child is nearly always asleep."

"I think that is just because she is so unhappy," Ayla mused. "She was pretty lively when they were here." Ayla eyed her cousin. "You also seem to know Danta pretty well."

Ivanolia blushed. "Yeah, I was the one she asked for."

Ayla frowned. "Asked for, for what?"

"For her First Rites," he said. He kept forgetting how new Ayla was. "I really wasn't old enough, but she became a woman pretty late, fourteen, I think. She was pregnant not long afterwards. I heard she was going to mate some young man from Poplar Camp, but he died."

Ayla's brow furrowed. "Her life seems terrible. Living in that horrible camp. Losing a sister."

"You don't know that half of it," Ivanolia said.

"At least she has a brother."

Ivanolia shook his head. "Davaria is just as worthless as the rest."

Ayla frowned. Davaria seemed nice to her, though it did appear that he had been in the fight too. "Where is Danta's mother?"

"Oh, Trata is _there_, but she is a waste of a woman. And she can't stand her daughter. She won't even look at her."

"But why? How can a mother hate her own child?" Ayla asked incredulously.

Ivanolia frowned. "Well actually, I don't know. Davaria didn't like to talk about it. I just know that Trata doesn't even speak to Danta. I've never seen her say one word to her youngest daughter. She'll talk to Davaria, and I saw her with Dreena, before she died, but never Danta."

Ayla was still frowning. "Well, I like Danta, and I don't like to see her hurting. She doesn't belong there."

**xXx**

The rest of the camp finished their meal and stayed up for a while, but everyone was tired, especially the hunters, and everyone needed to rise early for their meetings with the councils. Most turned in early.

**xXx**

Danta tucked her daughter in, after feeding her little more than crumbs. After the big hunt, there was plenty of food coming, so food was not a worry, but the child just wouldn't take any. She had eaten even less than was normal for her, worrying her mother greatly. Danta thought it was her daughter's way of rebelling against not being able to go to Oak Camp again, and wondered if she should try it herself.

Danta smiled as she thought about refusing food, and wondered if anyone would even notice. Certainly Trata wouldn't care. Maybe I can just fade away to nothing, she thought, then looked down at her daughter and shook her head. No, I can't do that.

The woman, glanced down at her child one more time, then decided she needed to relieve herself before going to sleep.

Not wanting to go outside, Danta made her way over to the night basket, and grimaced as the stench of waste wafted up to her. It was more than half full. What is wrong with these people? she asked herself, as she pulled up her long tunic to squat over the basket.

After finishing, she stood and adjusted her dress, then replaced the lid that only hid their waste from view, and started for her bed. She was still thinking about what a waste her _life_ was when she got there, and was startled to realize that her bed was occupied. She sighed.

"Igorvia," she said. "Get _out_ of my bed."

He groaned and reached up to pull her down. "Oh come on, Danta," he exclaimed loudly. "You haven't shared anyone's bed since the last time you shared mine." He held her tight and pressed his mouth onto hers.

Danta tensed up, but let him kiss her. When he finished she pulled back. "Igor, I just don't want to share anyone's bed. I want to be alone."

"But _why_?" he asked still holding her against his large frame. "Don't you know how much I want you?"

Danta rolled her eyes in the darkness. "Yes," she said. "So much so that you take Laska to your bed every night."

"Is that it?" he asked. "I only do that to make you jealous, Danta. Come to my bed and I will never pleasure her again."

"No Igor, I am not jealous." She knew it sounded that way, but that wasn't it at all. She just didn't want to be mean. "You can pleasure anyone you want; I really don't care."

"Then let me pleasure you," he said, rolling her over so that he was on top of her. Then he smothered her lips with his again.

Danta pushed him away. Firmly, but gently. "No Igorvia," she said. "How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not interested?" He tried to kiss her again, but she turned her head. "_Please_, just leave my bed. Go find Laska."

Igorvia frowned. "_No_! I want to spend the night with you," he said.

"But I don't want to spend the night _with you_. I want you to leave me alone."

"What if I refuse to leave?" he asked.

"Then you are as bad as Zadneetsia," she answered.

Igorvia frowned in the dark, but slowly got up. His first thought was to go find Laska, hoping to torment Danta throughout the night. But if it doesn't even bother her, he thought, then why bother? The man decided to go to his bed alone.

**xXx**

The next morning came before anyone was ready for it. The people of Oak Camp ate a cheerless morning meal and prepared to go over to the tent of the Council of Brothers.

When they arrived, they were ushered in quickly and were asked to take their seats. Ayla noticed immediately that there were many more people in attendance for this meeting than had been there for hers. She knew that was partly because all the headmen had returned from the hunt, and partly because so many had heard about the fight and wanted to see the proceedings.

Bolodenkia stood tall in the center of the tent and called everyone to order. "Who is making a claim?" the Head Brother asked, though he already knew.

Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia stood. "We are." Both were bruised and battered-looking, but had cleaned themselves up somewhat.

"What say you?" the man asked formally, causing Brulenzia to frown. They had not been this formal when they were questioning Ayla, he thought.

Zadneetsia cleared his throat and looked over at Ivanolia. "Yesterday, Ivanolia came over to Sumac Tent to fight. He punched and kicked me," he said, pointing out his injuries. "Then he moved on to Kurvlodia."

Bolodenkia looked at Kurvlodia. "Do you have anything to add?" Kurvlodia looked at Zadneetsia, then shook his head. Bolodenkia then turned to Ivanolia. "And what say _you_?

Ivanolia stood up and squared his shoulders. "I do not deny what I did yesterday. I was angry about what Zadneetsia did to Ayla, and I lost my head. I know I was wrong," he finally said, glaring over at his accusers. Ivanolia wasn't happy that Tagnolia had asked him to admit to being wrong, but he did what his headman had asked.

Bolodenkia was nodding. He was glad the young man was able to admit to his wrongdoing. It always looked better when people could do that, he thought. He was about to continue when Ivarsia stood up.

"How many times do we have to go through this?" he asked. "Zadneetsia has done _nothing_ to Ayla. The Brothers have already decided on this. Therefore, Ivanolia's attack was completely unfounded."

Tiflona stood up. "Ivarsia, you know that _that_ matter has _not_ been concluded yet, and that the _Sisters_ will be discussing it more today. Further, though slightly misguided, Ivanolia's anger is not unfounded."

Ivarsia was shaking his head. "Why is this woman talking?" Ivarsia asked, looking about the room. "Isn't this the Council of _Brothers_?"

Bolodenkia sighed. "Ivarsia, you know that everyone has a right to speak. Just because this is the Brothers' tent, it doesn't mean that a sister cannot add something." He held up his hand when Ivarsia tried to speak again. He turned to Oak Camp's headwoman.

"Tiflona, you are right that the claim Ayla has made against Zadneetsia is not over, but _this_ claim is about Ivanolia's violence against Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia." The man looked at Ivanolia, who stood there looking strong.

"Young man," he said formally. "Violence is forbidden among our people, no matter the reason. We are all raised knowing this. Therefore, we are not even going to discuss excuses. You will forfeit your share of the bison hunt, and you will not participate in the second summer hunt."

The Head Brother turned back to Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia, who were both gloating. "The two of you will split this man's share of the hunt, and that is the end of this," he concluded.

Ivanolia flashed another angry look at Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia. They were both still smiling. Then he looked at the people of Oak Camp. Tagnolia was talking to Tiflona, but both seemed pleased with the outcome. His mother and Vilognia looked pleased as well. He supposed it could have been far worse. He observed that Ivarsia was _not_ happy and was off to the side arguing with Bolodenkia. Ivanolia let out his breath, then walked over to Tagnolia and Tiflona and waited for them to finish speaking.

"Thank you, Tiflona," he said to his headwoman when she looked at him.

Tiflona smiled. "Think nothing of it. Though I do not condone what you did, we are all very angry about what Zadneetsia did to Ayla."

"You handled yourself well, Ivanolia," Tagnolia said. "It looked better that you admitted to doing wrong, and made it easier for Bolodenkia to make a decision. He didn't even bother to ask for a vote, which could have been worse. If he'd asked for a vote, then he'd have had to ask Ivarsia what sort of restitution was wanted. This was much better; we only lose a bit of meat."

Ivanolia frowned. "I am sorry about the loss of my portion of the hunt though."

"Again, not a problem. We have plenty of food," Tiflona said. "More than many others. Besides, you can make it up with a side hunt or two." She smiled at him. "Just because you cannot go on the next summer hunt, doesn't mean you can't plan a hunt or two of your own."

Tagnolia looked at his sister. "Good thinking!" he exclaimed. "So, when are we due at the Sisters' tent?" he asked.

"We do not have to be there until midday, so we have some time. This went much quicker than I had anticipated."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

The crowd that gathered for the Council of Sisters' meeting was enormous in comparison to the two previous meetings. _Everyone_ was interested in the foreign woman's claim against Zadneetsia, and though many thought her background vile, many _more_ could not stand the man she would stand against.

Ayla stood nervously with everyone from Oak Camp, waiting for the Head Sister to call them in. She knew that all the headwomen and headmen would be present, along with everyone that would fit in the tent, and that she'd be expected to recount the entire situation, _again_. She wondered if this would ever end.

Tiflona had advised her to go through her description of Zadneetsia's attack as quickly as possible, leaving out details such as why they were out hunting, so as not to distract from the true issue, but also to be as accurate as possible. Ayla was concerned about the many questions that had been asked before, which seemed to draw her off topic, but Tiflona told her that that was less likely with the Sisters; the Head Sister would direct them back quickly if that happened.

"Remember to speak loud and clear. Don't be shy; we want them to hear what happened." Ayla nodded. "_And_, don't worry," Tiflona told her, "I will be there to assist you if you need it." Ayla was glad for that. "That also means I cannot vote in the end," Tiflona went on. "But who knows, maybe there won't even be a vote. I really don't think it will matter." She smiled. "There will be a few people there today that have something important to add to our side."

Ayla frowned, and wondered who else could possibly add something. She had made it clear that she didn't want Durc involved, and had been promised that he would not be. Who else could help? There had been no witnesses . . . or had there? Ayla was going to ask the headwoman, but Tiflona needed to leave to go to her place inside.

**xXx**

Inside, the Head Sister, whose name was Breidara, had just settled everyone down, after asking a few people to leave. She was not going to put up with the private conversations that were going on, or extra commentary about the issue; this was too important for any of that, she believed. She wanted to keep this meeting on track.

Breidara stood, holding up her hand, waiting for the noise level to drop. She would not talk over anyone. When the people finally hushed, she began to speak.

"I am not going to make a long speech here," she said, looking around at all the observers. "Except to say this: We all know the essence of this claim and the seriousness of it. It has caused much anger among our people, and rightly so. It is _so_ grievous that I feel a decision must be reached _today_, so that the rest of the summer meeting is not tainted with it.

"Further, I will not allow anyone to disrupt this meeting, in any way; those that do, will be asked to leave. _And_, we will stay _on_ topic," she said, looking over at Ivarsia and his sister, Iyena, who already seemed ready to protest.

"And finally," she continued. "Unlike my brother, I _will_ be voting at the end of this." The Head Sister then turned to Ayla and waved her forward. "Please state the nature of your claim."

Ayla smiled nervously at Breidara. She liked the woman's delivery, and was glad she had given some rules before allowing things to get under way. Ayla felt that Breidara's requirements would make going through this again easier on her. One glance at Ivarsia told her that he was not happy about these restrictions.

Ayla stood up and approached the center of the tent and began her version of the attack. As instructed by Tiflona, she spoke clearly and loudly, so that everyone could hear every word, and she managed to make eye contact with Zadneetsia several times. Zadneetsia only smirked at her, hoping to throw her off, but he was not successful; she would not back down.

Breidara nodded at Ayla, then turned to Zadneetsia. "You obviously have a different version of this, or we would not be here. Please tell us."

Zadneetsia stood up, and went through his tall tale, which seemed ludicrous to the people that actually _knew_ Ayla, but by the time he had finished, several others were casting questioning glances at the strange, foreign woman. Ayla became more nervous.

Breidara then called up Kurvlodia, whom Zadneetsia claimed was not only present, but had also been an active participant on the day in question. Kurvlodia did not add much, except to confirm Zadneetsia's words.

Breidara looked back at Ayla. "Do you have anything else to add, any witnesses of any kind?"

Ayla frowned. This was not going to go any differently than the last time, she thought. Why did I even agree to do this? she asked herself.

"No, other than my son, whom I will not expose to this, I have no witnesses. But, so that you may understand me better, I will say this: I come from a people that are incapable of lying. In the Clan, no one makes untruths – therefore, I have not learned how to lie. This man," she said, looking at Zadneetsia again, "is lying about what happened that day. I did not welcome his advances, nor did I share pleasures with either of these two men." Her eyes went to Kurvlodia, who looked away.

Breidara nodded. "Does anyone _else_ have anything to add?" she asked, looking at Tiflona.

Tiflona stood up and smiled. "We certainly do," she replied. "I would like to question Danta, daughter of Trata of Sumac Camp."

There were several gasps and many loud comments, but only Ivarsia and Iyena stood up to object. Breidara held up her hand and looked at the people sternly. "Tiflona is well within her right to question anyone she feels can help Ayla's case. She is, after all, the headwoman of Oak Camp." Everyone quieted and looked at Tiflona. Ayla suddenly realized the headwoman had a few tricks up her tunic sleeve and looked over at Danta, who had just stood up and was slowly making her way to the front of the crowd.

Tiflona smiled at the young woman. "Good afternoon, Danta," she said. Danta looked nervous, but managed to smooth out her long tunic and smile. "Can you add to Ayla's claim in any way?"

Danta nodded and cleared her throat. "Yes."

"In what way?"

Danta glanced over at Zadneetsia, who was glaring at her so fiercely that she visibly shuddered, then looked back at Tiflona. "Well, I overheard a conversation between Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia."

Tiflona smiled. "And what did they say?"

"Kurvlodia said that Ayla was shocked that he'd backed up Zadneetsia, that it was too bad Zadneetsia couldn't _get her_, and that he would have liked to see Ayla struggle."

"Now wait just a minute," a man said loudly. Everyone turned to look at him. It was Kazaskia, the headman of Ash Camp and the man of Kurvlodia's hearth. "What in the Mother's name is . . . ," he began, before being cut off by Breidara.

"Let Danta finish," the Head Sister replied, giving the man a reproachful look, and turning back to Tiflona again.

Tiflona smiled appreciatively, then went on with her questioning. "And Zadneetsia? What did _he_ say?" she asked Danta

"Zadneetsia said there was no way the Sisters would go against him since he had Kurvlodia's word, but that he had come _so_ close."

"Thank you, Danta," Tiflona said with a smile, then turned back to Breidara, who looked back at the Ash Camp Headman.

"The son of my mate is not part of this woman's claim," he stated angrily, pointing at Ayla. "Why is _she_," he said, turning to Danta, "bringing him into it?"

Iyena was on her feet as well. "And Danta is not a fit witness," Iyena called out. "She is a member of Sumac Camp."

Another woman stood. It was Trata. "My daughter is a liar," she said with enough hatred in her voice to make Danta lose her color. Ayla worried that her new friend might faint, but she squared her shoulders and stood her ground.

"Yes, obviously she lies. There was no such conversation," Kurvlodia stated.

Breidara held up her hand again. "Now wait just a moment here. First of all, we are starting to talk out of turn here. The next person to speak without permission is going to have to leave. Secondly, Kurvlodia is most definitely part of Ayla's claim. He made himself such when he stepped up with Zadneetsia." She paused. "And third, just because Danta is a part of Sumac Camp, it doesn't mean she cannot justify a claim made by some other camp. Isn't Kurvlodia doing the same by backing up Zadneetsia's claim?" Many people were nodding their agreement. "I think there is no more reason to doubt _her_ than Kurvlodia."

Danta was pleased to hear Breidara's words of support, but frowned as she watched her mother stand up and stock off. She was seriously questioning her choice to tell Oak Camp what she had heard. She liked Ayla and knew she was doing the right thing, but this was going to get her into trouble with Sumac Camp. She was already treated as if she were nothing, now it would be worse. Danta glanced at her brother; he had a deep frown on his brow, but at least he had not gotten up to leave, or objected to her claim.

Breidara waited while the people settled down, then looked again at Tiflona. "Are you finished?"

"Well actually, _no_," the Oak Headwoman said. "I would also like to question Mikolavia of Beech Camp, mated to Mirra, the daughter of the headman's mate, and son of Belana, formerly a member of Cedar Camp."

Breidara turned her gaze on the man standing at the back of the tent, as did everyone else. Ayla looked at Mikolavia, who was coming forward to join Tiflona at the center of the tent. He hadn't been very warm toward her when she had visited his sister at Beech Tent, but something had obviously changed. Ayla then glanced over at the people of Sumac and the surrounding camps, and frowned. She had no idea what was going on, but apparently they weren't very happy. She saw Kurvlodia shift uncomfortably, then she looked back at Mikolavia.

"Can _you_ add to Ayla's claim in any way?" Tiflona asked.

Mikolavia looked at Ayla. He hadn't wanted to come to speak out against his friend, but he knew first hand that Kurvlodia was not being honest. To him, it could only mean that Ayla was telling the truth. Her background made him nervous, but that didn't mean she deserved what Zadneetsia was doing to her, or what he had tried to do.

He frowned and looked over at Kurvlodia, then back at the Headwoman of Oak Camp. "Yes," he said.

"_And_," Tiflona prompted.

Mikolavia took a deep breath. "There is no way Kurvlodia could have been with Zadneetsia and Ayla," he said.

Tiflona raised her eyebrows. "And how do you know this?"

"Because Kurvlodia and I went hunting on that afternoon. We did not return until late in the day."

The crowd gasped again and Ash Camp's headwoman was on her feet, nearly bursting, but she didn't speak. Instead she held up her arm and waved it wildly. Breidara nodded to her, indicating that the woman could speak.

"What did you do, Tiflona? Did you go to every camp to create witnesses since Ayla had none," the Ash Headwoman yelled.

"No, I simply went around to find out if anyone knew more than was being told. Is there something wrong with that?"

The Ash Camp Headwoman frowned. She supposed not. "But how do we know this man does not lie?"

Tiflona rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, Kazara. What does Mikolavia have to gain by lying about this? He does not _live_ at Oak Camp. He is not friendly with Ayla. And, if I remember correctly, he used to be quite close to Kurvlodia when he was a member of Cedar Camp. Is that not correct? Obviously they are still friends, if they're out hunting together."

The woman nodded. "Yes, that is correct, they are friends. Or they _were_, until now. But Mikolavia is mated to your brother's mate's daughter," she yelled at Tiflona. "Apparently _that's_ reason enough for him to lie now." Kazara did not notice Mikolavia's mother frown; she had always been very friendly with Ash Camp's headwoman. This accusation hurt.

"That is not how we work, Kazara. Mikolavia has no reason to lie to us. If he was a liar, then we wouldn't take his word, _or_ ask him to speak for us. He has absolutely nothing to gain here. In fact, he only stands to lose a _friend_," Tiflona said. She wanted to throw in that Kurvlodia wasn't much of a friend, but she held her tongue. Tiflona watched the other camps stew angrily, and wanted to smile, but kept a straight face. "Mikolavia is a good man. Are you _really_ going to dispute that?"

Kazara scowled and sat down. She glanced over at Mikolavia's mother, who hadn't been very happy that Tiflona had asked her son to speak, but was now refusing to look at her old friend. Belana could not believe Kazara had even suggested her son would lie.

Breidara looked around the room. "Tiflona, do you have anything else to add?"

Tiflona frowned. "On the issue of Zadneetsia and Ayla . . . no . . . I am finished."

"Does anyone else want to say anything?" the Head Sister asked. Iyena's hand shot up. "_Yes_?" said Breidara.

"It is _very nice_ for Oak Camp that Tiflona has managed to persuade a few people to come forward for _Ayla_, but neither one of these _witnesses_ actually witnessed anything. Neither one of them was present during the incident, so aren't we still at an impasse? I do not see how a different decision than the Brothers came up with can be reached."

"Yes, Iyena, this certainly does make decisions difficult, but now that we've heard from Mikolavia, we have to discount that Kurvlodia was with Zadneetsia. Mikolavia has no reason to lie and though Kurvlodia doesn't _really_ either, it seems obvious to me that one of these two men has _less_ of a reason." Several people were nodding as she glanced at Mikolavia.

"So, let's vote on this to see what the Sisters think," she said, turning to the group. "I need to see a number of hands of people that believe Kurvlodia was with Mikolavia during this incident, and not with Zadneetsia." All but six hands were raised, including the Head Sister's. "Well, then, that part is settled. It is the decision of the Sisters that Kurvlodia was with Mikolavia, and that Zadneetsia was alone. This definitely casts a shadow on Zadneetsia's defense."

"Further, what Danta overheard seems to indicate that not only are Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia conspirators in a plot to make Ayla look bad, but also that Zadneetsia did indeed attempt to force Ayla. I see no reason to believe that Danta is lying. I want to see the hands of those that believe Danta speaks the truth." All the same hands went up.

"So, that brings us to what the woman said." Breidara looked at Zadneetsia and frowned. "Zadneetsia, you have lost your witness and you have been overheard talking about this incident as if it did take place the way Ayla says. It sounds to me, as well as to most of the other Sisters, Zadneetsia, that you _did_ attack Ayla. Do you have anything to say?"

Zadneetsia was very red in the face and folded his arms across his chest. "This is ridiculous! I have not done what I have been accused of. Ayla is a liar! Danta is a liar! And so is Mikolavia!" He was shaking his head, as were all his supporters.

Breidara allowed him to speak, but shook her head. "I am afraid that this matter is over Zadneetsia. I hereby declare you guilty. I am sorry that you could not own up to this most grievous mistake." Breidara sighed, then went on.

"As restitution, the Sisters will require that you forfeit _your_ share of the bison hunt. To Ayla, of course," she said, thinking that the man did not even deserve a share, since she could not ever remember him attending a summer hunt. Most of the people from Sumac Camp didn't bother with summer hunts, but that didn't mean anything; the Sungaea always granted a share to every adult. "_Further_," Breidara continued. "Both you and Kurvlodia will give Ivanolia's share of the bison hunt to Ayla. I think she deserves it, after what you two have put her through."

"As punishment for the attack, and for lying about it," Breidara continued. "Zadneetsia, you will _not_ leave the area surrounding Sumac Tent until Sumac Camp is ready to leave this year's summer meeting. That will at least keep you away from other unsuspecting women.

"As for Kurvlodia," she said, looking at the other man. "You will not be restricted from leaving Ash Tent's space, but you will not be allowed to participate in the second summer hunt. I hope you will think long and hard about lying to the Sisters again."

Breidara took a deep breath and looked around. "Does anyone else want to add anything?" No one spoke up. Many angry Sumac and Ash Camp members stood up and stormed out, followed quickly by several Dogwood people. Cedar Camp, however, followed more slowly.

Tiflona turned to Ayla and smiled. "See? There was nothing to worry about," she said.

Ayla shook her head. "I did not know that you had others ready to support me," she said with a smile. "I must admit that I wish you had told me about them."

"I'm sorry that I did not tell you sooner, but I was not sure they would both come, and I did not want to get your hopes up. It was very last minute. Mikolavia admitted last night that Kurvlodia was with him during Zadneetsia's attack on you, but Danta only came to me after our visit to the Council of Brothers this morning." Tiflona frowned. "I'm afraid this is going to cause much trouble for her."

"I am _also_ worried about her," Ayla said, glancing over at Danta. The woman was turning to leave the Sister's tent. "I want to do something for her, but I don't know what."

Tiflona looked back at Danta. "Maybe she could spend the night with Oak Camp. That would at least give Sumac Camp a chance to calm down."

Ayla nodded. "I will ask her," she said with a smile, then rushed off to catch up with Danta before she left. Tiflona watched the daughter of Vincenzia's hearth run off, then went to speak to Breidara; she still had another issue to bring up.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Ayla caught up of Danta just outside the Sisters' tent, and smiled widely at her. "Thank you for coming forward. I'm sure you made the difference," Ayla said confidently.

Danta smiled and said, "I'm glad I could help," though now she wasn't sure she was. Ayla saw a flicker of deceit in the woman's eyes, and knew she must be struggling with returning to Sumac Camp.

"I was wondering," Ayla started. "Well actually, _we_ were wondering if you'd like to join us again this evening. We're going to have a celebration. And you and Danara can stay the night, if you want to."

Danta smiled again, but slowly her smile faded. She wanted to go, but she didn't know what was going to become of her place at Sumac Camp if she kept getting involved with Ayla and Oak Camp. "I don't know. I think I am in a lot of trouble. It may not be smart of me to leave camp." She was frowning. Ayla's frown matched hers.

"But that is exactly _why_ we want you to come over, Danta . . . so that they can calm down." Ayla shrugged. "It might help."

Danta thought it over. She doubted that anything she did was going to be enough to quell the anger Sumac Camp had for her, but at least she could spend the night away. "Okay, but I'll have to go to Sumac Camp to get Danara." She smiled. "She will be very excited," she said. She was excited too.

Ayla nodded. "I can come with you, if you need me to," Ayla said. She did not like the idea of going into Sumac Camp, but she didn't want Danta to go alone.

Danta frowned again. "_No_, I do not think you should, Ayla. I will be fine. I will meet you back at Oak Tent, okay?" Ayla nodded and hugged the young woman, then Danta walked off.

For a moment, Ayla was struck with the fear that she would not see Danta that night, but what could she do, Danta had told her she'd meet her back at Oak Tent. Ayla turned and left.

**xXx**

Danta made her way back to Sumac Tent and hoped that she could get in and out of there without any trouble, but that was not to be. The moment she walked back into Sumac Tent's space, several people confronted her.

"That was just great, _Danta_," Ivarsia said angrily. He was sitting in his usual place and had not gotten up. "Could you have done anything _more_ against the camp of your birth?"

Danta just stared at her headman for a moment, then looked at all the other angry people. "I was telling the truth, Ivarsia," she stated. "Whether you want to believe it or not, your sister's son attacked Ayla. And you should be ashamed of yourself for standing up for him."

Ivarsia sat with his fingertips together and was about to speak again, when Kurvlodia stood up angrily. "You are a liar, and you made me look bad."

"No!" she yelled stubbornly. "_You_ made you look bad. _I_ only told the truth. You are despicable," she said with disgust. "How could you lie for Zadneetsia?" Zadneetsia was watching, but hadn't said anything; he was letting his friend deal with this one. _This_ time, he thought.

Kurvlodia threw down his cup and approached her. "That's it," he yelled. "Someone needs to teach you a lesson, woman!" But, as he approached her, someone blocked his way. Instead of coming down on Danta, he looked into the angry eyes of Davaria, who stood between them.

"Get out of my way!" Kurvlodia snarled.

Davaria frowned. He wasn't used to standing up to the other men of the camp, but he didn't want to see the man hurt Danta, and that's what he appeared ready to do. Davaria knew violence was not allowed, but as he looked around, he didn't think anyone there cared what was allowed or not allowed. They were going to let Kurvlodia do anything he wanted.

"_Kurvlodia_," he said with a warning tone in his voice. "I think you need to leave my sister alone." Danta stared at her brother; he had never spoken out for her before.

"But look at the trouble she has caused," Kurvlodia said angrily. "She lies to the Council of Sisters, makes us look bad, and loses us meat from the summer hunt."

Davaria glanced at Danta, whose face only showed shock. "No Kurvlodia. Danta did _not_ lie. I can tell that she speaks the truth.

"What makes you so sure, Davaria," Kurvlodia asked, narrowing his eyes and scowling.

Davaria shrugged. "A man just knows this about his _twin_," he said, looking at Danta again.

Kurvlodia turned a dark shade of purple as he tried to control his anger. "You are going to take her side over _mine_?" the man asked. "You are going to take the word of a bad luck woman over a friend."

"Kurvlodia, you are no friend. A friend would not do something like this. Yes, I will take Danta's side over yours any day." Davaria didn't have to look at Danta again to know she was smiling; he could feel it. "Leave my sister alone."

Kurvlodia hesitated for only a moment, then stepped back, allowing the woman to pass. Danta looked at her brother as she went by and smiled gratefully, then quickly headed into Sumac Tent to get her daughter. Davaria followed her, only glancing back at the rest of the camp once before entering the tent himself.

**xXx**

Davaria went to his sister's bed platform and sat down. He watched her dress and attempt to clean up Danara without saying a word. When she finished with her daughter and started in on herself, he grabbed her hand.

"Danta, what are you going to do?" he asked. "This is not the end, and I cannot be here to help you every time someone starts in on you."

Danta stopped and looked at him. "I know that you can't, Davaria," she said. "And I don't know what I'm going to do. But right _now_, I am going to go over to Oak Tent, and we are going to have a good meal and spend the night. I will have to worry about later, _later_." She paused. "I guess I need to thank you, Davaria," she said, hugging her brother. "But, what about you? If you keep defending me, then you will be as bad off as I."

Davaria smiled. "Well, what could I do? Let the man hurt my _twin_?"

Danta frowned and looked her brother in the eye. "I know you did not like that I introduced you that way," she said. Her eyes were shining with tears.

Davaria shrugged. "It just felt like you had forgotten about _her_, Danta. But you are right, that is what we are now." He pulled her into his arms again.

"So, Oak Tent, huh?" he said with a sigh.

Danta nodded, her head still on his chest. Then suddenly, she pushed away. "Maybe you could come with us. I do not think they would mind." She could see him start to shake his head; though she may be ready to wage war against their camp, he wasn't sure he was.

"I don't think so, Danta. Besides, I wasn't invited."

"They won't care," she said, standing and tugging on his tunic sleeve. "Please, Davaria. _Please_ come with us," she begged.

Davaria frowned. This was sure to make things really bad for both of them, but things were already bad, weren't they? Finally the man nodded. "Okay, I will go with you."

Danta smiled widely and threw her arms around his neck. "Oh thank you," she exclaimed.

**xXx**

Danta spent a short time helping her brother look more presentable. There was no time to wash his clothing, but she used some teasel to brush them to get off some of the grime, and then pulled out a blade so that he could shave his face. After he had finished, she wiped off his face with a wet piece of leather, and finished by straightening his hair somewhat.

Danara just smiled at her uncle and sat quietly as her mother worked on him. She could hardly wait to get Oak Tent to see her friends, but she was patient. Plus, she did not want to say anything to make her mother change her mind.

When they were finished, Davaria followed his sister outside to leave. He shot a quick look at Kurvlodia and the others, who eyed them suspiciously, then continued on with his sister and her daughter.

**xXx**

"Are you sure they will not mind me coming with you?" Davaria asked. He knew he was considered as bad as the other young Sumac Camp men.

Danta stopped and shook her head. "_No_, I'm not sure, but they will not ask you to leave, so don't worry . . . and don't drink too much bouza," she said, straightening his tunic again. "I don't want to give them any reason to wish they hadn't invited me."

Davaria nodded. "I won't drink _any_," he said with a smile.

Danta smiled. "I didn't say not to have fun, Davaria. I just don't want you to . . . drink a lot. Sometimes you're hard to handle when you've had too much."

"I understand, Danta. Please don't worry. I will behave myself," he reassured her. "Promise." She smiled.

**xXx**

By the time Davaria, Danta and Danara reached Oak Tent, the celebration was well underway. Danara immediately ran off to play with her new friends, which surprised Davaria; he had never seen Danta's daughter so lively.

A few people cast questioning glances at him, and he was sure he was going to be asked to leave, but he wasn't. Ivanolia even brought him a drink, which he politely accepted, but only sipped, to honor his sister's request.

Danta introduced him to the people he did not know, including Grov, and then was pulled away from him by Tiflona; the headwoman seemed to have a few questions to ask her.

**xXx**

"So, Davaria," Ivanolia said. "What brings _you_ to Oak Tent?"

Davaria frowned. "Danta asked me to come with her," he stated honestly.

Ivanolia's brow furrowed. "I don't seem to remember you spending much time with your sister in the past."

"I suppose I didn't Ivanolia, but things are a little different right now."

Ivanolia just nodded. That is good to hear, he thought, though he didn't know exactly _what_ was different between the brother and sister.

**xXx**

For most of the evening, the people sat and talked outside by their fire. Several other people joined them, including Mikolavia from Beech Camp, who had only come because Tiflona had still wanted to talk to him. After speaking with her, he was drawn into a conversation with Ivanolia and Davaria, and ended up staying for most of the celebration.

Others that had joined Oak Tent in their celebration were Vincenzia's cousin, Vardasia, who was the headman of Willow Camp, and the headman from Spruce Camp, Sardovia.

"I wanted to thank you two," Vincenzia said to the men. "Ayla mentioned that both of you supported her claim at the first meeting." The men nodded.

"You are most welcome, Vincenzia," said Vardasia. "Ivarsia was trying so hard to make Ayla look bad, but I could tell she was speaking the truth. _And_, we are kin. That has to mean something in this mixed up world, doesn't it?" Vincenzia smiled. As did Sardovia.

"Yes," said Sardovia. "And there is just something about that daughter of your hearth, Vincenzia; she seems more honest than most. But I'm sure it would have been impossible to make her _look_ bad." He paused, glancing over at the woman who was talking amiably with some of the younger adults. "She is quite striking," he finished.

Vincenzia and Vardasia followed the other man's gaze and both smiled. "Yes, she is," Vincenzia agreed. "Though one isn't supposed to say that about the daughter of one's own hearth, is he?" The men laughed.

"So Sardovia, has something been done about Janara?" Vincenzia asked. "She was quite a handful during the hunt, but I haven't seen her around today."

Sardovia frowned. "Yes, Jeeteria came to me immediately with what had happened, and I restricted her to our Tent and Tentfire. Jeeteria wasn't too happy about it, but he's not very happy with _her_ right now either. To be honest, he's quite uncomfortable with having Grov so close, but he can just live with it, as far as I'm concerned." They now looked over at Grov, who had been drawn into the conversation with Ivanolia, Davaria and Mikolavia. "I really don't see anything wrong with the man."

"No, there isn't anything wrong with him, or any of the other Clan people, for that matter," Vincenzia said. "I spent a large amount of the winter with them, and they are good people."

Vardasia frowned. "People are going to be hard to convince though. Most think they are animals."

"I know," Vincenzia said. "But if we do it a few at a time, then it won't be so hard. Look at you two. Would you have believed that you'd be supporting Grov, a man of the Clan, before this summer meeting?" Both of the men shook their heads; no, they would not have believed it if the Mother had told them.

**xXx**

The celebration went on until late into the night, but slowly people started to drop off. The elder members of Oak Tent had disappeared in ones and twos, and finally the younger adults left the tentfire and went inside. This was where Danta and Davaria didn't know what to do. They knew they had been invited to stay over, but they didn't know _where_ they would stay.

Ayla walked Danta back to where the girls would sleep, and both women smiled when they found the three girls already sound asleep on top of the furs. Danta picked up Danara and held her while Ayla maneuvered her daughters around to make it possible to pull the fur over them, then Danta put Danara back down.

"She looks so peaceful," Danta commented. "She never looks that way in her own bed." Ayla frowned, but didn't know what to say.

"Ahh, I was going to make tea," Ayla said. "Would you like some?" Danta nodded. "You go back to the others, I'll go get it." Ayla turned and walked toward the back of the tent. Danta went the other way.

**xXx**

Back where everyone else was, Danta's eyes quickly found her brother. He was sitting on a semi-circular bench in the middle of the space and he looked somewhat uncomfortable, though it was only because he didn't know what he was supposed to do. Danta noticed that Ivanolia was with him and she smiled. She had always liked Ivanolia. He was so fair-haired, quite unlike anyone at Sumac Camp. That was why she had asked for the man when it had been time for her First Rites. Well, _that_, and the fact that she didn't want any of the men from Sumac Camp to touch her, she thought.

Danta looked over at Ivanolia's mate. Danie was so opposite to the man, with her short, nearly black hair, but they _did_ seem to fit together well, _and_ the woman was pregnant already. That was good luck, Danta thought. Danta watched Ivanolia's mate. She didn't know Danie very well; she had only met her on that first night that Ayla had invited her over, but she had liked her a lot, and thought she was very lucky to have mated Ivanolia. Danta smiled and crossed the space to join the woman.

Danie, who was relaxing on the bed platform she shared with Ivanolia, was talking to a few others, but looked up at Danta and smiled. "Come, sit down," she said, patting the bed next to her. Danta smiled and nervously sat down.

"We were just talking about Davaria," Laurana said. "He looks good."

Danta looked over at her brother. "I guess so," she responded. "We did not have much time to clean up. I hope it's okay that I brought him."

"Of course it is," Danie said.

"I had some trouble getting out of Sumac Camp, and Davaria made it possible for Danara and me to come here. I just couldn't leave him there."

Laurana smiled. "You don't have to explain, Danta. It's okay, really."

"_Tea_?" Ayla said, suddenly appearing with a tray of cups. Everyone smiled and nodded.

**xXx**

As it turned out, Danta and Davaria shared Tinozia's bed, since the young man was still away enduring his Shomata. They lay awake long after everyone else slept, whispering to each other in the darkness.

"This is what I want," Danta whispered. "I want to live with people that don't drink themselves to sleep every night and who care for each other."

"I know you do, Danta. And I think you should _have_ this, but these are not our people," Davaria said quietly. "And you can't have everything you want, you know?"

"I know that," she said sadly, leaning her head on her brother's shoulder. "But I can wish for it though, can't I?" She closed her eyes. "I am going to ask . . . no, _beg_ the Mother for help."

Davaria frowned in the dark. Yes, he thought, she could wish things were different. And she could beg the Mother for help, but the Mother had never granted any of _his_ wishes before. Why would she answer Danta's? he wondered.

Then he thought that maybe, if he added his plea to Danta's, the Mother might take notice and remove his sister from their miserable camp and give her what she deserved. He would miss her, but he did want her to be happy, even if he was not. And having her alive and happy somewhere else, was better than having her nearby and in pain, or dead, like Dreena. The man's heart still ached for their dead sister. But _really_, he thought, she is better off too. Though Dreena had at least been loved by their mother, she had been miserable too; she had had to watch their mother ignore Danta, as Davaria continued to do now. He still did not understand why Trata felt the way she did.

Finally, Davaria fell asleep, but it was just after he sent his request to the Mother. _All I ask is that you help my sister_.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

The next morning everyone was up early, but not by choice. Travie had risen before dawn and had a morning meal going. She was going around waking everyone.

"Get up, get up!" she called out loudly, clapping her hands together, as she walked through the central passageway of Oak Tent. "It's time to eat." A few people groaned, but most rolled out of bed.

Danta sat up and rubbed her eyes, then smiled over at Ayla. Ayla was up already, pulling a long fringed tunic over her head.

"Does she do this often," Danta asked, glancing down at her closed-eyed brother. She could tell Davaria was awake, but he wasn't usually an early riser, mostly due to the amount of bouza he had the habit of taking in; she was glad he had limited the previous night's consumption to two cups.

Ayla shrugged. "I don't know," she answered. "This is the first time she's done this since _we've_ been around."

Danie groaned. "Yes, this is _quite_ normal for my mother," she confirmed. "Maybe I should have encouraged her to move to Oak Camp without me."

"Hey!" Ivanolia exclaimed. "What about me?" He was standing above her trying to look upset. "What am I? Chopped bison? It thought you came here for me."

Danie hid a smile. "Hummmm, I've been questioning _that_ decision since I got here."

Ivanolia looked hurt for a moment, then realized she was only joking and reached down to pull her out of bed. "Okay, that's enough out of you," he said, tickling his mate without mercy.

"_Mother_." Darvie could be heard from the other end of the central passageway. "Some people would like to get some sleep."

"Yes, yes, I know," Travie said. "But I've made a meal, so get up."

"I am up, though I wish I weren't," Darvie said with a frown. Then she noticed Vincenzia walking down the passageway. Her mate was an early riser as well; he had already been up and out. "What is it with you _old_ people?" Darvie asked the tent at large and smiled.

Vincenzia laughed. He could tell she was irritated, but as usual, she had turned it around. That's what he liked about her; she had no temper whatsoever. "_Old_ people?" he questioned, raising his eyebrows. "Who you calling old?" He slipped his arm around Darvie and grinned at her.

Darvie tried to look serious. "Well _you_, of course. After all, I _am_ eleven years younger than you, you old man."

He continued to grin, but leaned down to kiss her. Then he called out to Travie. "We're coming, Travie. Hold your grain."

**xXx**

Outside they ate a full meal. It was not just the grain cereal that they had so often. Travie had outdone herself, and nearly everyone went back for seconds.

Davaria and Danta were surprised at the amount of food that was prepared for a morning meal; no one ever cooked so much at Sumac Camp. In fact, it was more of a fend-for-yourself type of lifestyle at Sumac Camp. Even celebrations produced meager amounts of food, since most people preferred to drink themselves full.

Danara ate heartily, asking her mother for thirds, then went off to play with the other children. Davaria just stared after the child, shaking his head. Danta is right, he told himself again. _This_ is all her daughter needs, love, acceptance and good food.

**xXx**

After eating, Tagnolia and Tiflona called for everyone's attention. Ayla looked up at them and was surprised at the seriousness of their expressions. She glanced around at the other people; everyone had expectant looks . . . everyone, but Ivanolia, she realized. He seemed to know what was going on, and it suddenly struck Ayla that he had told them his secret and that this meeting was _about_ that secret.

"Yesterday, after Ayla's meeting with the Sisters, we brought another grave matter to them, and we decided to push for a meeting today," Tiflona said.

"I think it would be better to ask the children to leave," said Tagnolia, looking at Frala and Fräubita, who had only recently become women. "Would you two please bring them inside, so that we may talk?" Both young women frowned, wishing they could be part of the discussion, but nodded and got up to leave.

Tiflona watched them go, then looked back at her people.

**xXx**

"So, obviously Ivanolia is going to go with us to the meeting, but I would like to have Donzolnia there too, because it could be most helpful to have first hand information to pass on to the Councils if we want to put an end to this. And Grov, Ayla and Travie, Darvie or Danie too, if you do not mind. All of you have stories to tell that might be convincing. Grov is the product of this, Ayla knows of this happening, and our Mamutoi members are related to Rydag, also the product of this. What do you say?"

Ayla watched Grov. He nodded. "I will go," he said. His mind was on his mother, Ayla knew.

Ayla then looked at Tiflona. "I could tell Oda's story," she said. "The way I heard it at the Clan gathering.

Travie and Darvie nodded. They would go. And Danie put up her hand. "I do not know if what we have to add about Rydag will be important enough to make a difference, but I will go, if only to support Ivanolia." Ivanolia smiled at her sadly.

And finally, Vincenzia stood. "And I will go too, if that is okay. I would like to be there for Ayla and Darvie."

Tagnolia and Tiflona nodded. "That is good. It will be most helpful to have speakers," Tiflona said with a sigh. Tagnolia was about to say something when another hand went up.

**xXx**

Davaria had been sitting there quietly, listening to the meeting of Oak Camp members and wondering if they had forgotten that they had visitors. They were discussing the favorite pastime of some of Sumac Camp's younger men: forcing Clan women. He was quite nervous.

Slowly, he looked over at Danta, who was staring wide-eyed at Tiflona, and then he looked at Ivanolia; the man hadn't looked at him. Davaria quickly made a decision; he would do the right thing. He put his hand up.

"_Davaria_?" Tagnolia said. "Did you want to add something?" Danta turned to stare at her brother.

Davaria looked back at her for a moment, then nodded. "Y-yes," he said, then he cleared his throat. "I know that I am not part of Oak Camp, but if you do not mind, I . . ." He stopped.

Tiflona frowned. "If you have something that will help, then of course we don't mind."

Davaria turned to Danta and frowned. She took his hand. "I have been a part of these raids myself," he finally said and blushed crimson. Danta's eyes widen again. "It is always something that young men talk about, but never do. Or at least never admit to doing."

Tiflona nodded. "Well, if you will come with us and speak as well, then we would be grateful."

Tagnolia nodded as well. "And we are not planning on exposing the men that have taken part in this. We just want to have a ban put on it, so that it cannot happen any longer. So it is your choice to make such an admission, Davaria. We do not expect you to do this, nor will we point out that you have told us, should you choose to change your mind. Davaria nodded. He understood.

"So we will go over there shortly. All the headmen and women have been notified, but only some know what we are coming together to discuss. Again, we just want a ban put on this act, not punishment to those that have participated in it."

**xXx**

They decided to keep their numbers down, so as not to appear ready to make more trouble than was necessary; only the few that would speak would come, with Vincenzia coming only for support. Davaria had gone to walk Danta and Danara back to Sumac Tent, and would join them later, if he still wanted to.

**xXx**

This time when they entered the Sister's tent, Ayla let herself look around to _really_ see where she was. This time she was not so nervous, not yet, anyway. They entered and sat down at the back. The Sisters' tent was large and conical in shape, and seemed to be made up of many large hides sewn together. The hides had been draped over, and secured to, many stripped tree limbs that were resting on even larger branches from trees, whose trunks had been driven into the ground for the purpose of holding up the heavy construction. Ayla wondered why she had not noticed how it was made when she had been there the day before.

After inspecting the tent, Ayla looked around to see all the headmen and women coming in. She frowned when she saw Ivarsia and Kazaskia look over at her and scowl, then turned her attention back to the others that were sitting around waiting. There were the eight Oak Camp members, and a few Beech Camp members, and some others she knew, but there was also a great many people that she did not recognize. That final group of people was the largest.

Finally, the meeting was called to order and Tiflona was asked to explain why everyone was there.

"This is ridiculous," Ivarsia shouted. "Why do we care what some young men are doing to the flatheads; they are just animals." He glanced over at Grov. "They are of no concern to us."

Ash Camp's headman was standing as well. "Why is Oak Camp trying to cause _more_ trouble? Haven't we had enough of this?"

Tiflona was shaking her head. "That is not true, Ivarsia . . . Kazaskia, they are _not_ animals and we do not want to make trouble. We only want to _stop_ trouble." Tiflona paused, then continued. "I would like to let a few people tell of their experiences with this, so that we may understand this more. It is much more common than we know." Tiflona looked at Grov. "Grov, would you tell us about your people?"

Grov stood up and faced the group of people staring at him.

"Well, I do not know much about my mother's people, and _her_ mother's people, but I do know that it was very difficult. My mother died before she could give me enough details to really understand, so most of my information came from other people. I know that we came from farther west than any clan around here, nowhere near the peninsula in the south where Ayla and I now reside, and that some of the clans to the west have lighter hair." Ayla realized he was repeating the same story he had told Darnev, almost word for word.

"I know that my mother looked more clan than I do, and that she was attacked by the Others. That is what _we_ call people like you, the Others. I also know that _her_ mother had had to endure a similar attack many years before my mother. _And_, my mother seemed to think that even her mother's mother had been mixed, but she wasn't positive about that." Some of the women were frowning at the insight into the lives of some flathead women.

"I remember my mother telling me how badly she was treated for looking so different, and that sometimes there were things she just could not understand. She said that eventually it got so bad that she and her mate, and some others left, and went to look for some place else to live. She said that her mother's people had done the same years before, and that each group that left didn't seem to learn a lesson; they continued to be intolerant of the newest babies that were born." Grov continued to talk.

"I'm not really sure when or how it happened, because I was still young, but we left our territory again, and I guess we entered Sungaea territory. As you obviously know, most Sungaeans don't tolerate the Clan, but there were some people just north of Beran Sea that joined us; they were mixtures of Clan and Sungaea. We traveled until we found some caves long a nice river valley, and settled there. After that we tried hard to live in harmony. Among us we had full clan people, mixed people, and later, a few people that were full Others. We did not have the rigid rules that so many clans have. It was just our way. That is how I grew up."

Grov swallowed and continued again, this time coming to his most recent experience with his mother, which was also his last. "I was eight years old when my mother died. It happened just after Nora . . . I mean, Evenora arrived with her family and joined our clan. My mother just disappeared; we never found her. It was a good thing I had Evenora's family . . . I'm sure that Vinoza's presence saved me." Grov looked around at the shocked people. Most had no clue as to where Teglodia, Vinoza and Evenora had gone, but now they did and it was a shock.

"After that move and coming across Teglodia and Vinoza, I remember being treated very well by most people. I remember that Teg and Oza were very good to me, but we didn't have contact with any Others; it was too dangerous."

That is where the man stopped. It was obviously painful to go through that story and many had wet eyes and a new appreciation of what some flatheads had had to go through.

Tiflona gave the man a moment to return to his seat, then she moved on. "Ayla, why don't you tell us how you met Grov, and what you know about this topic."

Ayla stood and approached. Her heart was pumping wildly again. "I would like to start with before meeting Grov, if that is all right." She was looking at Tiflona. The headwoman nodded.

"I do not remember my young life, here with you people, the Sungaea," Ayla began. "I only remember the earthquake, and a cave lion who made these scars on my leg." Ayla pulled down her leggings to expose the scars and turned so all could see them. "Iza, my Clan mother, told me that she found me by the river, unconscious. I now know that I was five years old then." Ayla swallowed.

"Iza was a medicine woman . . . but you would call her a healer. She healed my leg. She saved me and the leader, Brun, allowed me to become Clan. And Creb, our Mog-ur, which is like your Shogur, taught me the ways of the Clan, and he taught me how to speak the way they do, and he loved me. Iza and Creb . . . all of the Clan . . . took care of me. I was not Clan, but they took care of me."

Ayla went through some of her experiences, but not all of them of course; there really wasn't time for that. When she got to the Clan gathering she told Oda's story, but did not mention Ivanolia or any of the other men that had taken part. She did, however, look over at her cousin and see pain in his eyes; she had finally mentioned the death of Oda's first daughter, which she had so carefully avoided before. Ivanolia was grief stricken at the thought of the child's death. His only consolation was that he knew he had not been responsible for the death, and now he understood Ayla's extensive questioning on the day he told them about the incident.

Ayla finally moved on to Grov. "I met Grov after another earthquake; this one took our cave. We were out searching for a new one when we had an accident that drew us down river. That is where we met the survivors of Grov's clan. There weren't many of them, only ten survivors from the earthquake and they wanted joined us. When we found the cave we now live in, Grov and I were mated." Ayla stopped and looked at Tiflona. "I am finished now," she said.

Tiflona smiled. "Thank you, Ayla." The headwoman turned to look at the three Mamutoi women. "Would one, or all of you tell us about Rydag?" Travie stood up and approached the front.

"This story is about a boy named Rydag; a boy that looks nearly identical to Ayla's son Durc. I was not there, but Nezzie, who is my cousin's mate, is the boy's adopted mother, so I have heard this story plenty.

"They were out hunting megaceros when Nezzie noticed a Clan woman hiding near their hunting camp. Nezzie says that the woman didn't run away when she saw her looking, only when she tried to get closer, but she did notice that the woman was very pregnant. She decided to leave food out for her." Travie paused and looked around at the people, staring in rapt attention.

"Nezzie says that she saw the woman several times, but every time she tried to get closer, the Clan woman would run away. Finally, she realized the woman was in labor, so she asked her mate to go after the woman. Nezzie helped to deliver the boy, but the Clan woman died before the sun came up." Travie paused again.

"The boy is very sickly and hasn't been treated well by the Mamutoi people, but he much loved by those of Lion Camp. And now that Ayla has taught him how to speak the way the Clan does, he is much happier. But he, and others like him, need to be accepted; they _are_ people, not animals."

Tiflona stood again and people could tell that Travie was finished. She was about to go on again, but Ivarsia had his hand up.

"This is all very _interesting_," he said, giving a fake yawn. "But _really_, who cares? All this is, is just a bunch of stories about the lives of flatheads, and not even stories told by the people that had these experiences. It _might_ be different if Grov's mother was here," he said, looking at the mixed man. "Or this Oda woman . . . or maybe even the little abomination's mother, but they're not. Personally, I think this," he said, gesturing about, "Doesn't mean anything." Several people were nodding.

Tiflona smiled. This was _exactly_ what she wanted to hear. "Well, I do have some first hand accounts to present, if you are willing to hear them?" Ivarsia narrowed his eyes, but shrugged.

Tiflona looked at Ivanolia and Donzolnia, who both stood and came forward. Ivanolia was quite nervous, but went through his story. He never mentioned who the other culprits were, as they had promised Davaria, but he gave a detailed account of the incident, including the fact that the woman he had forced was Oda, the very same woman that lived with Grov and Ayla's clan. He even mentioned that Oda had given birth to a child that Ayla believed to be of his spirit. There were several gasps of dismay at that information, then everyone turned to look at Donzolnia. Donzolnia confirmed that he had been present during the incident, but that he had not participated.

Kazaskia scoffed at the new information. "_So_? Is that it? One man admits to doing what many young men talk about, and we need to have a meeting. Tiflona, you are wasting our time . . . _again_."

"This is not a waste of time, Kazaskia. We need to put a stop to this kind of behavior," Tiflona said angrily. "And no, that is not _it_?" she went on, glad to see Davaria enter the tent. "I have one more person to call . . . Davaria?"

Davaria came forward, but avoided the angry looks from the headmen of his area. "My experience is probably similar to that of Ivanolia, though I was not there with him. I have participated in the forcing of Clan females several times. And there are many of us that do it. It is not uncommon at all." Davaria decided that that was all he could contribute and went to sit down. Tiflona was quite pleased. Ivarsia and Kazaskia, however, were glaring furiously at the young man, as were many of the men that had been a part of this.

"Okay Tiflona, you have made your point," one of the headwomen said. "I agree, this is a problem. But what do you want to do about it?"

"I want it to stop. I want forcing Clan women to be banned. I want anyone caught forcing any woman, Clan or Others, to be permanently restrained. I want camps that gain knowledge that they have men like this among them, to turn them over to the Councils or face disbandment for supporting such evil. I want this _to end_, here and _now_." Tiflona stopped, arms folded across her chest, and waited for someone to say something, but she wasn't ready for what happened next; the tent erupted with shouts from all sides.

Davaria watched for a short time, then sneaked out to get back to Danta. He had done what he could.

**xXx**

Back at Sumac Camp, Danta had spent a little time with her brother, before he had left to go to the Sisters' meeting. Davaria had felt he needed to sit down with her and tell her more about all he had done. He had actually cried while he told her.

"Do you hate me?" he had asked her.

Danta had smiled and wrapped her arms around him. "Of course not, Davaria. I could _never_ hate you. I do not understand how you could do it, but I will not waste time being angry. Life is too full of that," she said sadly.

Davaria had frowned. "You are too good to me, Danta. After all I have done to you, you still support me."

"You are all I have left. You and Danara." She paused. "Maybe the three of us could leave together. It would be hard, but we might be able to do it. Maybe we could make a journey, or find some other people," she said hopefully. "What do you think?"

Davaria sat up and looked at her. "Are you serious? You'd really leave the safety of a camp of people, to be alone with just me and Danara?"

Danta shook her head. "I am _not_ safe here. It is only a matter of time before someone hurts me for what I have done."

Davaria frowned again. She was probably right, and what about him. After he went to this meeting, he was bound to be in for it too. "Okay, Danta. I will think about it, but it's going to take some planning. We can't leave today."

She nodded. "Did you decide to go speak at the meeting?"

"Yes. I am going to go there now. Are you coming?"

Danta frowned. She wanted to be there to support him, but Danara was sleeping. "I think that I should stay here with Danara."

"That is fine. I understand. You should try to get some sleep too," he said with a smile. "You look terrible."

Danta grinned and gave him a push. "Just go!"

**xXx**

Danta had watched her brother go, then sighed and walked toward their tent to check on her daughter and then get some sleep. She suddenly realized that she was extremely tired.

However, the moment she entered the tent, she was accosted by Zadneetsia.

"So, you think you can give information about me and get away with it," he said, grabbing her by the hair and dragging her through the tent. Danta screamed in pain, but knew there was no one around to hear her. She had been wondering where everyone was.

"How dare you even come back here," he sneered, and shoved her back. Danta flew back and toppled over one of the empty bed platforms, falling hard to the ground.

"Zadneetsia, please," she cried. "You were lying. I could not _not_ say anything."

Zadneetsia had crossed the space quickly and was now reaching down to pick her back up. He looked as if he was going to hit her, and she cowered in fear, holding one arm up over her head to protect herself. No one had ever struck her before, not even Trata.

The man watched her and lowered his hand. He didn't want to _hurt_ her, he thought. At least not in _that_ way. There were far _better_ ways of hurting this woman.

"Take off your dress, Danta," he demanded with a sly look. Danta just stared at him. His eyes were roving up and down her body.

"W-what? N-_no_," she finally responded, holding her arms crossed over her chest and backing away.

"Oh, come on," he said, stepping forward and pulling her toward him. "This is how you can pay for making me lose the bison meat, and for making me look bad. And for running off to Oak Tent again last night." He was holding her wrists with one hand and shaking the index finger on his other hand at her. "We can't have _that_, now can we?" He flashed her a vicious smile.

Danta continued to struggle against him. "No. You cannot make me do this," she said, managing to pull her hands away and smack him a few times. He only laughed and grabbed her again, then picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. She kicked hard and screamed, but it did no good, he was too strong and no one was there to hear her.

"I'm not sure you understand," he said, shaking his head as carrying her to his bed. "I _can_ make you do this." He laughed. "You _are_ going to do this, or things could get _much_ worse for you."

Danta was in a panic, and was pounding her fists on the man's back and screaming. She got once glimpse of her frightened daughter, who was across the tent in her bed, before the man tossed her onto his bed and began untying the waistthong of his leggings.

Danta watched him and looked around for an escape, but there was none. "Please, Zadneetsia," she whimpered. "Don't do this. Please don't force me to do this," she begged.

The man stared down at her and smiled. This was turning out to be much more fun than he had hoped, he thought, as he stepped out of his leggings. Danta stared at his hard manhood and began to cry.

"Please Zadneetsia," she said again, holding her arms against her chest, fingers intertwined and to her lips. "_Please_," she begged.

The man only stared down at her for a moment. He eyes seemed to become unfocused, then he reached down and roughly pushed up her dress to give himself access. Then he climbed on top of her.

Danta tried to fight against him, twisting around in the bed and hitting him repeatedly, and holding her legs together as firmly as she could, but the large and powerful man easily pushed her legs apart with his knee and pushed himself into her. She cried out loudly, not from pain, but instead, from anger and frustration. She couldn't believe this was happening to her.

It did not take long for the man to reach his climax, and with his last few pumps, he groaned loudly and collapsed on her. "Now, isn't that better?" he asked. Danta had tears streaming down her face, and all she wanted to do was run away, but she couldn't move; he had her pinned down. She was sobbing quietly and he was breathing heavily, but both stopped to listen when they heard something.

"_Danta?_" came a voice from behind one of the hide partitions. It's Davaria, she thought frantically, and began to struggle again. Danta would have screamed, but Zadneetsia had clapped his hand over her mouth and shook his head. They lay there like that until Davaria disappeared, then Zadneetsia spoke.

"And don't think you can go tell anyone about this, or you'll be sorry. You have that little girl to worry about," he said with a threatening tone. "Wouldn't want anything to happen to _her_, would you?" Danta's eyes widened. A few more tears fell, then she shook her head.

Zadneetsia gave her another malevolent smile. "_That's_ a good girl," he said. "Now get dressed and get out of my bed! I need to get some sleep."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Danta got up as he had instructed and tugged at her dress; Zadneetsia had pushed it up over her breasts. Danta had let her tears fall freely while the man violated her, but now that it was over, she wiped them away furiously. She glanced over her shoulder, but didn't move to leave right away. She just stared at Zadneetsia with angry, hate-filled eyes. Finally he opened his eyes.

"Are you still here?" he asked. "I need to sleep, so get out of here!" The man rolled over to sleep.

Danta gave him a defiant look and crossed her arms over her chest. "Do not think you will get away with this, Zadneetsia. I guarantee you will _not_!"

Zadneetsia opened his eyes again and rolled back over to look up at her. "I already have Danta," he said, giving her his most vicious smile. "You won't be able to prove anything, just like Ayla couldn't, so you better forget it. And don't forget that you have someone to protect." He nodded his head toward the partition that separated them from her daughter. "If I were you, I'd be ready to service me again . . . if ever I feel the need to use you again." He rolled back over.

Danta glanced in the direction of her daughter, then she shuddered, realizing what he had just said. _Hurt_ Danara? Use me _again_. Finally, she couldn't take it, she retreated.

At first, she didn't know what to do with herself. She wanted to go to the river to bathe; she just _had_ to get the smell of Zadneetsia off of her, but she couldn't leave her daughter there, where the man could hurt her.

She went to check on Danara, who was lying in her bed pretending to sleep. The woman blushed with shame for exposing her daughter to such a scene. At least she could not see what happened in the end, she thought, glad for once that Zadneetsia had put forth the extra effort to separate himself from the others.

Danta smiled down at her daughter, then placed her hand on the child's forehead. Danara opened her eyes. "Hallo Mamma," she whispered with a worried frown. "Are you okay?" Danta nodded. "Why are you crying?" Danta let slip another tear and swallowed hard. "Did Zadneetsia hurt you, Mamma?" Danara pushed. Danta nodded again, then buried her head in her daughter's shoulder.

The woman sat there crying for a short time, then decided they needed to get up. She needed to go wash, but didn't want to take Danara with her; she needed some time to cleanse herself, and she wanted to be alone for that. But she couldn't leave Danara alone there either, not after Zadneetsia had threatened to hurt her as well. Danta frowned. Maybe Davaria is still nearby, she thought, he'd watch his niece. Quickly, she dressed her daughter and they went outside.

The two of them stepped outside and Danta squinted into the bright sunlight and went to where the water was kept so that she could give her daughter a drink. The water basket was low again. There was enough for a couple more cups, but that was all.

Danta looked around. Davaria was nowhere to be seen. Sighing, Danta decided that she'd have to take her daughter with her. Then she saw her mother come out of Ash Tent. The older woman saw her too, and turned to go, but Danta rushed over to her.

"Mother, I need you to watch Danara for a while," Danta said, standing in front of the woman. "I . . . ah . . . need to go get some water from the river. We are all out."

Trata shook her head. "I do not _need_ to do anything, Danta," the woman said coldly.

Danta frowned. "You know what, Trata," Danta said, using her mother's given name in frustration. "I have never asked you for anything! My whole life you have ignored me, and I don't even know why. What have I done?" Danta yelled. "Just tell me why you hate me to!"

Trata scowled at her. "It is the very fact that you exist, Danta."

Danta laughed. "Yes, and that is my fault, _how_?" Trata only looked away, which caused Danta to straighten up angrily. "You are very _sick_! A _waste_ of a woman!" Danta flared with such venom that Trata finally looked back at her. "Just stay here with Danara and tell Davaria where I went, if he comes back." With that, Danta turned and went over to Danara.

"I will be back soon," she said to her daughter. "I want you to stay with Trata. Do not go back inside our tent, for any reason. Do you understand me?" Danara nodded, but looked over at Trata nervously. The older woman hadn't said more than ten words to her in her entire life and now her mother wanted her to _stay_ with the woman.

"I know you are scared, but she won't let anything happen to you. When Davaria gets back, you can stay with him, okay?" Danara nodded, then watched her mother pick up a towel, some soaproot and teasel, and the water basket, then head out of camp.

Danara looked back at Trata. The older woman was staring at her. "Come here, girl," she commanded, snapping her fingers and then pointing. "Just sit down there and stay out of my way." Danara sat down and frowned into her cup.

**xXx**

Danta hurried east through the summer meeting, then, once she was outside the outer ring of the meeting, she ran as fast as her feet would carry her. When she arrived at the river, she stripped down quickly and entered the water. Danta spent a few moments pounding the soaproot, then roughly rubbed herself down, mixing sand with the soaproot to make it abrasive. She needed to wash the man's touch off of her. Only when her skin was shiny and pink in color was she satisfied that it was gone. Then she dunked under the water to rinse before getting out. She wanted to spend some more time there, resting and trying to get the rape out of her head, but she needed to get back to Danara. She knew her daughter was safe with Trata, but she didn't want to be too long.

Once out of the water, Danta shook out her dress and put it back on, then smoothed back her medium-length brown hair, and used the teasel to comb out her tangles. When she finished, she sighed. She definitely felt better; she didn't even feel Zadneetsia's hands on her anymore. She headed back.

**xXx**

Davaria had gone to Oak Tent looking for Danta. It was the only place he could think of that Danta might have gone. Zarina had frowned and shook her head. "No, Danta is not here," she said. "She left with you and has not returned."

Davaria's brow furrowed and his mind raced. He thanked Zarina and headed back to Sumac Tent. Was Danta inside Sumac Tent and I didn't see her? he asked himself. I don't think so, he thought. Wouldn't she have answered me when I called out to her, if she had been? He shook his head and thought about Danara. Danara had been there; he did see her, but no Danta. He frowned. It wasn't unusual for Danta to leave her daughter there alone. The child never wanted to get up, and Danta had things to do. Davaria was worried and started to run.

**xXx**

Davaria arrived at Sumac Tent and frowned in confusion when he saw Danara sitting there with Trata. Trata _never_ put forth any grandmotherly effort, not that she was now, he thought. They were just sitting there.

"_Mother_?" Davaria said questioningly, looking from his mother to Danara. "Where is Danta?"

Trata scowled. "Your _sister_ found it necessary to burden me with _her_ responsibility." She didn't even glance at Danara, but Davaria did.

"Mother, I asked you where Danta went," Davaria said.

Trata shrugged noncommittally, causing Davaria to look toward Sumac Tent. Slowly, he turned and entered the tent, checking each bed for his sister. The only person inside was Zadneetsia, apparently sleeping off another skin of bouza.

"Mother, do you know where Danta is, or not?" the man asked once outside again.

Trata shrugged again, but answered this time. "_Yess_," she said, rolling her eyes. "She went to get water from the river."

Davaria frowned. "Alone?" he asked.

"Of course _alone_," Trata snapped at him. "Who would go with her? She didn't even want to take her daughter," the woman yelled angrily.

"I'm sure it's not like _that_, mother," Davaria said, defending his sister's choice to leave Danara behind. "She must have had a good reason." He paused. "Unlike _you_."

Trata's face turned red. "You have no idea what you're talking about, _son_. You better watch what you say to me, or you might just find yourself as alone as _she_ is."

Davaria blanched. She is truly evil, he thought. "Well, _that_ would be a punishment," he threw back. "It's not like you put much into _me_ either, mother." He glanced at Danara, who was shrinking into her seat. "Come here, Danara," the man said, holding out his hand. "We're leaving." Danara got up and went to the man and they left.

**xXx**

Just outside Sumac Camp's space Davaria knelt down and looked into Danara's face. "I need to go find your mother. Do you think you can find your way to Oak Camp?"

The girl smiled and nodded. "Of course I can," she said.

Davaria grinned, then hugged her. "I'm sure they will let you stay there until we get back, but I'll hurry, okay?" The girl nodded again. Davaria patted her back and watched her run off, then went east, toward Klyen River.

**xXx**

Back at the meeting in the tent of the Sisters, people were shouting and arguing, and accusations were being made. The people were out of control

Tiflona looked around. She hadn't expected things to get so out of hand, but the entire meeting had gone awry. Someone had brought up the incident with Janara and someone else turned it around to make it look as if Grov were to blame. Finally, the Oak headwoman couldn't take it anymore; she shouted for everyone's attention.

"What in the Mother's name is going _on_ here?" Tiflona yelled angrily. "This is not about _Grov_. This is about putting an end to forcing Clan women."

Ivarsia sat back down. "Well, we think this _is_ about _Grov_. I mean, _really_, should the daughter of Vincenzia's hearth be allowed to bring this flathead here?" Several were shaking their heads, obviously some agreed with him.

Ayla was watching and wondering why everyone was so concerned about the man she had mated. Grov was a good man. She put her hand up and waited for someone to notice. Tiflona nodded at her.

Staying where she was, Ayla spoke. "Ivarsia," she said looking at the man. "I do not understand why you trouble yourself thinking about who I am mated to, when I am perfectly happy with him. I am not asking _you_ to love him."

Ivarsia flushed. "Do not think I _trouble_ myself for you, _Ayla_. That mate of yours is a danger to us all. Just because you choose to expose yourself to him, doesn't mean we all want to be tainted by those animal flatheads."

"They are _not_ animals," Ayla cried in frustration. "What is wrong with you?" Ayla felt hands resting on her shoulders, and glanced up and back to see Grov kneeling behind her. He smiled and squeezed her shoulders firmly. She relaxed, but shook her head sadly.

Vincenzia looked at Ayla's sad face and turned to speak. "Ivarsia," he said. "_Everyone_, we do not expect you to be comfortable with this. I know that we have hated the Clan for a long time, but we have to make changes. We have no choice. These _people_ are part of this world and we cannot pretend they don't exist." Vincenzia looked back at Ayla and Grov, and smiled.

"I had a hard time with this too, when first I learned where the daughter of my hearth was, but then I went there. I visited them and learned that they are not just people, but _good_ people." The man paused and looked back at Grov again. "I have no question in my mind that Grov . . .," Vincenzia said before hearing a loud scream from a short distance away. Everyone stopped listening to Vincenzia and turned to look at the tent entrance. Ayla did too, but being a medicine woman put her in motion faster than anyone else. Jarred into action by the scream, Ayla stood and fled the tent.

Arriving outside only an instant later, she stopped short to see a woman lying on the ground, a few implements scattered about and an empty basket that had tipped and spilled on the ground. Ayla quickly went to the woman, and knelt down beside her; it was Danta. Ayla frowned.

A quick check told her that Danta was not harmed in any way; she had only fainted, but why? Ayla then looked at Davaria, who had just arrived and who was also kneeling down beside his downed sister. "What happened to her?" she asked him.

The man shook his head. "I don't know. I couldn't find her, but Trata said she went out only a short time ago, to get some fresh water. I was coming out to help her, then I heard her scream."

Ayla's frown deepened; she wondered what was going on. Both she and Davaria looked at Danta again as she groaned and opened her eyes. Ayla tried to help her sit up, but the eyes of the woman lying on the ground immediately looked fearful and she pointed up at he sky.

Ayla and Davaria turned to look, as did several others that were standing around. Someone gasped loudly. Ayla frowned in confusion. The sun was disappearing.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

People had seen Danta pointing at the sky and were now looking up. Ayla heard a scream from someone nearby, and then more screams, from others, farther away. She looked around, to see the Sungaean people coming out of tents, to see what the commotion was. Everyone looked at the sky and stared in fear. She had to look too; she was drawn to the strange phenomenon. It was fascinating.

The sun was disappearing and the sky was darkening, as if a cloud was covering it. But this was frightening, because there were no clouds in the sky to cover the sun on this day. Ayla watched, as did everyone else, as the sun was slowly obliterated.

As Ayla watched, the sun seemed to be swallowed by a round darkness, it almost looked like something had taken a bite out of it. The sun, their most valuable source of heat and light, was disappearing, yet the people still stared. Ayla shuddered at the thought of losing the sun forever. What if it doesn't come back? she thought, worried again. But then, thinking about her visions, she relaxed; the sun had been there in her visions. It _would_ come back.

Ayla looked up at the sun again. It was still going. Then after a few moments, she looked around at gawking people. She had to blink. Staring at the waning sun had caused spots to appear before her eyes. She realized that they probably shouldn't be staring at it, but she knew she couldn't stop them; she couldn't stop herself. She glanced back up. It was starting to look like the most brilliant sunset one had ever seen, like the sun was falling between two western mountains, glaring at them as it disappeared for the night. But different too, in that this was happening in the middle of the sky, in the middle of the day. She looked away; it was starting to hurt her eyes.

Ayla's eyes quickly looked up again, when she heard the people gasp. She was awed by the beautiful, shining ring in the sky, then noticed that stars had even begun to appear. Ayla suddenly thought of Mamut.

"_Safe journey_," he had replied, turning away from her. But then the old man had looked back at her. "_It will be a day within a night and a night within a day,_" he had said.

She wondered what the Mother was doing, which made her think about Mamut's words again . . . and Travie's words too. "_I sometimes wonder about those that serve the Mother. Do you think that they even know what they're saying?_" the older woman had asked. It made Ayla smile. Ayla looked up again and noticed that the sun was already starting to return.

"It's a sign," someone cried, as they watched the large disk of light reappear.

"But a sign of _what_?" someone else asked. People turned to look at the Shogurs. There was a Shogur in pretty much every area within the summer meeting camp, so people did not have to look far.

"I think the Shogurs are going to have to mediate on this." People were nodding in fright.

**xXx**

Ayla smiled. _Yes_, it certainly _was_ a sign, but she was not as worried as everyone else. This was the sign _she_ had been waiting for. This was her sign to go find her horses.

"It is time for me to go," she whispered, as she helped Danta to stand.

Danta still looked frightened. She glanced up at the sun, which had returned to normal, but now she was _more_ afraid. Ayla was _leaving_. "_Go_?" she asked with a confused tone. "Where do you have to go, Ayla?"

Ayla looked back at the woman, her new friend, and suddenly realized something; this was how she could get Danta out of Sumac Camp, and not just for a night. Danta and Danara could make the journey to the valley with them. And Davaria too, if he wanted to. She smiled, which only seemed to scare the woman more.

"Danta," she said, looking at the woman and her brother. "For some time now, I have been having . . . _visions_ . . . about a valley of horses that is southwest of here. I have been waiting for a sign, to let me know it's time to go there. _This_," she said, pointing at the sky, "Is the sign I have been waiting for."

Danta looked extremely distressed. She didn't want Ayla to go, but what could she do.

"What is it, Danta?" Ayla asked.

"Well, I . . . I don't want you to go," she said lamely. Danta looked at her brother with tears in her eyes. Davaria narrowed his eyes and frowned. Danta was not one to cry. Ayla smiled, but she quickly noticed Danta's tears and Davaria's frown. Something else is going on here, she thought.

"_Danta_?" Davaria said, cocking his head to the side. He knew her too well and he could tell she was hiding something. Ayla waited. Danta only shook her head and looked away.

Davaria was watching her closely and he started thinking about how he couldn't find her at Sumac Tent. "Danta, where were you when I came back to Sumac Tent?" Danta shrugged. "_Danta_," he said more firmly, reaching out to touch her arm. "Were you there when I came looking for you?" Danta looked away. "DANTA!" He grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him.

"YES! I was there," she yelled, then yanked herself out of his grasp and started to walk away. Davaria looked at Ayla, then ran to catch up with his sister.

"Danta," he said, stopping her again. "Tell me where you were."

Danta thought about her daughter and frowned. "Please leave me alone, Davaria. I need to get back to Danara. I left her alone with Trata."

Davaria immediately noticed that she was calling their mother by her name. "Did mother do something to you?"

Danta stopped and shook her head. "_No_," she answered. "We _argued_ . . . but no, she did nothing. Nothing more than _normal_, anyway."

Davaria searched her eyes, trying to see what Danta seemed so intent on keeping from him. There _was_ something, he could tell that much. "Danara is at Oak Tent, Danta. I sent her there before going to look for you." He paused. "Now _tell_ me!" he said, almost angrily. "What happened at Sumac Tent?"

"I don't want to talk about it, Davaria!" Danta snapped, and turned away from him. "Not right now." He walked around her to see tears spilling down her face. "Please don't make me talk about it right now," she said, finally falling into his arms. "I can't." Davaria held her as she sobbed, but frowned over her shoulder at Ayla. Both knew that something very bad had happened to the woman, but neither had even a guess as to what it may be.

**xXx**

The meeting at the Council of Sisters broke up quickly. All those who had dedicated themselves to serving Sumata, left to meet within the Shogurs' tent, and most of the Brothers and Sisters returned to their own camps to await word from the men and women that knew the spirit world. Many people were scared.

Ayla arrived back at Oak Tent with Danta and Davaria and went straight to Grov. "It's time," she told him.

He nodded. "I thought as much. _A night within a day_," he said, repeating what Ayla had told him. Ayla nodded.

**xXx**

Danta had immediately gone to her daughter. Danara didn't seem scared at all, only pleased that her mother was back and that they weren't at Sumac Tent. Danta hugged her, then pulled Davaria to the side so that she could talk to him privately.

"I have to leave here," she said to him.

The man frowned. "You're going back to Sumac Tent? _Why_?" He was worried about the argument _he_ had had with his mother and wanted to stay away for a while.

"_No_, Davaria," she said, shaking her head. "I don't just mean leave _here_." She gestured at Oak Tent. "I mean _leave_ leave. I cannot go back to Sumac Tent today, or Sumac Camp, _ever_. I would rather die out there, somewhere."

Davaria didn't understand. He knew he had promised her that he'd think about leaving with her, but he'd also said it would take planning. He thought that planning would take some time, not just a day. His mind went back to the conversation they had had that morning. What was it that she'd said? _I am not safe here. It is only a matter of time before someone hurts me for what I have done._ He frowned.

"_Who_ has hurt you, Danta?" he asked again. But still, she would not answer. She folded her arms across her chest.

"You do not have to come with us, Davaria," she informed him. "But I am taking Danara and we are leaving."

"But where will you go?" he asked. He couldn't think of any place nearby where she would be better off.

"I don't care. Away from here and away from Sumac Camp. It doesn't matter."

Davaria was starting to panic. Two people couldn't survive out on their own. And three wasn't much better. "But Danta, it's dangerous out there. How will you survive? You don't even have provisions."

"I can gather food and I'm a pretty good hunter. I have a traveling tent and a few other things," she said. "It will be hard, but we'll manage."

The man was now frantic. She was serious. "How will you protect Danara?"

Danta frowned at this. "I don't know, but I will. I have a much better chance of keeping her safe if we are away from Sumac Camp." Her arms were still folded across her chest, and she looked more adamant than ever before. "You do not have to come, Davaria," she finally said. "I know it is too much to ask you to leave our people, but I _have_ to go."

"No Danta, I will go with you," he said sadly. He knew she was right, but he was scared. "I just wish you'd tell me _why_ you have to leave. I know it's bad for you here, but . . . _leave_? _Forever_? It's just so . . . permanent.

"I know it is, but it's time. The disappearance of the sun told me that. It is Ayla's sign to go and it is ours too." The man nodded. Danta suddenly grabbed her brother and hugged him. "I will be forever grateful that you are coming with us." Danta held him tight. He did the same.

"When do you want to go?" he asked.

"I would like to go back and gather our things now, and leave tomorrow morning while everyone is still asleep. That way no one will follow us. Not that they _would_," she finished.

Davaria thought for a moment. "I think that _I_ should go back for our things, Danta. I know someone hurt you and that you are keeping it from me. I don't want to give anyone a chance to hurt you again." She nodded. He continued. "What direction do you want to go?"

"I think south and then west, because that is heading away from Sumac Camp and the Sungaea. I want a fresh start."

"_Okay_. Southwest it is then."

**xXx**

Ayla had been watching the brother and sister, and knew that something was up. Davaria left for a while, then returned, but both of them looked quite nervous. Ayla, however, didn't have much time to question them. She needed to inform Oak Camp of _their_ intention to make a short summer journey.

Some people weren't too happy about it, but Travie, and the few others that already knew about Ayla's vision, helped to explain that the Clan family would _indeed_ return. Vincenzia was most upset since he knew he wouldn't be seeing her all winter.

"I could come with you," he offered, not wanting to let her out of his sight now that he had her back.

Ayla grinned and patted his chest. "_No_, you can't do _that_. You have to stay here with Darvie, Crisana and Brenevia. Besides, you don't have to worry Vincenzia, Grov will be with me, and we will be back before the summer meeting is over."

Darvie was standing there too and she looked no less upset than her mate. "What about the children? Are you taking them with you?"

"I was wondering about that too, but yes, we are taking them. Something has come up that has made it possible for them to go with us." She looked over at Danta; she still had not talked to her about going with them.

Darvie nodded, but she continued to frown. "Are you sure you don't want Vincenzia to go with you? Because, I would not mind."

Ayla grinned at the chosen woman of the man of her hearth. "Yes you would, Darvie. I will not take him away from you and the children, _or_ the meeting."

"When will you go?" Tagnolia finally asked.

Ayla looked at Grov. "Tomorrow, or the next day, I think." The man nodded. "We need some time to get our things together."

Tagnolia grinned. "Then we celebrate tonight, and work to get you ready tomorrow."

Tiflona rolled her eyes. "Brother, they are leaving. Do you _really_ think this is the right time for a celebration?"

"Of course it is!" he exclaimed. "They'll be back. Besides, a celebration is overdue."

"How do you figure?"

"I figure that since I am the _Headman_, I can proclaim it overdue."

Tiflona put her hands on her hips and stared at him. "And what am I? A woman with _no status_?" she asked seriously.

Tagnolia's grin widened. "Now Tiflona, you know I didn't mean that. I just think we should have some fun before Grov and Ayla leave. That's all." Tiflona's lips thinned, but she nodded.

Zarina had been watching her mate and his sister go back and forth, everyone had, but now she was frowning at the man. "What about what happened to the sun today? I know that what happened was a sign for _Ayla_, but what does it mean to the rest of the Sungaea? Shouldn't we wait for Gredenzia to return before we start planning celebrations?" She was clearly still shaken up.

Tagnolia went to his mate and held her. "_Maybe_," he said. "But a celebration can't hurt anything, can it? Especially if we honor the Mother."

"I suppose not," she finally said with a sigh.

**xXx**

Danta and Davaria were invited to stay for the celebration, as were several others, and Ayla was pleased that they had agree, though they seemed reluctant. Several times she started to make her way over to them, to ask them to join them on their little journey, but every time she was distracted by someone who wanted to have a conversation about something else. Then, when it was time to sleep, Ayla noticed that Davaria and Danta had already gone off to bed. She shrugged. I'll ask them tomorrow, she thought.

However, when tomorrow came, Ayla woke up and looked over at an empty bed; they were already gone.

**xXx**

Danta had woken up before the sun rose, because she wanted to get in and out of Sumac Camp before anyone else could wake up. Davaria had already packed most of their things in his rucksack, hiding it under his bed for safe keeping, but not everything could be packed or someone would figure out that they planned to leave.

Danta crossed the quiet summer meeting site in the early morning darkness and peered into the camp area. She sighed with relief; no one was up yet. The woman went to the dying fire and lit a lamp, then carefully entered the tent.

Inside, she stepped over the snoring people that littered the ground of their tent space like waste in a night basket, swiftly making her way to Davaria's sleeping space. Once there, she set her lamp down and dragged his rucksack out. It was heavier than she had anticipated, but still manageable. Someone groaned causing her to freeze. She suddenly wished she had not brought in the lamp. She glanced in the direction of the groan. It was Igorvia. The man was lying on his back; Laska was next to him, her bare arm dangling over the side. They were sound asleep. Danta smiled.

Danta sent one last look at her mother, then turned away. She didn't want to waste any more time. Quickly, she hefted the rucksack to her back, gathered the furs from each of their beds, picked up her lamp and left before she could be caught.

**xXx**

Back at Oak Tent, Danta dropped everything outside, then crept inside. She thanked the Mother that the bed they were sleeping in was so close to the opening, though Danara's was not. Gently, she shook her brother.

Davaria opened his eyes and got up quietly to go get Danara. The child slept in his arms as they exited the tent. Danta wrapped one of the furs about her brother, tucking in under the child so that it would not fall off of him, and then she wrapped another one around her daughter. She would carry the rucksack until it became too heavy for her. She hoped that by then, Danara would be awake and could walk.

It was nearly time for sunrise when brother and sister left the summer meeting at Maple Camp. They didn't have much of a goal as to where they were going. They only knew that they wanted to head southwest. Their first challenge would be crossing Big River in one of Maple Camp's large boats.

**xXx**

Ayla frowned at the empty bed, but figured they had had to get back. She knew it made for problems at Sumac Tent when they joined Oak Tent, but it saddened her that they were gone. She never had a chance to mention their journey to the valley of horses. Now she might not get a chance.

The woman looked at her sleeping mate, then decided to get up to make tea. Grabbing her medicine bag, Ayla pulled out the ingredients she wanted, and went outside.

The fire, which had burned late into the night, was still red with heat; it only needed a fresh log and someone to get it going again. That person was Ayla. Ayla made her tea and sat down to think.

"Can I join you?" a voice said from behind. Ayla turned to see Janara standing there shyly. Ayla frowned. She had heard what the young woman had done to Grov. Ayla raised her hand, palm up, indicating that he woman could sit, but she did not speak to her.

Janara hesitated. It was not the warmest offering. But what do you expect? she thought. Slowly, she sat down where Ayla had indicated and tried to sort out her words. The words, which had seemed so right back at her own camp's tentfire, just sounded dumb in her mind now. She didn't know what to say, but tried anyway.

"Ah . . . Ayla?" she started. Ayla looked at her. "I was not very nice to you . . . when I met you that first time." She frowned. "I wanted you to know that I'm sorry." Ayla nodded.

"And ah . . . well . . . I'm sure you already know what I did to Grov during the hunt." Ayla nodded again. "I . . . I'm sorry about _that_ too," she said, tears welling up. Ayla didn't say anything. Janara waited, hoping that she would, then got up to go. "I guess that's all I wanted to say," she said, and started to walk away.

Ayla watched her go. She wasn't angry with the woman for her rudeness, or for the fact that she had been attracted to Grov. Ayla was only angry about what the woman had put Grov through.

"Ah . . . Janara," Ayla said, then waited for the woman to turn around again. "Were you up early this morning?"

Janara frowned. "Yes. I was up before the sun was. I hope the sun doesn't disappear again," she said nervously.

"I don't think it will," Ayla said. "I really don't think it's anything we have to worry about."

Janara smiled. Something about Ayla's voice calmed her. "Oh, I'm glad for that."

"Did you happen to see Danta leave here this morning?"

"Which time?" she asked. Ayla raised her eyebrows in surprise, and the woman continued. "She left once, long before sunrise, then came back with quite a lot of stuff. Then she, Davaria and Danara left again."

Ayla frowned. "Which way did they go?"

Janara pointed. "South." Then she frowned. "Didn't you know they were going?" Ayla shook her head.

**xXx**

Ayla sat there quietly thinking, wondering where Danta and Davaria could have gone and why they had said nothing about leaving. Had they gone on a hunt? Had Danta asked her brother to accompany her while she gathered? Where would they go?

Ayla was so intent on her musings that she didn't see another person approach. "_Where_ is my son?" a woman demanded angrily.

Ayla looked up to see the woman that had denounced her daughter as a liar in front of all the Headmen and Headwomen and all the others attending the Sisters' meeting. "_W-what_?" Ayla asked, confused.

"You heard me!" the woman snapped. "Where is _my_ son?"

"Davaria is not here."

"You are lying," the woman accused. "His bedding is gone, and I know that he stayed here last night with that worthless sister of his."

Ayla frowned at the woman's harsh words, the shook her head. "I did not say that they did not stay here. I said that they are not here _now_."

The woman looked furious. "I will not let you steal my son," the woman yelled.

"Is everything okay, Ayla?" Jondaria asked. Janara had seen Trata storm up to Ayla and went to get _her_ brother. She was standing there with him.

Ayla looked at them. "I think so." She looked back at the older woman. "_Trata_?" she questioned. The woman nodded. "I do not know where your son and daughter are. They _were_ here last night, but they left before I woke up." Ayla noticed several Oak Camp members come out.

"What's going on here?" Tiflona asked.

Trata crossed her arms and scowled. "My _son_ and all his belongings are missing."

Gredenzia frowned. "Don't you mean your son _and_ daughter are missing, Trata? Because both Davaria and Danta were here, _together_, though they are not here now."

"Do _not_ mention Danta," Trata said in a harsh, cold voice. "I do not have a daughter." She looked away.

Fraylora, who was standing with her mate, seemed to lose her color, then turn bright red. "What is the matter with you?" she said through gritted teeth. "You gave birth to five perfect children - _five_ children, I said. Don't give us this nonsense about not having a daughter. It is not her fault that she was the third of three born together. That does not make her bad luck. She is a fine girl and she certainly has more sense than her mother."

Trata looked at Fraylora with hatred. "_You_ do not know what you are talking about. The birth of _that_ child caused the death of so many; my mother, my mate, my two older sons. Even Dreena's death is her fault. The Mother would have given a woman three breasts if she was supposed to birth three children in one pregnancy. Danta should never have been born. She _is_ bad luck, and I will _never_ forgive her."

Fraylora shook her head. "I know it hurts to lose a child Trata. I lost Nemlora and it's painful every day, but at least I still have Fürlasa, Fräubita and Gildenozia. And Braydalana too. You still have Davaria and Danta. And even Danara. How can you not love them?"

"No, I had only Davaria left, and apparently he's gone now too." Everyone watched as the angry woman stomped away.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

"_That woman_ is beyond help!" Fraylora spat. Gredenzia held his mate. He knew how badly the loss of Nemlora had affected her. He still hurt over his mate's daughter's death too. In fact, he thought about her every day. It had been eight long years since her death, and though it was a constant struggle, they had moved on. That was what the living _had_ to do, but apparently Trata refused to do that.

"Are you all right, Ayla?" Grov finally asked his mate.

Ayla nodded, but her brow creased in worry. "I am fine, but we need to find Danta and Davaria. Janara told me this morning that she saw Danta leave Oak Tent, then return with several things, then leave again with Davaria and Danara. She said they headed south, away from the summer meeting."

Grov grimaced. "_Janara_?" the man said, looking over at her. She and Jondaria were still standing there. They were talking to a few people that had witnessed Trata's foul temper.

"Yes," Ayla said, getting up. "I think they are running away, and not just from Sumac Camp; they are leaving the Sungaea."

Tagnolia overhead the woman and frowned. "But why?" he asked.

Ayla shook her head. "I don't know for sure. Something happened to Danta at Sumac Tent yesterday. Someone hurt her, but she wouldn't tell Davaria who hurt her or why." Ayla paused. "I fear . . . well, what if . . . ." Everyone was staring at her now. She blushed.

"What if, _what_, Ayla?" Ivanolia finally asked. Danta was such a nice, _and decent_, young woman. He had always liked her.

Ayla looked at him. "What if someone _did_ hurt her? What if someone did to her, what Zadneetsia tried to do to me? I mean . . . they hate _me_ and she's gotten friendly with me. What if someone hurt her because she is friends with me?" Ayla finished, feeling extremely responsible for whatever Danta might have had to go through.

A few women gasped at the idea of one of the Sumac Camp men even thinking he could get away with forcing Danta, or any other woman, after what Zadneetsia had done to Ayla. Ivanolia flushed with anger at the thought. The man balled his fists, ready to charge over there again.

"Well, something has to be done about this," Vilognia said angrily, glancing at the son of his mate. He didn't want Ivanolia to get into any more trouble, but if someone had done what Ayla had suggested, then there _was_ going to be trouble, there was no doubt about it.

Seeing the people ready to act on her words, Ayla suddenly got worried. "_Wait_!" she exclaimed. "We don't really know anything yet. Maybe what happened isn't what we're thinking. Maybe . . . it's something else all together. I don't think we can do anything until we talk to Danta. We have to find out from Danta."

Tiflona was nodding her head. "You are right, Ayla. We have to talk to Danta first, but I think we _can_ do something for her even without her making a claim." Several people frowned. "It's clear to me that Danta and Danara, and now Davaria too, are desperate to be away from Sumac Camp. So desperate, in fact, that they are willing to leave their people, the Sungaea, to get away from the camp of their birth." She looked around at the people of Oak Camp and smiled. "I am not sure about the rest of you, but _I_ have been quite impressed with them, especially considering their camp's status."

"So, what are you saying, Tiflona?" Tagnolia asked his sister.

"Well," she said. "As Headwoman, I think we should petition the Brothers and Sisters to adopt them into Oak Camp. We have the space . . . or at least, we could build more space . . . and they need a home; a home where people don't hurt each other; a home where everyone takes care of everyone else."

Zarina frowned. "But we can't do that, Tiflona. They are not here to say whether or not they _want_ to join Oak Camp. We cannot just decide _for_ them."

"No, we cannot," Tagnolia said. "But if they are willing to leave the Sungaea, then things at Sumac Camp must be worst than everyone is aware. _Maybe_ they would come back if they knew they had a place somewhere else."

"But they are _gone_," said Zarina. "What can we do?"

Ayla smiled. This is a perfect solution, she thought. "We need to go after them. _We_ will go find them," she offered, looking at Grov to make sure it was all right. He nodded. "We were leaving on our journey tomorrow anyway, so why not let us track them. We can even take them with us, if they _want_ to go. That will keep them away from here for a while."

"Do you really think you can find them?" Tagnolia asked.

Ayla smiled. "I'm sure of it. Grov is an excellent tracker, and I am not so bad myself. Besides, Janara said they headed south, so we know which way they went. I'm sure their trail will be easily found, two adults, roughly the same size, and both semi-heavily burdened. _And_, they haven't been gone long. We can do it."

Wäglodia nodded. "That's a good idea," he said, looking at Zarina. "That way we'll at least know they're safe, and we can go make our petition. What do you think, Zarina?"

Zarina continued to frown. "I have no doubt that you will find them, but how will we _know_ they want to join Oak Camp. Maybe they will decline. We can't just go storming into the Councils with a petition if we don't know they're willing to accept."

Ayla frowned. She didn't know what to say to satisfy the woman. All she knew what that they _needed_ to find Danta and Davaria, and quickly.

Suddenly, Grov interrupted. "I think I have an idea," he said. "If anyone wants to hear it." Everyone turned to him and nodded. "Well, how about, we go find them and ask them . . . and if they say no, then we will return to let Oak Camp know they do not wish to be adopted. And if we don't come back, in say . . . five days, then you will know that they have accepted."

Zarina was listening carefully and nodded her head. "That sounds fair enough."

**xXx**

Grov and Ayla sat briefly to eat their morning meal, then spent a short time inside packing. Grov smiled down at their pile and shook his head.

"Ayla, this is too much. Why do you always want to bring everything?" he asked.

Ayla looked around. "Because we don't know when we'll be back. What if we need something?"

"Mama, I can help too," Durc offered, trying to sound more grown up. He was sitting on the end of their bed platform, excited about their impending trip.

"Yes, Durc, you sure can. Here, you can carry your own rucksack," she said, helping her son to put it on his back. She hadn't put much in it, but it would be helpful all the same.

The boy smiled and looked up at Grov. "See? I can help."

The man nodded. He knew Ayla was right, but travel was going to be difficult with all she wanted to bring, _and_ three small children. He looked at Durc. The boy could contribute, but the girls would not be able to; they'd even have to be carried during much of the trip. It worried him, but again, Ayla was right.

"I guess we _will_ need all of this," he said, as he started putting things into his own pack. Ayla smiled and did the same. In no time, they were ready to leave.

**xXx**

It was decided that several people would walk them to Big River, to help them cross, and everyone else at Oak Tent would follow them to the edge of the summer meeting. Even Jondaria and Janara, who had stayed for the meal, were accompanying them.

At the edge of camp, people were exchanging hugs and saying their goodbyes when Ayla noticed Janara standing there looking unsure of herself.

"What is it?" Ayla finally asked her.

Janara frowned. "I just . . . well, I wanted to apologize again. And I hope that, in time, you can both forgive me." Janara stopped talking for a moment, then pulled a wrapped package from behind her back. "Here, I made this for your journey," she said, holding it out to Ayla.

Ayla tentatively reached out to take the woman's gift. "What is it?"

"Open it and see." Ayla quickly turned it over and untied the thong that held it closed. They appeared to be cakes of traveling food. "They're a little different," Janara said. "Not so much to keep you from getting hungry. They're more like something you'd finish your meal off with; they're sweet. And when they're gone, you can use the wrapping as a towel."

Ayla smiled and hugged the woman. "Thank you, Janara. This is very nice of you." Ayla wrapped up the cakes again and put them in the bag that was hanging from her right shoulder, then went to hug Vincenzia, who was talking to Grov.

"And you will take good care of her?" Ayla heard Vincenzia ask Grov. She rolled her eyes.

"Of course he will," said Darvie. "He is her mate. Would you do less?" Vincenzia frowned.

"We will be fine, Vincenzia," Grov reassured. "It is not like we haven't traveled before."

Vincenzia nodded and handed Annaliza to Ayla. "I know, but a man can worry about the daughter of his hearth, can't he?"

"I suppose." Ayla strapped Annaliza to her left hip and took Ora's hand. "You will have to do some walking, Ora."

Ora nodded. "I can walk, Mamma," the child gestured one handedly. Both Grov and Ayla knew it wouldn't last long, but they were glad Ora was willing to try.

**xXx**

The man and woman waved to Ivanolia, Donzolnia and Brulenzia, who had just recrossed Big River and were about to head back to the summer meeting, then they turned to start their journey alone.

They quickly found Davaria and Danta's trail, which was plain to see; the two had done nothing to hide it. Why would they? Ayla asked herself. They didn't think anyone cared enough to follow them. That saddened Ayla. She thought about Trata and frowned. How could a mother blame her child for so much? It's just awful! How could Danta even stand to _live_ with those people? Ayla then thought about Tiflona's idea; it was a perfect solution that might convince Davaria and Danta to stay with the Sungaea. They're sure going to be surprised when we find them, she thought. I hope they will accept.

Ayla still had Annaliza tied to her hip, but Ora had run on ahead. Durc was doing his best to help by keeping his sister close. The couple walked together, side by side, occasionally holding hands, and watching the two children ahead of them. Both smiled at their antics. Ora would run ahead, causing Durc to have to speed up to catch her, then he'd order her to slow down. Ora always listened to him, but as soon as he went back to trudging along, she would burst forth again, starting the whole thing over.

Grov and Ayla smiled. Things had been so different since they had been away from their Clan. It was definitely louder and much more rowdy; people just did and said whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. Sometimes it was confusing. However, despite the differences, they had learned to be like the Others, in many ways, and that felt good. They could adapt and change.

But now, as they walked along, they were enjoying the peace they were experiencing by being away from the boisterous Sungaean people. The silence between them felt good too. It gave them time to think their own thoughts, and ponder life.

They walked for some time, before speaking. But finally, Grov brought up what he had been thinking about.

"So, what did Janara give you?" Grov asked her. He had not been standing with the two women, but he _had_ seen Ayla hug Janara and then tuck something into her bag.

"She made us some sweet traveling cakes." Ayla saw his disbelieving look. "And she apologized for how she treated me and for what she did to you." He frowned. "I think she meant it, Grov."

He nodded. "I suppose." He knew Ayla would know if Janara was sincere or not. She must have been, he thought.

Ayla frowned and stopped for the moment. "I know what she did to you was . . . wrong, but I think she will be okay now . . . now that she's been punished. She _seems_ better."

He shrugged. "Yes, she seemed better to me too, but she makes me uncomfortable."

Ayla could understand that. "Well, if you don't want me to be friends with her, then just tell me not to. What you want is most important. I will do whatever you say."

"How very Clan of you," Grov said with a smile, as he leaned to kiss her. "No Ayla. You can be friends with whomever you want. I know that she has changed. _I_ just need some time." Ayla grinned, and started walking again.

As Grov walked beside his mate, he looked down at her, and noticed that she always seemed able to match his stride. No matter how slow or fast he went, she always stayed with him. He liked that about her.

**xXx**

As the day wore on, they continued to talk amiably, thoroughly enjoying their time together and the freedom they were sharing. Periodically Ayla let Annaliza down so that she could stretch her arms, and while the child was away, Ayla gathered a few plants without missing a step. When they noticed that the sun was getting low, they knew that it would soon be time to stop for the night. They decided to push on just a bit more, hoping that Davaria and Danta had already stopped for the night, making them just that much closer in the morning.

"I think we should stop now," he finally said. "They _have_ to have halted for the night by now. Ayla nodded and quickly untied the strap that held Annaliza to her hip and set the child down, while Grov took off his rucksack. He was about to say comment about building a fire, when she saw Ayla's expression change. She had pulled out her sling and he could tell she held a few stones in her other hand. She was stalking something. Silently, he just watched, but he had to smile; she was always so aware of her surroundings. He had almost forgotten that about her since they had not been alone in so long.

Suddenly, as he watched, her pace changed and she flung a stone, downing a rabbit. They had their evening meal.

"You are amazing with that thing, Ayla," he said, hugging her once she came back with her prize. She smiled.

**xXx**

Danta watched the sun drop behind the western hills and shivered. They had been stopped for quite some time, but were struggling at getting a fire going. She didn't remember this being so difficult in the past, but then, it wasn't often that they had to start a fire from nothing. Even Sumac Camp always had a fire going.

Davaria had set up their tent while Danta worked on the fire, but when he finished and the fire still wasn't going, he suggested that she and Danara go into the tent to keep warm. Danta brought Danara inside, gave her some dried meat to eat, then tucked her into her furs. The child was a little confused as to what was going on; she had _never_ been away from people, but this little adventure was not unpleasant, or at least, not yet.

After trying to reassure Danara that everything was fine, Danta went back outside. Davaria stopped working on the fire when he saw her.

"Danta," Davaria said. "Go inside. _Keep yourself warm_. There's no sense in both of us being cold."

She frowned. "Just forget it, Davaria," she pleaded. "We don't really need a fire tonight. Just come to bed."

"Danta, we need warmth, and in the morning we'll need a fire to make tea."

Danta shook her head. "It's not _that_ cold out tonight, Davaria," she said, looking up at the sky and shivering again, despite the semi-warm summer evening. "I think we'll be fine if we just go inside the tent. We can keep warm together." He frowned. "What we really need is some sleep, and then we can try to make a fire again in the morning."

The man wasn't very happy. He didn't like that they were struggling to make a fire, or that they were having trouble already. This doesn't bode well, he thought, but he finally nodded acquiescence. She was right about one thing; he was extremely tired. They just weren't used to so much travel. It was a lot of work to walk all day, carrying more than just the usual. The man put his firemaking implements down and followed her inside their tent.

**xXx**

It was not very far from the fleeing brother and sister that Grov and Ayla had set up their camp, but they, of course, were having no difficulties at all. Grov quickly built up a fire, while Ayla placed the rabbit on a spit, then they worked together to put up their tent; it was the same one they had used when traveling to Oak Camp, the summer meeting, and when Grov was on the summer hunt.

"Mamma, I'm hungry," Ora said, coming up and sitting down. She was finally tired of Durc stopping her play. Durc sat down too, glad that she had _finally_ stopped running off.

"Me too, Mamma," Annaliza gestured.

Ayla smiled at them and handed them each some rabbit and the greens she had prepared, then she gave some to Grov and finally took some for herself. Everyone ate silently.

After finishing their meal, Ayla put the children to bed. Ora tried to fight it again. She always fought sleep, but one stern look from Grov made her stop, and go off to bed with a pout.

"Do you think they're far ahead of us?" Ayla asked with a slight frown, as she sat back down with Grov and picked up her cup of tea.

"No, probably not," he said. "They did get a pretty good jump on us, but I don't think they're too accustomed to travel. They're like the Clan in that way." Ayla nodded.

"And we're very close to where the hunting party stopped on our first night out. Maybe they stopped there."

Ayla frowned, wishing they had been able to make it that far, but with all they carried, _and_ three children, it was just too much. Ayla's thoughts were drifting when suddenly she heard a loud shriek. Grov and Ayla both looked up to see Shriek gliding overhead.

The woman got up quickly and pulled out the thick glove she used to protect her hand and arm. She had almost not packed it. It had been so long since she had seen him that she had considered the possibility that he was gone forever. She was so glad to see him.

Shriek swooped down gracefully, and landed on her covered wrist, promptly squawking in her face. Ayla smiled.

"Where _have_ you been?" Ayla asked her feathered friend as she stroked his back with her free hand. Grov watched in fascination as she fed her hawk; no one he knew had _ever_ had control over any kind of animal, no one except Ayla that is, and now they were on their way to capture horses. He smiled at the thought. One thing was for sure, nothing was every dull with her around.

After eating, Shriek sat perched on the apex of their tent, preening his feathers. The couple watched him for a time, then went to bed. Ayla worried that he'd be gone by morning; he usually was, but she hoped that he'd return more often, now that they were away from all the people. They must make him nervous, she thought. They certainly made _her_ nervous.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Ayla woke up early and went outside to see if Shriek was around. At first she saw nothing, but movement in the sky to the north caused a delighted grin to creep across her face; he _was_ still around. She quickly pulled out a strip of meat, which the bird accepted then flew up to a nearby tree to eat in peace.

Ayla watched him, then turned to the fire to get it going, so that she could make tea. They would eat the previous night's leftovers, the same meat she had given to Shriek, but a fresh tea would be required. When the water was boiling, she added each of their favorite herbs, then let them steep.

**xXx**

Davaria awoke abruptly, coming out of that dream where one feels like they're falling, and realized that he was sweating profusely. He had not slept well. Actually, he thought, I didn't sleep _at all_; he had only just fallen asleep, and then he had _fallen awake_. He shivered violently and looked at his sleeping sister. Danta was lying on her back, mouth slightly open. At least _she_ looks to be sleeping peacefully.

He then turned his head to look at Danara, who was on the other side of him, and realized the child was awake as well. With her finger, she tracing the shadow of a blowing tree branch on the tent ceiling. She too looked peaceful. Davaria smiled, then rolled over. When Danara looked over at him, he pointed to the tent opening. The child smiled back and got up to go with him.

"How did you sleep?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "Good, I guess."

He smiled again. "I'm going to try to make a fire, okay?" She nodded.

Davaria picked up his discarded firemaking materials and went to work. Danara watched him for some time, but he didn't appear to be having much luck. Finally, Danara got up to gather some dried brush.

"Here," she said, holding it out to him. "Ayla uses this."

Davaria stared at her outstretched hands, then reluctantly reached out to take it. He pushed aside what he had been using, replaced it with her kindling, then began again. He was surprised when flames burst forth in moments. Davaria fed the flame, quickly building it up to a decent fire.

"Well, thank you, Danara," he said. "Did Ayla show you what to use?"

Danara shook her head. "No, I just watched her."

"Hey," Danta said, coming outside. "You have a fire going."

Davaria grinned. "You should ask your daughter about the fire. We would not have had one if she wasn't so observant."

"Oh really?" Danta came over to sit down with them, and put her arm around her daughter.

"Yes, apparently she watched _Ayla_ build a fire and now she's our little expert."

Danta smiled at her daughter. "Well _good_, we definitely need one of _those_." Then she looked at Davaria. "So, what direction do we go today?"

Davaria frowned. "I'm thinking we should continue southwest. I think Sycamore Camp is that way, and there's a river running south through that area. Right now we have a good amount of water, but it won't last longer than three days. I'd like to get there quickly so we don't have to worry. _And_, if I recall correctly, there are two rivers that flow west into that river. We could fill up there."

Danta nodded. "Okay, that sounds good . . . but what do we tell them?"

"Who? Sycamore Camp?" he asked. She nodded. "We're on a journey, Danta. They won't care why. Besides, they're obviously not going to the summer meeting, or they'd already be there. Don't worry, we're safe."

**xXx**

Ayla sat, drinking her tea, and enjoying the peace. She was instantly aware that her family was awake when she heard a peel of babyish laughter inside the tent. Then Grov suddenly appeared, a daughter under each arm.

"_Someone_ thinks it's funny to put her fingers in this man's ear," he gestured, after putting them both down.

Ayla smiled. "Tea?"

"Um, that would be great."

Ayla quickly made him a cup, then fixed the girls a morning meal. "Sit down," she ordered the girls. "We have to start walking again soon and I don't want you hungry." Both did as they were told. Ayla turned back to Grov. "Did Durc sleep through all of that?"

Grov nodded. "I think he worked hard yesterday, chasing _this_ one," he commented, roughing up Ora's hair. Ora grinned. "I think that we need to carry his pack today."

"Okay, I'll do it," Ayla offered with silent gestures. Naturally she took it as her duty, but Grov shook his head.

"No Ayla. You always have to carry Annaliza, and she's getting pretty heavy. Let's share the burden. Put half of his pack in my rucksack." She nodded.

**xXx**

Danara was watching them closely. _Safe_? She liked safe. She still didn't know why they had left the summer meeting or where they were going, but she was happy about it. Of course, she had no concept of the danger of a journey; she only knew that she hated Sumac Camp.

_Sycamore Camp_? she thought. She didn't know anyone from there, but she _hoped_ it would be safe. She looked at her mother and frowned. She thought about the man, Zadneetsia, and could almost see the man push her mother again; she could almost hear her mother pleading with him to _not_ . . . do something. She didn't know what it was, but whatever it was, her mother didn't like it and he was doing it anyway. She _hated_ Zadneetsia too.

Danara focused on Davaria again. He was staring at her. She looked away.

Danta had gotten up to take down their tent; Davaria had said that he wanted to get going, but he was watching Danara. She had been listening to their conversation, but now she was staring into the fire. He saw her look up at her mother and her eyes became unfocused. He could see fear and anger, and even hatred in them, but then her eyes focused on him again. Finally she looked away. He looked at Danta, working hard to get their things together, then back at Danara. He wondered what was going on in the child's head, but he'd have to ask later; they needed to leave.

**xXx**

Ayla stood holding Annaliza, waiting while Grov pulled on his rucksack. They were ready to go.

Once again, Ora ran ahead and Durc went after her. Soon the boy was exasperated, which caused Grov to bark at the child.

"Ora!" he finally said. "Stay with us!" Ora pouted, but did as she was told, shuffling quietly behind them. Durc seemed much happier after that.

As they walked, Grov kept glancing back at her. She had her arms crossed over her chest and she was angrily kicking rocks. He didn't know what they were going to do with her; she was definitely going to have trouble back at the Clan if her behavior continued on the way it was. He finally mentioned his concern to Ayla.

"I think Ora's going to have problems back at the Clan."

Ayla glanced back at her and nodded. "Yes, I think so too. She is very headstrong."

Grov frowned. "She is going to end up getting cuffed for being defiant," he gestured angrily. "And I won't be able to blame the man that punishes her, even if it's Broud."

Ayla shuddered as thoughts of Broud beating her went through her mind. She had been defiant at times, but he had hit her for no good reason as well. She would not let that happen to Ora, _or Annaliza_. "We will have to work harder with her. She will have to stop this selfishness."

Grov nodded. "Maybe it's time we give her some responsibility. I know she's only three, but what else can we do?"

"I think that would be good. I will make her a pack to carry, not too heavy, but at least it'll be something." She paused. "And I'll start having her help me with things."

Grov smiled, and put an arm around his mate. "Thank you Ayla, for being so willing to teach the daughter of my hearth."

Ayla stopped walking for a moment and looked at him seriously. "Grov, I may not have given birth to Ora, but she _is_ my daughter. I do not want to see her hurt, and that's exactly what will happen if she cannot behave properly."

**xXx**

Grov and Ayla continued on again, but didn't have far to go before they came to where Davaria and Danta had camped for the night. Ayla stood near their fire pit.

"It's still very hot," she said, crouching and holding her hand over it. "They have not been gone long."

"And their tracks lead off this way," Grov said, inspecting the dirt just southwest of the fire.

Ayla stood to join the man. "What do you think we should do?"

Grov looked around, and thought hard. "I think that . . . _maybe_ . . . one of us should continue on alone, while the other stays here with the children. I'm sure they slow us down; one of us would be much faster than the five of us."

"Okay," said Ayla, thinking that that made sense. She set Annaliza down, then removed her rucksack and shoulder bag. "What do you want to take?"

Grov frowned. "Actually . . . I was thinking that _you_ should go."

She was busy taking off her medicine bag and looked up at him. "_Me_? Why _me_? His suggestion caught her off guard; a woman of the clan would never stray far from a man.

"I think they will be more likely to listen to you. Danta is _your_ friend, and really . . . I am still just a _flathead_ to Davaria."

Ayla nodded. She didn't like that Davaria might think that of him, but she knew that he was right. "_Okay_, what should _I_ take then?

"Just the minimum. I'm hoping you can catch up quickly and bring them back no later than just after the midday meal."

Ayla nodded, and put her medicine bag back on, then slipped a skin of water over her shoulder.

Grov handed her a spear and kissed her. "Be careful," he said. Ayla nodded, then quickly said goodbye to the children, and headed off to find Davaria and Danta.

**xXx**

"Mamma," Danara said, "I'm tired of walking."

Danta frowned. "I know Danara. I am too, but we haven't gone very far yet, and we want to get to the river by this evening." She knew her daughter wasn't used to this, none of them were. "Here, let me carry you for awhile."

"No," Davaria said, picking Danara up and putting her on his shoulders. "We can stop." He looked around and pointed. "Let's rest over there under those trees." Danara grinned and clapped her hands with delight.

Danta looked up at her brother appreciatively and patted his arm. "Okay, sounds good to me."

**xXx**

Under the trees, Davaria set Danara down and took off his pack. "We shouldn't stay long, but some rest won't hurt our journey." Danta nodded and watched him sit down on a large rock, then she removed her own pack and lay down against it to rest.

"Mamma?" Danara said, sitting down next to mother. "I'm hungry."

Danta opened her eyes and smiled. Danara had never been so hungry before. Danta thought her daughter's sudden increased hunger was a good sign. "You can have some of that dried meat that I brought, but we do have to be careful about what we eat." Danara nodded and went into her mother's pack to get the meat.

"Mamma, can I go over and look at those plants?"

Danta looked in the direction her daughter was pointing. "Yes, that's fine," she answered, closing her eyes again.

Davaria watched the child run off, chewing on the dried meat as she went. "You know, Danta, we really have plenty of meat. She can have whatever she wants."

"All right." Danta never opened her eyes.

He frowned, feeling guilty. "I know we didn't go on the summer hunt, but I did take all of our share this time. I figured that we'd _need_ it, and we've never taken a full share in the past." He finally grinned. "I wonder what mother is thinking right now."

"Who _cares_," Danta said, squinting up at him and wrinkling her nose. Davaria frowned. "Do you really expect me to care what Trata is thinking."

"No . . . I guess not." He watched her close her eyes again, then he turned to look at Danara. She was crouching down inspecting something on the ground. It made him smile. She was a much more curious child than he thought she was. He was quite pleased that he was getting the chance to see this part of his sister's daughter. It was something he might never have seen had they not left Sumac Camp.

The man continued to watch her, then suddenly his eyes were attracted to something in the sky. A large bird was circling overhead.

**xXx**

Ayla walked for a time, following the clearly defined tracks of Davaria and Danta, then she noticed Shriek fly into view. She stopped, pulled out her glove, put it on, then held out her arm. Shriek swept down, gracefully landing on her arm, and then, true to his name, he shrieked in her face. Ayla smiled and stroked his back.

"I thought you stayed with Grov," she said. He shrieked loudly again, then flapped his wings several times and lifted off again. Ayla watched him circle above her a few times, then frowned when he shot off in a southwesterly direction. She decided to quicken her step; she could tell he wanted her to hurry.

**xXx**

"_Danara_?" Davaria called nervously, still watching the bird above them. The child looked over at him. "Please come here . . . _quickly_." Danara dropped the stick she was digging with, and ran over to him.

"What is it?" Danta asked, sitting up.

Davaria was staring at the bird. "Look," he said, pointing. "There's a big bird up there."

Danta looked up, her brow knitting with concern as she watched it make a large circle in the sky, then dive down toward them before quickly arcing back up. Then it circled around again "What's it doing?"

The man shook his head. "I don't know. It's almost like it's hunting." He glanced around. "But I don't see anything nearby that it might be going after."

"Look Mamma," Danara said, nervously hiding behind her mother. "Someone's coming."

Danta and Davaria tore their eyes from the avian show, and tried to see who was there, but whoever it was, was too far away to see.

"Someone's followed us. _Davaria_," Danta cried, turning to face her brother and grabbing his tunic roughly. "I'm _not_ going back there. I can't!" She started to sob.

Davaria looked over his shoulder at the approaching figure, then back at Danta. "Calm down, Danta. I _said_ we'd leave and we _will_. I promise." He wiped her tears away with his thumbs and pulled her into his arms.

Danara looked up at them, then she looked north and narrowed her eyes. "_Ayla_!" she squealed loudly, running toward the woman and calling over her shoulder. "Mamma, it's _Ayla_.

Danta and Davaria separated and followed after the child. It was indeed Ayla, and as they watched, she looked up at the bird and held out her arm. They were amazed to see it land on her arm.

**xXx**

"Hallo," Ayla said when she was close enough to speak to them, then she slipped her free arm around Danara.

Danta stared at the huge bird on the other woman's arm. "_W-what_ is that bird d-doing on your a-arm?" she stuttered.

"This is Shriek. He is my friend," Ayla said, giving the hawk a piece of meat and waving her arm to release him. Shriek took fight again, and disappeared from sight.

They all watched him go, but Davaria recovered the fastest. "What are you doing here, Ayla?" he asked her.

Ayla took a few steps closer and took off her glove. "Well, we were going to leave on our journey, but when we realized you three had disappeared, we decided to follow you instead."

"How did you find out we were gone?" Davaria asked.

"When I woke up and you were gone, I thought you had returned to Sumac Tent, but Janara told me you left the meeting." Ayla shook her head. "But I didn't _really_ know until your mother came to Oak Tent, demanding to know where you were." She didn't mention that Trata didn't ask about Danta.

Danta frowned. "But why, Ayla? Why'd you come after us? We're not going back. We have no reason to go back there."

Ayla smiled. "Oak Camp thought you might say that. They've offered to adopt you."

Danta glanced at Davaria; he looked suspicious. "You came out here _alone_ . . . to offer to adopt Danta into _Oak Camp_?" It seemed too good to be true.

"Well, sort of," Ayla said, shaking her head at the same time. "Oak Camp wants to adopt all _three_ of you, but I did not come out here alone."

Davaria looked over the blond woman's shoulder. "I do not see anyone else with you." He looked back at her.

"Grov and my children stayed just beyond that hill." Ayla nodded at the hill off in the distance behind her. "They are at the place that you camped last night. He thought it would be faster if I came alone."

Davaria nodded. That was certainly true. "And why would Oak Camp want to adopt us?" He looked confused. They were just three unfortunate, low status losers from Sumac Camp; why would a high status camp like Oak Camp _want_ to take _them_ in? he wondered.

Ayla thought for a moment. She didn't want to make disparaging remarks about their camp, but what could she say? Sumac Camp was full of waste. She shrugged. "Because you need a place to go, and they have room for you. Is that not reason enough?"

Davaria glanced at Danta, who held her arms out to Danara. The four-year-old quickly went to her mother. Danta shook her head. "We no longer need a place, Ayla. We are _leaving_."

Ayla frowned at them. "But Danta, why leave your people, if you could have a new home with Oak Camp? It can be dangerous out there alone."

"Yes, and it can be dangerous within a camp of people that you think you know too." Ayla could see tears streaming down Danta's cheeks.

"I don't know what happened to you at Sumac Tent, Danta, but I promise it won't happen at Oak Camp," Ayla reassured. "Oak Camp just wants to help."

Davaria looked sadly at his sister, and then hopefully at Ayla. He didn't know why Oak Camp wanted them, but this could be a good chance for them to get out of Sumac Camp, yet stay with their people. "Danta," he whispered. "Maybe we should listen to her."

Danta only looked scared. "Why did they send _you_, Ayla? Why didn't Tagnolia or Tiflona come?" That would have been more convincing, she thought.

"Well, we were making a journey and we offered to go. I told them I would make the offer for them. We are on our way to that valley I told you about, and I thought that . . . _maybe_ . . . you could come with us . . . just get away for awhile, before we return."

"_With_ you, on your _journey_, and then back to Oak Tent?"

Ayla nodded. "I wanted to invite you to go sooner, but you disappeared before I could ask."

Danta glanced at Davaria again, to see if she could read his face. He seemed willing to accept the offer, but then . . . he wasn't the one that was so desperate to leave. Danta looked back at Ayla. "And what if we say no? What if we don't want to join Oak Camp? Then what?"

"We told Tagnolia and Tiflona that we would return in five days if you said no," Ayla answered her.

"So what then?"

Ayla shrugged. "Nothing. Then you leave the Sungaea, and we go back to inform them."

"And what about your journey?" Davaria cut in.

Ayla shrugged. "So then we get a later start than we had planned. We will have to go after we tell Oak Camp the bad news."

Danara suddenly pulled on her mother's tunic sleeve. "Mamma, I want to be 'dopted by Oak Camp. _Pleeasse_," the child whined. "Pleeasse Mamma, let's be 'dopted." She was almost crying. Danta hugged her, but looked at Davaria. He shrugged; he would do whatever she wanted. Danta gave a slight nodded, hardly believing that they had a place to go. And to _Oak Camp_ too; she couldn't believe it.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

"All right, Ayla," Danta said, sending one last look at her brother. "We'll come with you."

Ayla smiled widely. "Good, I am so glad." Ayla reached out to hug the other woman; she couldn't help herself. Then she picked up Danara. "Let's get back to Grov then."

Danara happily put her arms around Ayla's neck. "Are we going to come live with you at Oak Camp, Ayla?"

Ayla frowned. "Well, actually Danara, I don't live at Oak Camp all the time." Danara looked displeased, so Ayla continued. "But I will come to visit. I promise."

"What camp are you _from_, Ayla?" the child asked.

Ayla glanced at Danta and Davaria before answering. "I was _born_ to Oak Camp, Danara, but I live with the Clan."

Danara didn't know who the Clan was, but she wasn't happy about this. She thought she would be going to live where Ayla lived. She frowned. "Why?"

Ayla set Danara down and knelt in front of her. "Well, when _I_ was a little girl, just a little older than you, I got lost, and I was found by the Clan. _They_ are the people that raised me."

"Can I come visit _you_ there?"

Ayla looked at Danta and Davaria again, and frowned. "I don't know. We will have to see." Ayla paused, then seeing tears in Danara's eyes, she considered. "_Maybe_."

Danara smiled. "You have _two_ families? You are very lucky."

Ayla grinned. "Yes, I _do_ have two families, and so will you."

Danara shook her head. "No, we don't have anyone at Sumac Camp," she said. "No one loves us there."

Ayla frowned. "But Danara, when you come to Oak Camp, you will have lots of people to take care of you, to love you."

"But not you." Danara turned away slightly to pout.

"Well no, I won't be there during the winter, but I will come back next spring. I promised, remember?" The child nodded. "And I _do_ love you." Danara smiled. "Now come on; let's get back to Grov and the children."

Ayla picked up Danta's pack and waited for Davaria to pick up his. Danta carried Danara and they started back.

**xXx**

While Ayla was gone, Grov spent some time talking to Durc about the ways of the Clan, and about leadership, then the two practiced with their slings to pass the time. Grov watched the boy maneuver the strange weapon, thinking that one day, he'd be as good as his mother. There was a slight awkwardness in the way the boy's arm moved; probably caused by being half Clan, but he seemed to possess the same natural talent with the weapon that his mother had. Grov knew that Ayla was going to be quite proud of his skill.

Grov glanced over his shoulder at the girls. He had set up the hide and told them to stay put before going to work with Ayla's son, and for the most part, they hadn't objected. Annaliza was now sleeping, he observed, but Ora was a different story. Now that her sister was out, the three-year-old was inching off the hide . . . again.

"Ora stay!" he barked sternly. Possibly too sternly, he thought with a sigh when she looked up and started to cry. She must be tired, he rationalized as he watched her, then the man got up to go to her. "Are you sleepy," he gestured. She shook her head. "_No_? Are you hungry?" She nodded. Grov looked down at Annaliza, then his eyes went south, hoping to see movement in the distance. He didn't yet, so he figured he'd have to fix the child something to eat. He tried giving her some dried meat, but she shook her head.

"Want Mamma," she whined. He finally understood, but he couldn't help her there.

"She'll be back soon. Do you want some water?" Ora frowned, considering his offer. She wanted her mother's milk, but she knew Ayla wasn't there. Finally, she nodded her head. Water was all that there was.

Grov got out his skin of water and Ora drank thirstily. After finishing, the three-year-old pulled out her doll, then lay down. She fell asleep quickly. Grov watched the daughters of his hearth as they slept, then glanced at the hot summer sun. He wondered if Ayla _would_ be back soon, as he had told Ora, or if he should set up a tent. One more look at the sleeping girls told him to set up their tent. Either way, they needed some shade.

**xXx**

As they walked, Ayla and Danta talked, but Davaria walked behind them, not saying much. He wasn't so sure about going with Grov and Ayla on their little journey, but he _was_ glad they would be going back to the Sungaea, eventually. He hadn't really wanted to leave, but he'd do anything for Danta.

The thought of going back to the meeting was unsettling as well. He wasn't looking forward to seeing his mother, or to petitioning the Councils about being adopted by Oak Camp. Sumac Camp was likely to fight hard against it, though _why_, he didn't know; winters would be easier with three less mouths to feed, and most people couldn't stand Danta. He knew they'd fight just to make trouble.

Danara had started in her mother's arms, but she was too excited to stay there for long. Soon she was running ahead, then running back. Her energy seemed endless, and it made everyone smile.

"Davaria," Danara called out. "I see smoke fire. Look." She pointed.

The man smiled. "Fire smoke," he corrected.

"Mamma, can I run ahead to see Ora?"

Danta smiled. "Yes, but be careful."

The three of them grinned as they watched the child run off. "I can't _believe_ how different she is," Davaria said shaking his head. "It's like she's a completely different child.

**xXx**

Grov was sitting with Durc on the hide next to his sleeping girls, and eating some dried meat, when he saw a figure approaching; it was Danara, and beyond her he could see the others.

**xXx**

"So, what's the plan?" Davaria asked, putting his pack down and looking around. "Where is this valley of horses?"

"Well, from the summer meeting, we knew we needed to head west and slightly south," Grov answered, but then he looked at Ayla. After all, this was _her_ journey.

"But I think we have come too far south," Ayla added with a frown. "We still need to go west, but maybe a little north now too."

Davaria returned her frown. "How do you know?" he asked.

Ayla shook her head. "I do not know _how_ I know . . . or at least, I am not sure how I know . . . I just know. We are doing this by feeling alone. Northwest is the direction that _feels_ right to me . . . right now, anyway."

"So that is where we are going," said Grov, ignoring Davaria's unsure look and smiling at his mate.

Ayla gave him a grateful look; no other clan man would have done this for her. "But I think we could just camp here for the night."

Grov looked surprised. "Are you sure, Ayla? It's barely passed midday. We could cover quite a distance before nightfall."

"I know, but why not relax for the rest of the day? The disappearing of the sun was the sign to leave the meeting, but I don't think what we do _now_ matters much. When we get there, we get there. Besides, it looks like you've already set up camp."

Grov nodded. "All right."

"And what are we going to _do_ when we get there?" Davaria asked. "What's so important about this valley of horses anyway?"

Both Ayla and Grov grinned. "We are going to make friends with some horses."

**xXx**

The rest of the day was relatively relaxing for everyone. The men went off to do a little hunting. They didn't really need any meat, but it was something to do to pass the time, and the meat would definitely get eaten at some point. Plus, the two men needed some time to get to know one another.

Ayla and Danta stayed at their campsite talking and watching the children play. Durc got along quite well with Danara, who was a year younger than him, and Ora was a little more quiet than usual. Ayla thought that she was possibly trying to act older, since her friend was there. Annaliza just curled up with her mother, holding her doll and sucking her two middle fingers.

Ayla tried to get Danta's secret out of her, but the woman seemed completely unwilling to budge.

"You know, it will be easier later if you tell us why you were running away from the Sungaea."

Danta looked away. "Easier for _who_?"

"For everyone, for you _and_ Oak Camp. If Oak Camp has a good reason to present to the Councils, then Sumac Camp cannot object."

Danta looked back at her. "Yes, I know, but it won't really matter. They can object all they want, but they can't stop Oak Camp from adopting us if we accept, which we have. They really have no choice, Ayla. Besides, I am afraid of what Davaria will do . . . if he finds out."

"You mean, _when_ he finds out," Ayla corrected.

Danta's eyes narrowed at the perceptive young woman. "You know what happened, don't you?"

Ayla shrugged. "I am not sure _who_ it was, but I have an idea of what he did to you."

Danta looked down at her hands. "Then you know why I can't say anything."

"_No_, I _don't_ know why. Danta, what he did to you . . . whoever it was . . . is wrong, and you have to do something about it." Danta's tear-filled eyes turned back to her, so Ayla went on.

"I have been there, and I do not mean what Zadneetsia did to me at the summer meeting." Ayla paused when she noticed Danta shudder and focus on her hands again. It was Zadneetsia; she should have known.

"Danta, the people I grew up with did not do anything about it because that is their way, but it is not like that for you . . . here. The Sungaea _will_ do something. Please don't let Zadneetsia get away with this."

Danta looked up sharply. How had Ayla known it was Zadneetsia? "He got away with hurting _you_," she spat. "What makes you think he won't get away with hurting me?"

"It's not the same this time and you know it. They will do more than just return our meat."

She sighed heavily. "But what if they don't?"

Ayla shrugged. "It will not matter, Danta. You will not live there anymore. You will be at Oak Camp."

Ayla was right, it wouldn't matter what happened to him, just so long as she didn't have to be anywhere near the man. Danta finally nodded. Then, noticing Davaria and Grov returning, she wiped her tears away. "Okay, Ayla, but I don't want to talk about this. Not right now," she said, nodding her head toward the approaching men. Ayla turned to look, then got up to take their kills, which gave Danta some time to wipe up her tear-stained face.

**xXx**

Davaria watched Ayla skin the animals that he and Grov had brought back, and noticed how proficient at it she actually was. In no time she had the meat spitted over the fire that Grov had made, and then she reached for a scraper, to remove the bloodvessels from the back side of the hides. He had never seen someone work so quickly, and was further impressed that she never missed a beat of the conversation the whole time she worked.

When the meal was finished, Ayla served Grov first, which struck Davaria as odd; the Sungaea traditionally offered first choice to women, but then, he thought, they aren't _really_ Sungaean. Or at least Grov's not, he thought with a frown.

Ayla then brought him a plate of food and he suddenly realized she had added vegetables and some other greens to the roasted meat; it was a full meal. He thanked her, then watched her as she finished passing out food to everyone else.

**xXx**

After the meal, Ayla spent some time showing Ora how to clean off their eating utensils. She wanted to make good on her promise to Grov to give the girl some responsibilities, and this seemed easy enough for the little girl to do. Ora balked somewhat, but one look from Grov made her do as she was told, though somewhat grudgingly.

Danara watched them for a moment, then asked if she could help. Ayla readily accepted the help, and Ora seemed more willing to do the work since Danara made it more fun.

**xXx**

After putting the children to bed, the four adults sat up by the fire for a short time, drinking tea and talking, mostly about superficial things. Ayla didn't mention Zadneetsia's rape of Danta, like she had promised, though she desperately wanted to.

"So we'll leave here first thing in the morning?" Davaria asked.

Grov nodded. "We will eat first, of course. And I think we should redistribute out packs. You have more than you should in yours. It may seem fine right now, but it will eventually become too much. _And_, Ayla wants to give the children something to carry as well. Plus, we have all this new meat to find room for."

Davaria frowned as he considered Grov's words. He thought it would be nice to not have to carry so many things. He had to admit his pack was too heavy, but he hadn't wanted Danta to carry more than she should. Finally, he nodded at Grov, glad the man had made the suggestion. Grov and Ayla then said goodnight, and promptly excused themselves. Davaria watched them go, then he looked at his sister.

"Are you sure you want to go with them to this . . . valley full of horses?" he whispered. He was shaking his head. "I mean, they want to make friends with _horses_. Don't you think that's strange?"

Danta smiled and nodded at Grov and Ayla's tent; Shriek was perched on its top. "They have a hawk for a friend. Why not a horse?"

Davaria followed her eyes, then smiled back at her. "I guess you're right."

**xXx**

Ayla lay next to Grov silently for a few moments before snuggling up to him. Grov smiled in the darkness and curled his arm around his mate. Though he didn't relish the thought of spending nights crammed into a tent of five, it was going to be nice to have some time away from all the people at the summer meeting. He liked all the people there, or at least _most_ of them. He had been looking forward to spending this time alone with his mate and the children, but he decided that, after the day, it wouldn't be so bad to have another man along to talk to. Plus, it would be good for their new friends.

Ayla nestled into the crook of Grov's shoulder and smiled. They could hear Davaria and Danta talking outside, but neither could tell what they were saying.

"So, what do you think?" Grov asked. "Are they going to be all right?"

"It's going to be hard, but I think so." Ayla hadn't mentioned Danta's rape. She wanted to, but telling Grov wouldn't change anything, and she thought that, maybe, Danta wouldn't want her to just yet, so she didn't. "What do _you_ think?"

"I know Ivanolia said he was as bad as the others, but he doesn't seem so terrible to me," Grov said, obviously referring to Davaria. "He's unsure of me, but he seemed better after we went hunting. He certainly has some decent hunting skills; two of today's kills are his."

"That _is_ good. Oak Camp already has several good hunters, but any camp can use another good hunter." Ayla thought for a moment. "_And_, they're going to need to do some hunting in order to make all they will need at Oak Camp."

Grov sighed. "I'm sure they're carrying all they have from Sumac Tent, so they're sure going to need _a lot_. It's going to take time to build up their possessions and gain status within Oak Camp, but everyone will help them. Moving will be an adjustment, but I think they can do it.

"It will be interesting to see them next summer," Ayla commented. "They may seem like different people by then."

Grov frowned in the dark. She sounded sad. "Are you wishing you could stay at Oak Camp this winter, Ayla?" he asked, deciding to be direct.

"Oh no," Ayla said, shaking her head in his shoulder. "I miss the Clan very much. I can hardly wait to see Uba and her sons, and Oga and _her_ children. And Ebra and Eda too." She paused. "I will definitely miss Oak Camp during the winter, but no . . . I am not wishing to stay with Oak Camp for the winter."

Grov's wrinkled brow eased. He was glad, because it wasn't likely that they would be able to stay with Oak Camp. He needed to start training to take Brun's place as leader, though now he questioned agreeing to take over; what if Ayla wanted to leave the Clan to live with the Others.

"Maybe we can visit Oak Camp . . . if the snows aren't too bad," he suggested.

"And I think Ivanolia and Danie will be coming to visit _us_," she said.

Grov's frown returned. "But that may not be such a good visit . . . after what he did to Oda."

"I know, but he does want to make up for what he did to her, and he wasn't the one that killed her baby. I think he'd even take her, if there was no Norv." Ayla grimaced. She didn't like Norv very much.

"I think you are right . . . I was so angry with Ivanolia, for what he did to Oda, but after he charged over to Sumac Tent to defend you . . . well . . . I can't be angry any longer. Is that wrong of me?" He was thinking of his mother, and hoping her spirit wasn't angry with him.

Ayla smiled. "No, I do not think it is wrong of you, Grov. He did do wrong, but he is doing what he can to show us he is sorry. He is much different now. Don't you think so?"

"Yes, Ayla, you are right; he is different," agreed Grov. "I guess we will have to wait and see."

**xXx**

The next day could be described as nothing more than an ordinary day of travel, except for one minor distraction during their midday meal. They were sitting under a lone tree, which shaded a few boulders on the side of a hill, watching the children play, when they heard a snuffling noise behind them. They all turned around to see two wolverines attempting to drag away one of their packs of meat. Danta screamed, getting up quickly to go to Danara. Grov and Davaria pulled out their spears, but it was unnecessary as Ayla already had her sling in hand; two stones thrown in quick succession ended the lives of the little gluttons and added two more kills to the small band of travelers.

Grov lowered his spear first; he was not surprised that Ayla has dispatched the animals before a spear could be thrown, but Davaria was. Davaria stood there, spear in hand, staring at Ayla as she picked up the stolen pack, then collected the dead thieves.

"H-how did you do that?" he finally asked.

Ayla turned to look at him. "What?"

He looked at the weapon in her hand. "Is that a sling?" he asked. She nodded. "I have not seen one used before. _That_ was amazing!"

Ayla blushed. She still was not used to comments of praise where hunting was concerned. "Thank you."

Grov grinned and clapped Davaria on the back. "She _is_ amazing, isn't she? I am not sure we are even needed here."

Davaria nodded his agreement, then put his spear away. Danta approached slowly, still somewhat nervous by the sudden appearance of animals, then went to help Ayla to skin her kills. They kept only the furs and tossed the carcasses; no one wanted the meat from the meat eaters.

**xXx**

Late in the afternoon, they arrived at the river that signaled their stop for the day. They had covered a lot of land that day and everyone was tried. The children plopped down on the ground, waiting for instructions that were sure to come. The two men went to work putting up tents, while the women started the fire. After the fire was going, Danta collected the children's packs, which Ayla had made and filled with a few light things the day before, while Ayla started their meal.

"While this is cooking," said Ayla, "I think I am going to swim. I feel sticky and dirty." She went over to her children, and gestured that they should come as well.

"Oooo, that sounds good, Ayla," Danta said. "I think we'll come with you, if you do not mind."

Ayla smiled. "No, of course not."

Grov and Davaria decided to do the same, but they took Durc and went down river just slightly, giving the females some space to bathe in peace. Davaria couldn't help but stare at Ayla as she pulled her tunic over her head and stepped out of her leggings. Despite what he'd heard about this woman, she was a beauty. He was starting to disregard the opinions of others, where this woman was concerned.

Grov turned his head and smiled, pretending not to notice, though he had. That was just one more difference between Grov and any other Clan man; he did not take offense to another man staring at his woman; he took it as a compliment of her strength and beauty.

Ayla would have noticed as well, had she been facing the men, but as it was, she was busy with her daughters.

**xXx**

During that evening they sat around their fire eating a meal and telling stories. Danta was quite interested in the Clan couple's life within the clan, but Davaria wanted to know about how Ayla learned to hunt with the sling.

"Hummm, I was seven when I first picked up a sling." Ayla smiled as her mind went back to that time. "It was a beautiful spring morning the day my mother asked me to go out and gather some wild cherry bark for her, and I was easily distracted. I stared at the sky; it was _so_ blue. And I found all kinds of plants that I wanted to gather. On the way back, I told myself. I walked and walked, enjoying the day. Then, as I approached the place where the wild cherry trees grew, I heard activity in the clearing. The men had gone out to practice with their bolas and slings. I wasn't sure what I should do; the men wouldn't be happy if they saw me there, but Iza wanted the cherry bark. I finally decided to hide and watch them." Ayla paused. Grov was shaking his head, but with a smile. He had not heard this story yet, but he was not surprised that Ayla had done what she had.

"So, when the men left," she continued. "I noticed that they'd left behind a sling and I picked it up. I wondered if it was as hard as they made it out to be. I ended up spending all afternoon practicing. Toward the end of the day, I finally hit the post I had been aiming for.

"After that day, I practiced as much as I could. I wore out my sling so quickly that I knew I'd have to make a new one. I started watching Zoug, our clan's old toolmaker. He allowed me to sit and watch him while he worked. He even gave me his extra strips of leather, which I secretly used to make myself a new sling. I learned much from him, though he did not know it.

"After a while, hitting the post was not a challenge, so I looked for harder targets. I was getting very good with my sling. Then there was one day that I was upset about something, and I started slinging stones angrily." She glanced at Grov, which told the man that she had been upset over Broud. "I hurt a porcupine, which made me realize how angry the Clan would be if they found out what I was doing. I decided to stop practicing with the sling on that day."

Davaria frowned. "But if you stopped practicing, then how did you get so good at hunting with it?"

Ayla smiled. "Well, obviously I didn't quit permanently. It was almost winter before I picked up my sling again. I knew I couldn't bring back kills, so my thoughts went to meat eaters. I thought that maybe I could help out the Clan by hunting _them_. It was a very difficult decision for me, but I could not help myself; I decided that I _would_ hunt them. Then, right after that, I found this stone," she said, removing her amulet to show them the fossil cast of a gastropod that she found that day. "I took this as a sign that I should indeed hunt meat eaters."

Davaria and Danta examined what Ayla handed them, then gave it back to her. They both had wondered about the amulets that hung around all five of their necks; even little Annaliza had one.

"During my eighth year, I learned to track animals and I learned to distinguish their spoor. I even learned what dropping belonged to what animal. I made my first kill that year," Ayla said proudly, then something else occurred to her. "My first kill was a wolverine."

"You were only _eight_?" Danta asked. Ayla nodded. "That is amazing." Davaria was more than impressed. He had been nearly thirteen before he had made _his_ first kill.

"So, that is how I learned to hunt with the sling," Ayla said, concluding her story.

Davaria frowned as he thought about something else. "That _is_ amazing, but why did you have to hide your hunting?"

Grov smiled. They had not had _this_ conversation in quite a while. "Because women of the Clan are forbidden to hunt." Davaria and Danta frowned, wondering why.

"They did find out . . . eventually. And I was severely punished, but that's another story." Davaria and Danta nodded.

**xXx**

The four of them talked for a short time longer. It wasn't very late, but they had another long day ahead of them, and no one wanted to be tired while they traveled the next day. Everyone went off to bed.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

The next morning, Ayla woke up thinking of horses. She had dreamed of them . . . _again_, but no new parts to her vision had been added.

Outside, the wind whipped Ayla's long hair into her eyes, causing her to frown. She didn't like the wind; it never seemed to stop blowing on the steppes. It only varied in intensity. Ayla sighed and looked across the steppes; today would be worse than others, she thought.

After pushing her hair off her face, she looked up, surprised to see Davaria sitting by an already burning, but low fire. He seemed to be deep in thought and didn't see her right away. Slowly, so as not to startle him, she approached and sat down. He finally looked at her.

"Morning," he said with a friendly tone. He had been thinking about the strange turn of events that would move them to Oak Camp after the summer meeting, and how it was _this woman_ that was responsible for it.

Ayla smiled. "Morning. Did you sleep well?" she asked, once again pushing her hair out of her eyes.

"Actually, yes." He paused for a moment. "It is not often that I wake up so early. I think it was the bouza that made me sleep so late."

"_That_, and staying up late each night."

Davaria nodded. "Probably so." He looked at the fire. "You know, I don't even like bouza . . . I just drink it because it seems to make life easier."

"I can understand that," Ayla commented. "But it does not really make anything easier; it just makes it so you cannot remember, or shadows the things you _do_ remember. I know that everything seems sort of . . . _foggy_ . . . when I drink it."

"Well that is the point, isn't it?" he asked with a smile. "I mean, wouldn't _you_ want everything to be foggy if you lived at Sumac Camp?"

"Good point," Ayla said, nodding affirmatively. "I am just saying that it makes it hard to pull yourself out of there, if you're _too_ foggy to better yourself." Ayla paused for moment. "But you won't have to deal with Sumac Camp anymore, so things should get better, right?"

Davaria stared at her for a moment and nodded. "Thanks to you." She blushed, and was about to protest when he changed the subject. "I am sorry about what Zadneetsia did to you, Ayla. I did not believe you at first, but I do now. I feel bad for that too."

"Don't feel bad, Davaria. It was not you that tried to hurt me. But remember that this _still_ isn't over; someone hurt Danta too."

"I know, but she won't tell me what happened." He looked real angry. She couldn't imagine how angry he'd be when he did find out what happened.

"That is because she does not want you to get into any trouble. She fears for her big brother."

Davaria smiled at her wording. He _was_, after all, Danta's big brother, but only by a slight shift in the sun; Dreena had been born between them. He shook his head, trying to think about now, and not then. Then he narrowed his eyes at the blonde woman sitting next to him. "And you know what happened to her, don't you?" he asked.

Ayla nodded. "I do." She could not lie to him. "But please do not ask me to tell you. Danta is not ready for anyone to know yet." Davaria sighed heavily. He would not ask, and Ayla was grateful; she did not think she could avoid a direct question, had he asked.

**xXx**

Everyone else was up shortly. They had a leisurely morning meal, washed their dishes in the river, then swam again before packing up to leave.

Ayla adjusted her shoulder bag, then picked up Annaliza to strap the child to her hip again. She glanced up at Grov, who was waiting patiently, then over at the other two. Danta was helping Davaria to situate _his_ pack, but they were ready to go as well.

**xXx**

As they headed north and slightly west across the open steppeland full of waist high grasses in search of Ayla's valley, the travelers stayed close together. The children suddenly became glued to them, as the nervousness of not being able to see very far forced them to slow down. Ayla handed off Annaliza to Danta to rest her arms for awhile, but ended up collecting as she walked instead of resting.

When the sun was directly overhead, they stopped for a meal, but didn't stay long. With no growth to shadow themselves beneath, they were anxious to move on.

**xXx**

_The sun was blinding as it sank low in the western sky._ They _had been hiking up a long incline, looking for a place to make camp._ They were tired and hungry, and the children were starting to complain.

_The glare on the horizon was so bright that_ they _nearly missed the abrupt edge of the plateau._ Ayla _stood on the lip,_ shielding _her eyes_ from the disappearing sun _and looked down a ravine._ Everyone joined her there.

Below, _there was a small river of sparkling water, flanked on both sides by trees and brush. A gorge of rocky cliffs opened out into a cool, green, sheltered valley. Halfway down in the middle of the field, the last long rays of the sun fell on a small herd of horse, grazing peacefully._

Ayla grinned in anticipation. "Look, horses," she said, grabbing Grov's tunic sleeve. "This is the valley. We are here."

**xXx**

_The first stars pierced the evening sky as_ the travelers _carefully picked_ their _way down the steep rocky side of the ravine_, each adult helping one child. _As soon as_ they had _cleared the edge, the wind ceased abruptly, and_ they _stopped for a moment to savor its absence. But the walls cut off the failing light as well. By the time_ the people _reached the bottom, the dense brush along the small river was a tangled silhouette seen against the moving reflection of the myriad shining points above._

The people went first to the river to take a deep refreshing drink, _then felt_ their _way into the deeper black near the wall._ They decided not to bother with their tents, instead they just rolled up in their furs, _feeling more secure with a wall at_ their backs than they _had on the open plains under a tent._ They _watched a_ waxing crescent show just a sliver of its _face over the edge of the ravine before_ they _fell asleep._

**xXx**

The next morning, the people awoke to _the early morning twitterings, chirpings, and raucous caws_ of many different birds. One by one, they pulled back their coverings _and looked around with delight. A world of green, still wet_ with morning dew, _glistened_ brightly _in the morning sun._ They were _on a broad rocky beach at a place where a small river took a turn toward the east in its winding, generally southward course._

On the opposite bank, a row of dark green pines reached to the top of the wall behind them but no farther. Any tentative strivings above the lip of the river gorge were cut short by the slashing winds of the steppes above. It gave the tallest trees a peculiar blunted look, their growth forced to branching fullness. The trees were growing on a narrow strip on the other side of the river between the bank and the wall, some so close to the water that bare roots were exposed.

On

their _side, upstream of the rocky beach, supple willows arched over, weeping long, pale green leaf-tears into the stream. The flattened stems on the tall aspens made the leave quiver in the gentle breeze. White-barked birches grew in clumps while their alder cousins were only high shrubs. Lianas climbed and twined around the trees and bushes of many varieties in full leaf crowded close to the stream._

It was early, but everyone was up, enjoying the sounds and surrounding beauty of the Ayla's valley. _The small river sparkled an_ irresistible _invitation,_ which caused the travelers to cross the beach and undress for a morning swim.

Grov, who had removed his clothing the fastest and was already in the water, noticed that _the bank dropped off quickly and dove under._ He came up halfway across the river, shook the water out of his hair, then swam back. _The water was cool and refreshing, and washing off the dust and grime of the steppes was a welcome pleasure._

Back at the shore, Grov watched the children. Ayla was still stripping Ora and Annaliza, but Durc and Danara had already jumped in. Only two of the four could swim, and Danara wasn't as proficient at it as was Durc. She was staying pretty close to the water's edge, but Grov could see that Durc was fairly far out, treading water quite easily. The boy shared his mother's aptitude for swimming, as well as her love for the water, but the man kept a close eye on him.

Ora and Annaliza, on the other hand, were still learning. Grov watched as Ayla signaled Annaliza to wait at the water's edge while she brought Ora out to him. When she got close, he extended his arms to accept the child. Ora squealed loudly as the cool water touched her belly, but she grinned as well. She also shared Ayla's love of the water.

Ayla returned to her youngest, who still stood on the bank waiting patiently. Annaliza was no different in her love for the water, but she was nowhere near ready to enter without someone there to help her. As her mother picked her up and brought her out into the river, the one-year-old splashed her chubby hand in the water and giggled. Ayla waded out a bit and lowered her daughter so that her chin was touching the water's surface. Annaliza showed no fear of the water; she only grinned as it splashed up into her face.

"Hold your breath," Ayla said, demonstrating by pulling in her own and holding it for a few moments, then releasing. Annaliza didn't seem to understand, so Ayla blew in her face to get her to hold her breath. Ayla grinned as she watched Annaliza open her eyes wide and suck in her breath. "Hold your breath," Ayla repeated, then blew in the child's face again. Annaliza's eyes widened again, but this time when she sucked in her breath, she held it longer. Ayla repeated herself one more time, then dunked the little girl under, quickly bringing her back up. Annaliza came up smiling, but immediately shoved her chubby fists into her eyes, to clear the water out of them. Everyone heard a peel of babyish laughter as the child said, "Again."

Davaria and Danta had waded in more slowly than the rest, obviously less used to swimming so often. Though they were enjoying the freedom that being with Grov and Ayla brought them, they were more tentative about some things than others may be. This was definitely new to them. Danta watched Danara and wondered where the child had learned to swim; she certainly hadn't taught her.

**xXx**

After swimming for awhile Danta got out and dressed. She started back to get a fire going, because she wanted to eat. _On her way back, she chopped a branch from a tree, sharpened a point on one end, and used it to dig up some wild carrots_ that Ayla had pointed out to her on their way down to the river. She wondered how Ayla had even seen them; they were very well hidden. She hoped that she would be able to learn more from the woman.

Once she got to their campsite, she _got the fire drill and platform out of_ Ayla's pack, _then began gathering dry driftwood, and deadfall from beneath the protective branches of the trees. With the same tool she had used to sharpen her digging stick, she shaved curls from a dry stick. Then she peeled loose hairy bark from the old stalks of sagebrush, and dried fuzz from the seed pods of fireweed._

Danta _found a comfortable place to sit, then sorted the wood according to size and arranged the tinder, kindling, and larger wood around her._ She thought for a moment, trying to remember what she'd seen Ayla do when starting a fire the night before. _She examined the platform, a piece of dry clematis vine, dug a little notch out along one edge with a flint borer, and fitted an end of the previous season's dry woody cattail stalk into the hole to check the size. She arranged the fireweed fuzz in a nest of stringy bark under the notch of the fire platform_, and smiled, thinking that it was Danara that had showed them what to use. Next, she _braced the platform with her foot, then put the end of the cattail stalk in the notch and took a deep breath. Fire making took concentration._

_Placing her palms together at the top of the stick, she began twirling it back and forth between her hands, exerting a downward pressure. As she twirled it, the constant pressure moved her hands down the stick until they nearly touched the platform. At this point she had to let go at the bottom and reach quickly for the top again, never letting the rhythm of the twirling stop, nor letting up the pressure for more than an instant._

Danta _got into the rhythm of the movement, ignoring the sweat that formed on her brow and started running into her eyes. With the continuous movement, the hole deepened and sawdust from the soft wood accumulated. She smelled woodsmoke and saw the notch blacken before she saw a wisp of smoke, encouraging her to continue though her arms ached. Finally, a small glowing coal burned through the platform and dropped onto the nest of dry tinder beneath it._

_She bent over so that her face was so near the coal she could feel the heat, and began to blow on it. She watched it grow brighter with each breath, then die down again as she gulped another mouthful of air. She held tiny curled shavings to the bit of smoldering wood and watched them brighten and turn black without igniting. Then a tiny flame burst out. She blew harder, fed it more shavings, and, when she had a small pile burning, added a few sticks of kindling_, and then some logs to get the fire blazing.

Then, quite proud of herself, she sat back for a moment to rest. I did it! she thought excitedly. She could hardly believe it.

Danta sent a look down to the river, then started water boiling for tea and skewered some meat for a morning meal. Once the water was boiling, she moved it to the side, then started for the river's edge to get the girls; she saw them getting out of the water. She glanced upstream; Davaria, Grov and Durc had already gotten out of the river and had gone exploring, but Ayla was standing there, still naked, drying off the three girls, and looking as if she still wanted to swim.

"Ayla," she said, kneeling to help her daughter dress. "I can take the girls back to the fire, if you want to keep swimming. You didn't have much time to yourself."

Ayla smiled. "Are you sure?" Danta nodded. "Well, all right, if you really don't mind." Ayla finished dressing Ora, then picked up Annaliza and put her in Danta's arms. "I won't be long. I promise."

Danta shook her head. "We'll be fine," she said. She took one of Ora's hands and told Danara to take the other, then they walked back to her fire and the food that was cooking.

**xXx**

Ayla _swam upstream and felt the current growing stronger and the water chilling as the sheer walls closed in, narrowing the river._ She looked over at Grov, who was watching her swim and waved, then _she rolled over on her back and, cradled by the buoyant water, let the flow carry her back downstream. She gazed up at the deep azure filling the space between the high cliffs, then noticed a dark hole in the wall across from the beach upstream. Could that be a cave? she thought with a surge of excitement. I wonder if it would be hard to reach?_

The young woman waded back to he beach and sat down on the warm stones to let the sun dry her. Her eye was drawn by the quick perky gestures of birds hopping on the ground near the brush and flitting from branch to branch feeding on bushes heavy with berries.

Ayla looked over at Danta and the girls, then upstream toward Grov, Durc and Davaria. They were still exploring. Then she grabbed her clothing and headed toward the birds. _Look at those raspberries!_ she thought to herself. _They're so big. A flurry of wings welcomed her approach, then settled nearby. She stuffed a handful of the sweet juicy berries in her mouth_, then decided to go get something to put them in so she could bring them back for everyone. At the fire, she rummaged through her pack to get a small collecting basket.

Danta looked up at her and smiled. "What are you doing, Ayla?" she asked.

Ayla held up her index finger, indicating that the woman should wait, then she rushed back over to collect berries for everyone. While collecting, she realized how hungry she was and ate a few more, but _rather than satisfying_ her appetite, the raspberries only stimulated it. She sniffed the air, realizing she could smell Danta's meal cooking. _She wanted something more substantial and walked back to_ the fire with her treat.

"What did you find?" Danta asked when Ayla returned with a smirk on her face.

"_This_," Ayla answered with excitement as she reached into her bag and pulled out a handful of fresh raspberries.

"_Oooo_, Mamma, I _love_ razzberries," Ora squealed, getting up quickly to get some.

Ayla grinned and kneeled. "I _know that_," she said, and handed her daughter some of the berries. Then she brought some to the others.

**xXx**

Davaria and Grov had gone upstream to look around. Durc was picking up and looking at smooth round pebbles, and occasionally tossing them into the river. _Close inspection revealed the beach held more than just stones. It was also strewn with dull gray driftwood and bleached white bones, many of them piled in a huge mounds against a jutting wall. Violent spring floods had uprooted trees and swept away unwary animals, hurled them through the narrow constriction of sheer rock upstream, and slammed them against a cul-de-sac in the near wall as the swirling water tore around the bend._ They _saw giant antlers, long bison horns, and several enormous, curving ivory tusks in the heap; not even the great mammoth was immune to the force of the tide. Large boulders were mixed in the deposit, too, but the_ men's _eyes narrowed when_ they _saw several medium-size, chalky gray stones._

Grov picked up a few pieces and turned them over in his hand. "_This is flint,_" he said, scanning _the beach for a smooth oval stone. When_ he _found one,_ he _struck the chalky outer covering of the nodule. A piece of the whitish cortex broke off, exposing the dull sheen of the dark gray stone within._

Davaria watched him. "Maybe we should collect some of it. We might need to make something while we're here."

"Humm, good idea." Both men sifted through the stones, choosing only a few good ones each, then feeling the familiar pangs of hunger, returned to their campsite.

**xXx**

"Look what we found," Grov said, holding up the flint, when the got back to the campsite.

"Is that flint?" Ayla asked.

Grov nodded. "The beach is _strewn_ with it."

"That's great. Maybe we can make some new tools while we're here." She paused. "How far did you go?" she asked.

"Not far, but I'd like to explore further. Do you want to come?"

Ayla nodded. "I think I saw a cave in the side of that hill." Ayla pointed across the river and everyone turned to look. "I could not tell for sure, but it looked like one."

"Hummm, that would be nice," Danta said. "Then we wouldn't have to sleep outside while we're here."

Ayla grinned. "My thoughts exactly. And it would be safer too." Everyone agreed.

**xXx**

_The sun was high when_ they _decided to investigate the hole in the wall_ on the other side of the river, but the crossing would be difficult, considering all their belongings, so Danta decided to stay behind with the children, just in case it was nothing.

"_Alone_? I don't know," said Davaria, looking at her and shaking his head worriedly.

Danta smiled. "I will be fine, Davaria," Danta said, patting his chest. "You won't be gone very long, right?" She looked over at Ayla, who shook her head.

Davaria frowned. "Maybe I should stay here with you and the children."

The woman laughed. "No, all three of you should go. The cave could be more dangerous than staying here. Besides, I will have Durc here to protect me." She smiled at the five-year-old boy who puffed up proudly. "Go! We'll be fine."

Reluctantly, Davaria finally agreed to go, but he left her two of his spears, and Grov asked Durc to keep his sling handy, just in case.

**xXx**

The three people _stripped and swam across the river, scrambling up the tree roots to climb out of the deep water. It was difficult scaling the nearly vertical wall, making_ them _wonder if it was worthwhile even if_ they _did find a cave._ They _ended up being disappointed anyway when_ they _reached a narrow ledge in front of the dark hole and found it was hardly more than a depression in the rock._

They _turned to start down, then turned farther. Downstream and slight lower on the other wall,_ they _could see the top of the rock barrier that jutted toward_ a _bend in the river. It was a broad ledge, and at the back of it there appeared to be another hole in the face of the cliff, a much deeper hole. From_ their _vantage point,_ they _could see a steep but possible way up._ Ayla's _heart was beating with excitement._

"We must have passed it on our way down last night," she said as they started back down. _About halfway down,_ they _jumped back into the river,_ and started up again. As they neared the ledge, Grov and Davaria pulled out spears and Ayla took out her sling. They advanced cautiously.

They _listened for the sound of breathing or small scufflings, and looked to see if there were any telltale signs of recent habitation._ Ayla _smelled the air for the distinctive odors of carnivorous animals, or fresh scat, or gamy meat._ Grov even _opened his mouth to allow taste buds to help catch the scent,_ and _let_ his _bare skin detect any sense of warmth coming out of the cave._ They _allowed intuition to guide_ them _as_ they _noiselessly approached the opening._ They _stayed close to the wall, crept up to the dark hole, and looked in._ They _saw nothing._

_The opening, facing the southwest, was small. The top cleared_ Ayla's _head, but she could reach her hand up and touch it. The floor sloped down at the entrance, then leveled out. Loess, blown in on the wind, and debris carried in by animals that had used the cave in the past had built up a layer of soil. Originally uneven and rocky, the floor of the cave had a dry, hard-packed, earth surface._

_As_ they _peered around the edge,_ they _could detect no sign that the cave had been used recently._ Grov _slipped in_ first, followed quickly by the other two. All three of them noticed _how cool it was compared with the hot sunny ledge, and waited for_ their _eyes to adjust to the dim interior. There was more light in the cave than_ they _had expected, and when_ they _moved in farther,_ they _saw sunlight through a hole above the entrance and understood why._

The cave was not large, but not small either. The walls angled back from the entrance, widening until they came to a fairly straight back wall. The general shape was roughly triangular, with the apex at the mouth and the east wall longer than the west. The darkest place was the east back corner; the place to investigate first.

Grov _crept slowly along the east wall, watching for cracks or passageways that could lead to deeper recesses holding hidden menaces,_ but there were none. _Near the dark corner, rock cleaved from the walls lay on the floor in a jumbled heap. Ayla came forward, climbed the rocks, felt a shelf, and emptiness beyond it, but she couldn't see inside._ Grov helped to hoist her up on the shelf.

_The dark opening was low; she had to stoop to move inside. But it was only a recess that ended with the roof sloping to meet the floor of the niche. At the back was a pile of bones._ Ayla frowned, interested in what had lived in the cave before they had come, but decided she would have to come back later. Turning, she climbed out of the niche and allowed Grov and Davaria to help her back down from the ledge. They followed _the west wall back to the entrance. It was a blind cave, and, except for the small niche, had no other chambers or tunnels leading to unknown places._

Outside, they had to _shade_ their _eyes against the bright sunlight as_ they looked around. _Below_ them _on the right was a pile of driftwood and bones, and the rocky beach. To the left,_ they _could see far down the valley. In the distance, the river turned south again, curving around the base of the steep opposite wall, while the left wall had flattened into steppes._

"What do you think?" asked Davaria.

Ayla smiled. "I do not know how long we are going to be here, but it seems perfect."

Grov nodded. "I would have to agree. Now we just have to get all of our things over here."

Ayla frowned. "But how do we know that it's all right with Ursus that we stay here?" she asked.

Grov's brow furrowed. "I do not think it matters, Ayla. We are not planning on living here permanently." She nodded and her frown eased, but Grov noticed that Davaria looked confused. "The Clan will not occupy a cave unless they have a successful hunt. That way they know Ursus is pleased with the place they have chosen to live."

Davaria nodded. "Huh, that's interesting. But what if the hunt isn't successful?"

Grov shrugged. "Then they look for a different cave."

Now it was Davaria's turn to frown. "Good caves are very hard to come by and from what I've heard, the Clan never builds an earthlodge." Grov shook his head, so Davaria continued with a frown. "It must be quite a hardship when a hunt is unsuccessful then."

"I suppose, though I have never heard of it happening." Grov smiled. "I think the hunters always put forth an extra effort when possession of a cave is at stake." He paused. "_Now_, shouldn't we go get Danta and the children?" Davaria and Ayla nodded. "I think if we go down that way, and cross the river there." He pointed at the rocky beach on their side of the river. "Then it will not be so difficult." They agreed with him and started down from the cave's ledge.

**XxX**

**The First of Three  
><strong>  
>Danta had watched them cross the river and disappear, then come back across. She thought they were on their way back to her, but then they veered and were gone again for awhile. It had worried her, but she continued to wait, though somewhat impatiently. She sighed when she saw them again. Now they were returning.<p>

"_So_?" she asked, but she could tell by their expressions that they had in fact found a usable cave.

"It's not huge, but it will work," Davaria said happily.

Ayla nodded her head. "And it will keep us warm," Ayla said, picking up her pack and looking up at the cloudless, azure blue sky. "Though, with this nice summer weather, I'm not sure _that_ will be a concern."

Grov shrugged. "Summer storms can come at any time. It will be nice to know we will not have to worry about that now."

Ayla was looking at her mate and nodded her agreement. "You are right." Then, turning back to Danta, she went on. "The way up is a little steep, but it's not _too_ bad."

Danta smiled and stood up. "Should we put this out," she asked Ayla, whom she considered in charge. Ayla turned toward her mate and raised her eyebrows, expecting him to decide. Though they were here because of _her_ vision, she did not see herself as the leader.

"Uh _no_," he answered, glancing down at their nicely burning morning fire. "Let's leave it until we have a fire going inside the cave. We can use a coal from _this_ fire to start _that_ one." Everyone nodded.

**xXx**

It did not take long for the travelers to walk down the rocky beach, then hike up the steep incline to the cave. Ayla and Danta took a few things, but decided to leave most behind, as they would need to help the children up to the ledge. Grov and Davaria also left their packs on the beach. Grov instructed Davaria to carry a burning piece of wood, while he carried wood for their indoor fire.

Once inside, Grov arranged the wood in a central location, somewhat under the smoke hole in the cave's ceiling, then extended a hand for the burning piece. Davaria quickly handed it over so Grov could finish his job.

"I guess we can go down to get the packs now," Davaria said, starting for the cave's entrance. Ayla nodded and turned to go with him, but Grov stopped her.

"We will get them, Ayla," Grov said. "You and Danta should stay here with the children." Ayla frowned for a moment, then shrugged. She was still holding Annaliza on her hip, but decided to put the child down. The two men left to gather their belongings.

"This is actually quite nice," Danta said with a slight smile as she gazed around the small cave that would be perfect for them. Durc and Danara had already climbed up onto the rocky shelf in the back of the cave and were exploring the little niche.

"Mama, look," Durc said, coming out of the niche with a bone in his hand. "Come look at this bone."

Ayla had to smile as she walked to the back of the cave to her curious son. He was no less curious than she, she thought. She reached to take it from him and then _examined the bone in her hand. It was the long legbone of a giant deer, aged and dry, with teeth marks clearly imprinted where it had been split to get at the marrow. The pattern of teeth, the way the bone had been gnawed, looked familiar, and yet not. It had been made by a feline, she was sure._

"These marks were made by a large cat, a _very_ large cat," she said with surprise, then _she spun around and looked at the cave again._

Danta was watching her and frowned. "What is it, Ayla?" she asked worriedly.

"A cave lion did this," Ayla remarked. "This _must have been the den of cave lions once._" She glanced back at the niche that Durc had disappeared into again. "And _that niche would be a perfect place for a lioness to have her cubs,_" she said with a smile. She looked back at Danta, who looked more worried than ever. "What?"

"Maybe we shouldn't stay in here then, Ayla," she said nervously. "What if the cave lions come back?"

Ayla looked around the cave, then down at the bone in her hand, then shook her head. "I do not think we need to worry, Danta. This bone _is so old, and the cave hasn't been used for years._" She paused as if thinking about it some more. "_Besides, a fire near the entrance will keep animals away._" Danta nodded, somewhat appeased by Ayla's analysis.

**xXx**

Grov and Davaria made their way down to the rocky beach to strike camp. Grov put his bedroll in his rucksack, then hefted the thing to his back, and shouldered Ayla's pack. Davaria struggled to do the same, but in the end, he required Grov's help to get Danta's pack on his arm. They were heavily loaded, but it was a short trip; they could make it.

**xXx**

Standing on the ledge, waiting for the men to return, Ayla stared out over the valley, _breathing in the beauty and tranquility of the scene_. She _could hardly believe such a place could exist in the middle of the dry windy prairie._ The woman noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and smiled as she watched the men cross the beach.

They seem to be getting along quite well, she thought with a slight smile. She could see them exchanging words and wondered what was being said. The woman considered the issues between them; Grov's rightful anger over the forcing of Clan women and Davaria's involvement _in_ it should be enough to end any friendship before it could start, but both were working to get beyond such difficulties. It helped that Davaria was regretful of his actions and that Grov had been exposed to Ivanolia's activities prior to meeting Davaria; it gave the mixed man some time to get used to what the Others had done to women like his mother. Ayla frowned at the thought of men of the Others attacking Clan women. Her thoughts went to Oda, and all the Clan women like her. Her heart went out to them, to Oda, to the other women, and to Grov's mother. She wished she could have met Grov's mother, and suddenly realized she didn't even know what the woman's name had been.

Ayla frowned, then shook her head to dispel her unpleasant thoughts. Turning, she to looked the other way, into the valley that had been carved out by the river, and at the horses that were grazing there. It made her smile. _The young woman studied the horses in the distance, intrigued by them. They were sturdy, compact animals with rather short legs, thick necks, and heavy heads with overhanging noses that reminded her of the large overhanging noses of some men of the Clan. They had heavy shaggy coats and short stiff manes. Though some tended to gray, most were shades of buff ranging from the neutral beige of the dust to the color of ripe hay. Off to one side stood a hay-colored stallion, and Ayla noticed several foals of the same shade._ Then she frowned. There was another stallion, on the other side of the river and looking very possessive. He was slightly away from his bevy of females, but still close enough to keep them close. This one was darker, though not too dark, and he seemed to have gained dominance over a few mares from the other herd, though how, Ayla did not know, but she could definitely see a difference between the two herds.

Ayla's eyes scanned the two herds, searching for the horses from her vision. Several of the females were the same dun yellow color of the one in her vision, but there were very few that were so light that they were almost white. She narrowed her eyes as she watched them; one shook its head and pawed the ground roughly. A smile spread across the woman's face; she knew immediately that _this_ one was one of her horses.

"_Ayla_?" Grov said. "Are you listening to me?"

"W-what?" Ayla said, as she shook her head to bring herself out of her thoughts. She looked down at her mate; he looked irritated. "I am sorry, Grov," she said as she blushed. He was coming up the steep path, but he had stopped and was frowning at her.

Grov turned his head to look in the direction that she had been looking and saw the horses below. He suddenly realized where her mind had been and relaxed his creased brow. "That's okay, but would you take this," he said as he hefted her pack up to the ledge. Ayla grabbed at it, then extended a hand to pull him up as well. When he was standing next to her he smiled down at her. "So, have you found yourself a horse already?"

"I think so, yes," Ayla said with a grin. Then she looked back at the horses and pointed. "See that light horse there; the one that is so light that it's almost white?" He squinted at the animals. "See the one that is stomping her front hooves?" He nodded. "She seems to be the same one from my vision."

Grov studied the horse, then frowned. "But how can you tell that she's the same horse? There are three horses that are that color."

Ayla shook her head. "She is the only one with the same personality as the one in my vision, and the other two are too young, and male. _She_ is definitely our horse," she said, then reached to help Davaria up over the ledge. When she looked back at Grov he was still staring down at the horses.

"And what about the little one?" he asked.

Ayla glanced back down too. "Hummm, I am not sure yet." She frowned. "And I don't think he is so much little, as he is young. Maybe only two years." Her eyes scanned the two herds again, looking for the young male horse from her vision; there were several horses that could be the one, but none seemed quite right.

Grov nodded again, then reached to take her pack back. "Well, why don't you stay out here and try to figure it out. We will take these inside." Ayla hesitated for only a moment, then released her pack, thankful for such an understanding mate. The man leaned to kiss her, then left. Davaria had already gone in.

Ayla watched him go and smiled. Then, turning back to the grazing horses, she sat down on the ledge to study them in earnest.

**xXx**

Inside, Danta was attempting to manage the four children that were exploring inside when the two men came in bearing their belongings. Quickly, she went to help them.

"Here," she said. "Let me take that." She pulled her pack off Davaria's shoulder and began pulling things out of it. "What do you think we should do with our things?" she asked as she looked around, then focused on the men. Grov and Davaria had dropped their packs as well, but they only shrugged. "Well, how long are we staying?"

"As long as it takes for Ayla to capture three horses," Grov informed them.

Davaria's forehead furrowed. "_Three_?"

Grov grinned at the man's questioning look. "That is what she saw," he answered. "So that is what we are here for."

"What does she plan to _do_ with three horses anyway?" asked Davaria, still quite unsure about the purpose of this little journey.

"Do you really want to know?" Grov's grin had not dissipated.

"Well, _I_ do," Danta answered curiously and without a glance at her brother.

"Well, I do not know _all_ that she expects to do with them, but I do know that she plans to _ride_ them." Grov paused and watched their stunned expressions.

"_Ride them_?" the Davaria and Danta said in unison. "How does she expect to do _that_? Danta continued.

Grov shrugged. "I have no idea, but that is her plan."

Davaria's features clearly showed shock, but he had something to ask. "And . . . are _we_ supposed to help her with this?" he asked nervously and completely doubtful that this could be done.

Grov shrugged again, but then held up his hand when Davaria seemed ready to ask another question. "Don't ask; I not sure how this is to work yet. We will have to wait and see." He was about to go on, but suddenly he heard Durc's voice.

"Grov," Durc called, poking his head out of the niche's entrance, then climbing down. "Mama says cave lions used to live in this cave." The boy held up the bone his mother had inspected. Grov took it and smiled.

"I think she is right." He grinned. "That means this cave will be good luck for us." He handed the bone back to Ayla's son. "And I _also_ think we need you to gather some wood." Durc nodded, put the bone down and started for the cave's entrance.

"Hold on, Durc." Danta turned to look at her daughter. "Danara, can you help Durc gather wood?" she asked. Danara grinned, happy to be useful, and nodded her head. Danta looked at the two men. "I will go with them. Should I take Ora and Anna?"

Grov looked at Ayla's daughters. They were sitting down, somewhat near the fire, playing with some pebbles they had brought up with them. "No, they can stay here."

**xXx**

Ayla had watched the horses for a few moments following the men's departure, but a sound off to her right caught her attention. She glanced up at the face of rock behind her and noticed a path leading up and around the hill behind the cave. She didn't see any movement, but something had definitely stirred in the brush, making her curious about what might be there.

Slowly, she stood and reached for her sling, which, as always, was tucked in her waistband. She considered going into the cave to let someone know where she was going, but then she'd lose whatever had rustled the growth. She decided not to go in the cave first.

With much care, Ayla followed the narrow path that led up the hill behind their new temporary home. At the top Ayla noticed the blowing wind had died down somewhat, but that it still blew gently. She was, once again, glad for the protection the hills gave the valley. Smiling, she peered into the brush, but didn't see anything, then she glanced around. The land above the cave was relatively flat, with a patch of trees growing off in the distance. Ayla started walking toward the trees, but before she could reach the treeline, a few birds took flight. The woman smiled, glad to know what the sound had been, then pulled out her sling; they would feast on ptarmigan that evening.

After retrieving her kill, Ayla quickly tied the feathered feet together and headed back to the downward winding path. Looking down at the valley before her, she gasped in awe; it was more than breathtaking.

**xXx**

Danta and the children walked outside and picked their way down the path to the beach. Durc had gone first, but paused to help Danara down a particularly steep part. Danta grinned as she watched them.

At the bottom Danara took the boy's extended hand and jumped down into the sand beside him. Danta followed them, continuing to observe her daughter's complete change in personality. The little girl seemed as pleased as sweet cakes to be here with these people she hardly knew. Danta considered her daughter's slight build; she was not much larger than Ora, and Danta had always believed her daughter to be sickly, but she no longer thought so. Danara had merely been depressed, but now she was blossoming.

Danta quietly watched the two children. They were working, but they had somehow turned the work into a game, and both were laughing. Danta suddenly noticed the boy's odd . . . _accent_? Is that an accent? Danta asked herself as she thought about Grov and Ayla's speech. They all had deep voices, as if they were speaking more from their throat than the tip of their tongue. She thought it strange that she hadn't really thought about it before, at least not this extensively. Finally, she decided that it _was_ an accent, a _Clan_ accent.

Danta continued to observe the two children, and suddenly realized that Durc had directed Danara to pile the wood at the base of the hill, just to the side of the path leading up to the cave. He had just dropped another piece there when Danta stopped him.

"Let's take some up now," the woman said, wondering how many trips would be necessary to bring up enough wood to keep them through the night. Durc handed Danara a decent sized piece to carry, then picked up two for himself and started for the path. Danta smiled at Ayla's young son, then took up a few pieces and followed them.

After making a few trips, Danta finally stopped them. "I think that's enough wood for now," Danta told them. "I think we need a break."

Danara grinned. She didn't mind the work, but she was tired. "Can we go swimming, Mamma?" she asked with a pleading look.

Danta glanced up at the cave opening, and suddenly became aware that Ayla was not on the ledge, where Grov had said she was. She had been so busy with wood-gathering that she hadn't even noticed.

"Ummm, I think we should talk it over with everyone else first. Let's go see what they say." Danta smiled at the children then extended her arms. "Here, let me take the last load up." Durc put his wood in the woman's arms, then took Danara's and did the same with it. Danta watched the two scramble up the path to the cave. She followed them.

**xXx**

Grov frowned at the woman. "What do you mean _Ayla's not on the ledge_?"

Danta shrugged, suddenly upset and thinking she did something wrong. "I . . . I don't know. We were down on the beach," she said, pointing at the opening to the cave. "But when I looked up, she wasn't there."

"How long wasn't she there?" Grov asked, picking up a spear and starting for the lighted opening.

Danta frowned again. "Actually, Grov, I don't remember seeing her at all." She paused. "I'm sorry."

Something about her tone caused the man to turn back to her. He could see serious worry in her eyes and possibly fear, though the fear was not for Ayla; it was for herself. He had scared her and he felt bad about that. This woman had been through enough fright. Grov's eyes took on a more tender look. "Do not feel sorry, Danta," he finally said. "I will find Ayla." Then he quickly left the cave.

**xXx**

Ayla had been standing there, hand clasping the dead ptarmigan, and staring out over the valley when she heard a noise behind her again. She turned around and looked, expecting to see nothing, or perhaps more birds in flight, just as before. But this time, she saw a young male horse, peering out from behind the trees.

For a moment, she couldn't move; she just stared at him and he at her. Bravely, the horse stepped out from behind the growth that hid him; his body was the color of a tanned deer hide, but his short, stand up mane, tail, and lower legs were quite dark; maybe even black, Ayla thought. This was _him_, the young male that was supposed to be hers. He was a beautiful animal.

Slowly, she turned her head to look down at the other horses, then quickly back at the young horse when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw him cautiously approaching her.

"Hallo, horsey," Ayla said softly. "Are you all by yourself up here?" The horse's ears perked up and he stopped his slow gait toward her. He stood stock-still and studied the woman as she talked to him. Ayla knew immediately that he was sizing her up. She knew that animals, being nonverbal, picked up clues about other animals, including humans, by observing their posture and movements; very much like the Clan, Ayla thought as she continued her chatter, hoping to gently lull the horse over to her.

After some time, and more chatter, he started his approach again. Ayla slowly extended her arm, expecting him to shy away, but he didn't. Instead she was rewarded with a wet nose in her hand; she was utterly amazed as questions flew through her mind. Obviously he was acting out of intense curiosity, yet for him to take such a risk, something more had to be going on his head, but what was it?

Ayla looked around a bit. First down at the two herds again. He didn't seem to be part of either one, though he looked similar to some of the horses from each herd. Then she squinted into the trees again. Was he alone? she wondered. Ayla knew that horses were social animals, that they liked being around other horses. So why was _this_ horse alone? And how _long_ had he been that way?

Ayla looked at him again and smiled. He had stretched out his neck, pushing his nose into her face and sniffing her. Could he be seeking the companionship of another living creature? she wondered with a frown creasing her brow. "Are you lonely, little horsey?" she asked him. She did not expect an answer, but he nickered softly, giving her the impression that he had indeed answered her.

Slowly, so as not to frighten him, Ayla lifted her hand and placed it on the sloping bridge of the horse's nose. Again, she expected him to get spooked and shy away, or even bolt, but he didn't, so she scratched him gently and raised her other hand to do the same.

**xXx**

Grov had gone outside and went to where Ayla had been sitting. He immediately found his mate's footprints on the ledge and frowned when he saw that they led up a narrow path to the plateau above the cave. Carefully, he made his assent, but stopped short when he got there, what he saw shocked him beyond belief; Ayla was standing there with her arms around a young buckskin colored horse.

The horse, who should have immediately shied away from the woman, perked up his ears again, then snorted when the man appeared. Ayla moved slightly to see what had caused the horse to move, and seeing Grov, smiled and spoke in a quiet crooning voice. "I think that I have found our young one," she said. She lifted her hand to the man, indicating that he should approach.

Grov frowned slightly. "Are you sure?" he asked, not wanting to frighten the horse away since Ayla seemed to have charmed him already. But he needn't have asked, because the horse shifted on its feet, then took a step toward _him_. Before he knew it, the horse had his nose in his hand and Grov found himself petting him, just as he had seen Ayla doing only moments before. It was quite overwhelming.

Finally, the man smiled and looked up at Ayla. "This is unbelievable. How did you . . ."

"I didn't do anything," Ayla said as she shrugged her shoulders. She had followed the horse over to Grov and ran her hand over the horse's back, causing him to shift his feet and lean into her touch. "I just came up here, because I heard a noise. Then I saw these ptarmigan." She held up the dead birds. "Then _he_ came out of the trees." She patted the horse's rump and grinned at her mate.

Grov continued to pet the horse. "He's not as small as I thought he would be."

Ayla frowned and shook her head. "I thought he would be smaller too." Ayla studied him for a moment. He did look thin. "He is young, maybe two or three years old. I am guessing that he has been out on his own for awhile." The horse nickered, as if in answer, and nudged Grov for attention.

"He sure is a friendly thing, isn't he?" Grov said with a grin.

Ayla nodded, but looked toward the two herds down in the valley. "I wonder why he's alone?" she asked, not really expecting an answer; she knew there was no way the man could answer. "It seems strange that he is not with one of those herds. He even seems to look somewhat _like_ them. I am almost certain that he used to be part _that_ herd," she said, pointing down at the first herd she had been looking at. She thought about her vision and frowned. "And he must be related to that pale horse. She is the one that kept trying to get him away from us in my vision." Ayla frowned as she looked back at her mate. "But what should we _do_ with him."

Grov grinned. "We keep him, of course," the man said. "Isn't that what we came here for?"

Ayla nodded. "I guess so, but it is not like we can bring him down into our cave."

"So, do we just leave him up here and hope he stays?" Grov asked.

The woman glanced around and shrugged. "I do not know. I did not have any visions about _how_ I got him. I just _had_ him." Ayla frowned. "Wait!" she said suddenly. "I do remember that in one of the visions you were holding a rope that was wrapped around his neck."

"So, we need to make a rope to hold him. We can do that, right?"

Ayla was still frowning. "We _could_ do that, but I'd hate to tie him up and leave him. Something might attack him and he would not be able to get away. I would rather not do that." She paused. "I guess we just have to do what you said, _leave him up here alone and hope he stays_."

"All right then," Grov said, giving the horse one last scratch. "We better get back to the cave."

Ayla nodded, then reluctantly turned to go. Grov followed her and to their astonishment, so did the lonely horse. Both humans stopped and looked at him.

"Stay here horsey," Ayla crooned. "It's better for you on this plateau." Ayla rubbed him and held up her hand as she started to walk away. The horse nickered again and shook his head, then neighed quite loudly, so loud in fact, that several horses in the valley tossed their heads and whinnied back.

Grov and Ayla backed down the path to the cave, watching the horse as they went down. He had come to the edge and was watching them closely. He had not attempted to follow them down the path, but he also didn't leave. He just stood there staring down at them as they went. Ayla wondered if he'd still be there the next time they went up onto the plateau, and wished she could think of some way to keep him close. _But_, at the moment, she could not, so there he'd have to stay.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

"O Mother, Ayla," Danta said, hugging her friend. " I was so worried about you.

Ayla hugged her friend back. "I am fine, Danta," Ayla said. "I was just exploring the plateau above, and guess what I found?"

Danta frowned and was about to reply, but the sound of falling rock outside diverted everyone's attention to the mouth of the cave. For a moment Danta thought a cave lion, or some other predator, had jumped down upon the ledge. Her eyes widened when she saw a horse standing in the light of the entrance.

"Well," Ayla sighed at the appearance of her four-legged friend. "I guess I don't have to tell you what I saw." Ayla walked over to the horse, and slipped her arm around the neck of their extremely curious visitor. "_This_ is my new friend, Curious."

"_Ooooo_, Mamma," Ora exclaimed loudly, already up and coming toward her mother and the horse. "What is _that_?"

"This is a horse," Ayla said, picking up her daughter and letting her pet the horse's nose. "He's a colt." _Curious_ sniffed the child's hand, then pushed his nose into her face and blew.

Ora giggled, and reached for the friendly creature. "What'sa colt?" she asked.

"It's a young male horse," Ayla answered.

"_Male_?"

The woman smiled at the three-year-old in her arms. "A young _boy_ horse," Ayla elaborated.

"_Curious_?" Danta said. "Is that what you're going to name him?"

Ayla shrugged. "I don't know, why?"

Danta frowned. "It just doesn't sound like a _horse's_ name."

Davaria still had a stunned look on his face, but suddenly recovered at his sister comment. "What does?" he asked, shrugging his shoulders. "I mean . . . who's named _a horse_ before?"

"Hummm, I guess you're right," Danta said with a frown. "But he _is_ a male horse. Shouldn't his name _sound_ like a male name?"

Ayla frowned, she hadn't thought of naming the horses, but _Curious_ did seem like a strange name to her. "We could call him Curia," she suggested, though that seemed strange to her as well. _What did it mean_? "What do you think of that name?" Ayla asked the horse. He nickered loudly and shook his head. Ayla frowned.

Danta frowned as well and shook her head. "I don't think he likes it," she said as the horse nickered loudly again. She picked up her frightened daughter, and eyed the horse skeptically, still unsure about having the large equine in the cave.

"Hummm, I am thinking the same thing," Ayla said.

Davaria moved to stand next to his sister. The horse nickered again at his movement. "How about Nicker? He seems to be doing a lot of _that_." The horse nickered yet again.

Ayla looked from Davaria to the horse. "How about . . . Nicker?" Ayla asked the horse, then cocked her head and attempted to copy the horse's nickering sound. He shook his head and pranced in place, but nickered again, confusing everyone.

Ayla frowned. She wondered what horses called each other. They all must have the same name, she thought. "He doesn't seem to like Nicker or Curia . . ." she started to say, but the horse nudged her rather roughly, causing her to stop and look at him. What had she said to upset him? she wondered. She glanced at Grov, who had picked up Annaliza and was now approaching slowly.

"Nicuria, Mamma," the one-year-old said, reaching for the horse. "He is Nicuria," she gestured, only verbalizing the name she was giving the horse. Everyone blinked and looked at the horse. He was, once again, nickering loudly, and _this time_, he was nodding his head up and down, as if he was agreeing to this bizarre name, a cross between the sound he kept making and his natural disposition.

Ayla frowned. "Well, _okay_," she said. "But if this is to be his name, then shouldn't he be named properly?" She as looking at Grov, but Davaria spoke first.

"_Properly_? How do you name a horse properly?" Davaria asked with a frown creasing his forehead. This was getting complicated. "A horse has never been _named_ before, has it?"

Grov shook his head. "I do not think so," he answered the other man, then looked at Ayla. "We could name the horse as the Clan names a child."

"And how is _that_?" Davaria asked with curiosity. He didn't know much about the Clan, but this was a great opportunity to learn a little about them.

Grov frowned, then explained how Clan children were named. "But we need red earth to do it," he finished, shaking his head. "And I don't know where to find any . . . or at least, I haven't seen any around here."

Ayla's frown matched that of her mate. "I haven't either," she said, then thought for a moment. "But maybe we could use something else . . . like mud. Mud might be better for a horse. What do you think?"

"Yes, we _could_ do that," he said. "But who will do it? We have no Mog-ur."

Davaria and Danta didn't know what they were talking about, but they were listening intently. Ayla was frowning. "You can do it, Grov," she said. "We're only going to use mud, so it's not really an official ceremony. Do you think that will be all right?" She was starting to wonder if they were doing the right thing too.

Grov looked at her nervously, then glanced at the horse. Though he came from a rather unconventional clan, it made him feel strange to do something _so_ unorthodox. His eyes slowly went back to his mate. "Ayla, are you _sure_ we should name him?"

"No," she said. "But we cannot keep calling him, _the horse_, or little horsey," she said, turning to the horse and scratching his muzzle. "Especially after we have two more horses. That will get confusing. Besides, we named Shriek, why not the horses?"

Grov frowned, then nodded. "You are right. But . . . _Nicuria_? What does _that_ mean?"

Ayla shrugged. "Who cares. _He_ seems to like it," she said, patting the horse's withers. "So that is all that matters."

Davaria had been watching them discuss the horse's _name_, but he was no less nervous now that it had been decided. "Ummm," he started. "So, what exactly are we going to _do_ with this horse? I mean . . . is he going to stay in _here_, in the _cave_?" His eyes were raking over the large animal and their relatively small cave.

"I guess we will have to make a place for him, won't we?" She looked around, trying to figure out what to do with her new friend. Then she realized they still needed to finish unpacking, so that they could get things organized for their stay in the valley. Naming the horse would have to wait for awhile, she thought, opening her shoulder bag and pulling out a small apple. She held it out to the horse, who sniffed it for a moment before grabbing it with his lips and eating it. Ayla smiled, as did Grov.

"Where did you get that apple, Ayla?" he asked his mate.

Ayla held her bag open so that he could see into it. It was full of small apples. "I have been collecting them while we traveled. That is the only thing I saw us feeding them in my vision, so I figured we would need them." Ayla paused for a moment. "Where would you like our hearth to be?"

Grov glanced at Davaria. Though the Sungaean man had low status within his own camp and among his people as a whole, he was still older than Grov by a year and Grov did not want to insult the man by assuming that he was the lower status man. "Where will you place your hearth Davaria?" the younger man asked.

Davaria frowned. He had never been given a choice before; he usually just took whatever space was available after most others had already chosen. "Ahhh, I d-don't know." Danta gave her brother a look of sympathy. She understood the honor Grov was showing her brother by asking him to choose first, _and_ she understood her brother's confusion by it. This was the first time this had ever happened to them, but it made Danta feel good; they could, _and would_ become more. Davaria looked around, then turned back to Grov. "You can pick first," he finally said.

Grov nodded, then looked around the cave. "We should set up here, Ayla," he said, pointing to the western side of the cave; it was the larger side. They were, after all, five, and there would only be three at the other hearth.

"What should we do about sleeping places?" Grov asked, after moving his things over to what would become their hearth. "Should we dig shallow holes like the Clan does, or build sleeping platforms like the Sungaea?"

Ayla shrugged. This wasn't going to be a permanent home, but both types of beds were hard work. "The platforms are more comfortable, but I don't know if we have what we need to make them. I don't even know _how_ to make them, but I'm sure we can find enough hay to fill Clan sleeping places."

Danta had moved her belongings over to where she would stay with her brother and was listening to the couple's conversation. "We could probably find what we need to make them, Ayla," she said. "Sleeping platforms aren't _that_ hard to build. We could do it together." Grov and Ayla nodded. If they weren't going to be so hard to build, then they might as well have beds that were comfortable.

**xXx**

For quite some time, the four adults worked to make the cave livable. Grov and Davaria left the cave to get the materials needed to construct sleeping platforms, while the women straightened the inside of the cave. It was decided that they would only make three sleeping platforms: one large for Grov and Ayla, and two smaller, for Davaria and Danta, and that they would dig four shallow holes to fill with hay for the children.

Danta did her best to sweep the cave floor, so that there would be as little dust as possible, and Ayla marked off the place where the three sleeping platforms would go, then started digging the holes for the children's beds. She would go get the hay needed to fill them later.

The four children, who really weren't much help, sat on the small interior ledge, so that they would be out of the women's way. They watched the activity around them, and smiled at the horse as he roamed freely around the cave.

Nicuria walked around the cave, sniffing every corner or recess within the cave, learning about his new home. He made a short visit to the children, who giggled when the horse nudged them curiously, hoping to find a treat. Then he moved on to nosing their packs and their backs as they worked, generally making a nuisance of himself.

"_Nicuria_!" Ayla finally said, giving the horse a frustrated look as she shoved his nose away from the pile of dirt she had created during her digging. "Stop _that_!"

The horse, who was finished exploring the cave and had moved on to playfully pushing dirt back into the hole, shied away at the volume of Ayla's voice, then nickered loudly. Ayla immediately felt bad; she knew he didn't mean to do anything wrong, but the work was hard and he was making it more difficult.

Slowly, she reached for the bag containing the apples, which she had stashed behind the children in the small niche. Pulling one out, she held it up to the horse, and nicked softly to calm him. Nicuria flicked his ears back, then approached the woman and took the apple. After taking it, he stood quietly munching on it.

**xXx**

Not long afterward, Grov and Davaria returned with all the necessary materials to make sleeping more comfortable than it had been in their tents, and quite quickly had the three sleeping platforms finished. Ayla stood and watched the construction for a short time, but needed to finish the children's beds, so went back to that after her curiosity was satisfied.

**xXx**

The sun was long past its height by the time they finished working on the cave and their beds, and everyone was hungry and exhausted. Ayla wiped her arm across her sweaty forehead, and looked around the cave.

"I think I would like to swim, to get all this dirt off me," she said. "If no one minds."

Danara squealed. "Mamma, can we go swimming _too_?" she asked. With the excitement of having a horse within the cave, she had completely forgotten about her wish to go swimming.

Danta smiled and picked up her small daughter. "I think that would be a great idea." Danara clapped her hands happily.

**xXx**

Ayla had gone to get her children. She helped Ora down and placed Annaliza on her hip, but Durc jumped down on his own and went to join Danara. Everyone decided that a swim would do them all good, so they were all heading for the cave entrance when Nicuria nickered loudly, confused by everyone's movement. Ayla stopped and looked at him, then handed Annaliza to Grov.

"Would you mind taking her down for me?" she asked her mate. He shook his head, and turned to leave. "We will be right out," she told everyone as they left, hoping that she would be able to get the horse to follow her outside. She decided to use the apples again.

"Come here, little horsey," she called, holding it out and backing toward the entrance. Nicuria nickered and walked after the treat in Ayla's hand. Once outside, Ayla handed it to him, then scurried down the path to the beach, leaving Nicuria above, staring after her.

The horse lowered his head, eyeing the steep path with fear, then he whinnied loudly and pawed the ledge in frustration. Ayla only glanced back up at him once, then went to joined everyone at the river. As she reached the river's edge, she heard the whinny of an entirely different horse; it was the light mare that Ayla knew to be one of the other horses she would soon have. The mare was on the other side of the river, but was in the water and looked to be coming to retrieve the younger colt. Ayla suddenly understood; the colt was her son, but something was amiss. Why wasn't this colt still with his herd? Surely he was too young to be off on his own.

Suddenly, while she was still contemplating the strangeness of the situation, the dark bay stallion moved to head the white mare off, snaking his neck forward to herd her back to his ranks. The mare, angry that she was being prevented form joining her colt, pawed the river water roughly and whinnied loudly, which elicited a nip from the domineering stallion.

Ayla watched the scene, but turned when she heard Nicuria return his mother's whinny. She was stunned to see that he'd come down from the ledge and was pacing back and forth on the rocky beach, nickering as he went. As he entered the river to join what Ayla believed was he mother, the dark bay stallion splashed into the river. Crossing over easily, he went after his mare's son, snaking his neck out angrily to push the young colt back. The dark stallion was not going to allow the young colt to get close to his mares, even if one _was_ his mother.

As Ayla watched, she realized that her colt did not belong to this stallion's herd, and that the light mare had probably been stolen at some point. Ayla glanced at the other herd. They matched the light mare's coloring; _that_ was her original herd, she thought to herself. She looked back at the dark bay stallion, then at Nicuria. Though the colt might have initially been accepted into his mother's _new_ herd, he had probably been driven away some time ago; the dark stallion did not want his new mare's offspring to be around his harem of females.

Ayla looked again at the dark bay's herd. The lead mare had taken flight, drawing all of the other females with her, with the exception of Nicuria's mother. She was still at the edge of the river, rearing and neighing loudly, stomping her front hooves to display her frustration. The stallion stood in the river between his angry mare and her son, preventing them from reaching one another. Finally, with a painful nip, he got her to follow the herd. Ayla watched as they raced off. They headed up the hills that lined the southern end of the valley, and out of sight.

When they were gone, Ayla's attention went back to the other herd of horses that had been standing back, watching the goings on. Most of them seemed to have shied away from all the noise, except for the buckskin stallion who stood watch, guarding his own mares. He was waiting to see what would happen, but would take advantage of the other stallion's absence if he could. He would go after his lost mare if the bay stallion stayed away too long.

When the dark bay left the river to follow his herd, taking the light mare with him, the buckskin approached, possibly trying to retrieve his offspring. Ayla eyed him, then quickly pulled out her sling and let fly. A stone painfully struck him in the rump, and then a second one found its mark. She did not want to hurt him, but she was not about to let him take Nicuria away from her now that she had him.

"Go away!" Ayla shouted at the buckskin, as he slowed.

The stallion stopped to contemplate the situation. He eyed her warily; he eyed _all_ the movement of the strange two-legged creatures. They were small in comparison to himself, but there were several of them, and the loud one in the front was able to hurt him from far away. He flicked his ears back and snorted, then turned and fled. As Ayla watched him bound back down the beach toward his own herd, she saw his lead mare suddenly turn and bolt. The stallion brought up the rear as they retreated around the curve of the canyon and out of sight.

Ayla turned back to Nicuria, who was prancing around, nickering loudly, but when she held out another apple, his ears perked up immediately and he quickly went to the woman. Ayla scratched his withers and gave him her best calming nicker; it seemed to work, for both of them.

"Yes Nicuria, you belong to us now," she said, hugging her new friend. She hoped she would be able to get him to stay with them.

**xXx**

After swimming for quite a long time, the group of people, _and one horse_, left the beach to get back up to their cave. On their way back up, everyone grabbed several handfuls of hay, to feed the horse, and Ayla retrieved the ptarmigan that she had put in a ground oven on the beach. Everyone was pleased to have made it to the valley safely, to have found a cave to keep them out of the elements, and to have a decent evening meal to eat. Ayla was ecstatic that she had attained her colt so easily. Now she needed to work on getting her two mares.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

The people had feasted on Ayla's ptarmigan, then sat around by the fire talking. Grov and Ayla told a few Clan stories, including Ayla's favorite, the Legend of Durc, and then listened intently while Davaria and Danta told some Sungaean stories that they had not heard before. Ayla was always delighted by stories.

Everyone was having a good time, including Nicuria, who, much to the delight of the children, spent some time nosing around the cave again, before settling down along the west-end wall where Ayla had placed his food. Ayla watched her new friends laughing with Grov and smiled. She was enjoying this peaceful time alone with them, and she was greatly pleased to see that Danta and Davaria were finally starting to relax and open up. She knew that part of it was just the knowledge that they wouldn't have to return to Sumac Camp, the other part was that they weren't going to have to search for a new people to live with. Both would have been quite unpleasant. Ayla was sure that their minds were more at ease now, though they were aware there was still going to be some trouble ahead. No one had mentioned it, but all were certain that Sumac Camp was bound to object, if only to make things difficult.

As Ayla watched them talk and laugh with her mate, she considered all she knew about them. Danta had divulged quite a bit to her during their short journey to the valley. They had had a hard life, growing up with people that, for the most part, didn't like them. Only Davaria had been loved by his mother, though the older woman's treatment of her son was often less than _loving_. Ayla looked at the man. He was young and relatively attractive; he looked very much like Danta, both had brown hair and eyes, high cheekbones and a small nose, though hers was slightly smaller. Ayla frowned. They had seemed so plain to her when she first met them. But now that they were smiling, they looked unbelievably different to her. Yes, smiling made the difference, Ayla thought. They can and _will_ be happy now. She couldn't help but smile at her thoughts, but then her mind went back to their lives at Sumac Camp and her forehead creased again. At least Davaria had had friends, nasty as they were, she thought. Danta hadn't even had that.

To begin with, Danta had her daughter, her brother, and her sister and niece. Then, after her sister and niece's deaths, she had not only been ignored, but hated as well. Her mother blamed her for Dreena's death and put an end to all contact, even the snide remarks Danta had become used to over the years. And Davaria, lost in his own pain over the loss of their sister, drank himself into oblivion, and ignored her more than ever. Ayla couldn't imagine how painful their lives had been.

"I think it is time that the children went to bed," Ayla finally said when she noticed Ora yawning. Annaliza had already fallen sleep in her mother's lap.

Grov glanced at Ora, who was about to protest, and leveled a look at her. She was silenced before she could even get one word out.

Durc quickly got up and went to his mother. "I will take Annaliza, Mama," he offered, holding his arms out to accept his youngest sister.

Ayla smiled up at her five-year-old son, then let him take her. He is going to be such a good mate some day, she thought, as she watched the boy tuck Annaliza into her furs. Her mind went to Ura and she frowned. Now that they knew Durc and Ura were related, could they still be _mated_? she wondered. And if they couldn't, then who else was there for either one of them? Ayla shook her head. It wouldn't be for her to decide, so why worry? Besides, she knew Grov would handle it.

**xXx**

After they had gone to bed, Danta had lain awake for awhile, thinking about all that had happened to them in the last few days. She couldn't believe they had finally run away from Sumac Camp, or that Davaria had come with her, and she still couldn't fathom that they were going to be adopted by Oak Camp, that there were people that actually _wanted_ them. It still amazed her.

Danta's mind went to Sumac Camp and what they might be thinking about their sudden disappearance. She knew Trata was probably steaming mad, not about _her_ or Danara being gone, but the woman did have at least _some_ affection for her son. It was going to be _so_ hard to go back, even if they weren't _really_ going back. She hadn't told her brother about Zadneetsia's attack and she dreaded that part of their coming difficulties. Though many weren't going to believe her, Davaria was quite likely to become enraged; what brother wouldn't? she thought. Maybe if she just kept it to herself, then there wouldn't be any trouble. She shook her head; she didn't want to think about it. She was trying so hard to put on a happy face and push away her sadness. She didn't need to be sad anymore, right?

Slowly, she turned her head to look across the fire at Grov and Ayla's sleeping place. She smiled and quickly looked away not wanting to be rude; they were sharing pleasures. She greatly appreciated the opportunity Ayla and Grov had extended them by allowing them to tag along. This was a nice breather from camp life; something none of them were much used to, but Danta was still quite worried about their return. At least she knew that eventually they would be free of their birth camp, and that was reason enough to be happy.

Danta was just drifting off to sleep when she felt someone touch her hand. She was lying on her sleeping platform on her stomach with her right hand dangling over the edge. She looked up to see Davaria. He too was on his bed, stomach down, facing her, as their beds were placed head to head. He was holding her right hand in his right hand and smiling at her in the dim light of the fire.

"Thank you, Danta," he whispered.

Danta smiled back at her brother and squeezed his hand. "For what?" she asked.

"Danta, you know very well what for," he said, shaking his head. "I would not be getting this chance in life, if you had not insisted on befriending them." The man nodded his head toward the now still couple.

Danta continued to smile. "Well, I need to thank you too, Davaria." She paused, but continued on quickly. "I am _so_ happy that you chose to come with us."

Davaria disentangled his hand from hers and quietly got up to go to her. She moved over, allowing her brother to slip into her bed, then she leaned her head on his shoulder. She was quite used to him doing this; it comforted them both. "Danta, there was no choice. I only want to be where you are."

Danta nodded into his shoulder and hung onto him. He stayed there with her until he knew she slept, then he crept out of her bed and into his own.

**xXx**

The night went fast and everyone slept better than they had in awhile. Ayla was awake early, earlier than usual she decided after glancing toward the cave's entrance, which faced southwest. It was not very light out at all, she thought, though it was difficult to tell from the direction they faced. She then turned her head to look up at the hole in the cave's ceiling. The early morning light was just starting to filter in through. She smiled. She had always liked rising early.

Carefully, so as not to wake her sleeping mate, she slipped out of the furs. She stood for a moment looking down at him, listening for a moment as he mumbled sleepily. His dark hair was messed up and his lips, showing prominently on his shaved face, were slightly parted as he breathed softly against their furs. He was sleeping on his side. His strong body had been curled around her, but when she had gotten up, he had moved restlessly, seeking out the warm spot she had vacated. Now, moving again, he turned on his stomach, burying his face in the furs. In a few moments his breathing was deep and even. She knew he still slept.

Ayla pulled on her leggings and reached for her tunic, conscious of the fact that the fire had gone out at some point during the night, leaving the cave almost cold.

Hot tea, she thought. _That's_ what everyone needs when they get up. She went to stoke the still warm coals, and added a new log. Then, glancing at their shallow bowl of water, she decided to go get some fresh water from the river; there wasn't much left in the bowl.

**xXx**

In passing Nicuria, Ayla patted the colt's withers and tried to slip past him, but he would have none of it. Nicuria eagerly followed her outside and, now that his fear of the slope was gone, down the steep path to the beach below. Ayla was quite intent on getting the water from the river, but the horse's antics caused her to pause.

"What are you doing, Nicuria?" she asked. She used signs and words when talking to the young colt, which seemed to please him. He nickered at her and tossed his head, then raced up the sandy beach, making a large arch, then returning. Ayla had filled her basket by the time he had returned and was walking back toward the cave. Nicuria followed her to the edge of the slope, but stopped as she started up.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked. Nicuria tossed his head again and whinnied. "Well, okay then, _stay_, but don't go too far away." Wondering how much the horse understood, she smiled, then put her basket of water down and fished an apple out of her shoulder bag. Nicuria came forward immediately when he saw the small red apple in her hand and took it greedily. She smiled again and patted his rump, then went up to the cave. She wasn't too worried about him running off; he had had plenty of chances to leave if he'd wanted to. He could have left at any time during the night and he didn't. And it wasn't like she could really stop him if he wanted to go. Plus, her vision told her he was there to stay. He wasn't going anywhere.

**xXx**

Inside the cave again, Ayla boiled the water for tea and started a light morning meal. She was sure everyone would be awake soon and they were bound to be hungry. Ayla wanted to do some scouting that day, to find her horses, and didn't want to have to waste too much time cooking that morning. She hoped they would not mind that she was not cooking a full meal.

After the meal was finished, but before everyone woke, she sat there staring at the fire, sipping her tea, and thinking about Nicuria's mother. Suddenly, as if being pulled through time, her mind was in another place.

_A strong-looking, buckskin-colored stallion lazily grazed as he kept watch over his mares, never allowing them to scatter. When one strayed slightly, he either moved the others to join her or went after her with a snaking neck and herded her back into his ranks._

Ayla smiled as she watched the scene that she quite literally saw dancing within the fire before her.

_Out of nowhere, the stallion nipped one of the mares and proceeded to drive her, and the others, back and forth across the length of his territory. There was no threat in sight, nor were they going anyplace in particular, yet he forced them to run at top speed, in single file. He was just exercising his authority._

Ayla continued to drink her tea, if only absently, and focused on the horses.

"What are you smiling about?" a voice asked. Ayla shook her head and focused. Danta was sitting right next to her, waving her hand in front of her face.

"Umm . . . about horses, I guess," Ayla answered, continuing to smile. "I made a meal."

Danta grinned and accepted a plate of food from Ayla. "Thank you." She took a bite. "_Mmmm_, this is very good," she said, mouth still full. "How do you manage to have a meal ready before anyone else can even get out of bed."

Ayla shrugged. "I was up early." She glanced over at Grov; his change in breathing told her he'd be awake shortly. Davaria too, she thought, after a look at him. "Actually, I did not make much this morning. I would like to go search for the horses. I do not want them to get too far away."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Danta didn't relish the idea of chasing horses, but she'd do whatever her friend asked of her.

Ayla thought for a moment, then nodded. "I think there is, yes," Ayla said with a smile. "In my vision, we did not have the children with us. I think it would be very helpful if they stayed here with you, so that they will not be in any danger. Would you mind terribly?"

Danta shook her head. "No, of course not, Ayla. Actually, I'm glad that you didn't ask me to help capture a horse. I have to admit that they frighten me a little; they are so _big_."

"I can understand that, but watching the children will be just as helpful. I really do not think we could do this if we had to take them with us. Thank you!"

"Thank you, what?" Davaria asked nosily, sitting up in his bed and scratching his head.

The two women looked over at him and laughed. His hair was sticking up at odd angles and he had lines running across his face where the furs had creased his skin.

"We are discussing the search for my horses," Ayla informed the man.

"Ayla has asked me to look after the children while they are out with the horses."

"Oh," he said. He swung his legs over the edge of the platform, then stood up. He swayed slightly, like he'd had a long night drinking, but it was only that he'd stood up too quickly. The man ran a hand through his hair to smooth it down, then sat down beside his sister. "What smells so good?"

Danta rolled her eyes. "I forgot how hungry you can be," she said, getting up to fix him a plate of food. "_When you wake up before midday, that is_." She giggled, then quickly stopped when she saw Davaria blush. She was, of course, referring to very recent days when the man's only sustenance was bouza. She quickly changed the subject.

"Ayla was up early and fixed us this fine meal." Danta handed the man his food and kissed the top of his head. "It is as _delicious_ as it smells," she said, hoping he'd let her remark slide.

Davaria frowned as he took the plate from his sister and tried to push away his embarrassment. "Thank you," he said quietly, staring down at his plate. Danta never had understood his drinking; she'd had her daughter to focus on after their sister's death. _He'd_ had nothing, and hadn't known what to do with himself at the time, so he'd thrown himself into his friends and their all consuming pastime of drinking bouza until the sun came up. _No_, he said to himself when he looked at her, she didn't understand the drinking . . . but she did understand the pain.

Danta saw the look of pain cross her brother's face before he was able to mask it, and she immediately felt bad that she'd hurt him. Only Davaria's pain over Dreena equaled hers; she knew _that_ was true. She had just coped better.

Sitting down beside him, she laid her head upon his shoulder and whispered. "I'm sorry, Ari." That was what she had called him when they weren't able to pronounce their full names. It had been a long time since they had used them.

For a moment, he didn't say anything, but his arm slipped around her and he held her tightly. He understood she needed the closeness they had always shared; he did too. "It's okay, Ata."

Ayla sat quietly, trying not to intrude on the brother and sister's time. She could tell that they needed it. Then, as quickly as it had come on, it was over.

"So, horse tracking, huh?" Davaria asked with a full mouth. He still had his arm around Danta, but he was shoveling food into his mouth with the other hand, his plate balanced on his knees. It made Ayla smile.

"Yes, but I do not want take the children." Ayla was nodding. "I would like to track them today, and see where they are. I still need to find the dun yellow horse. There were several in both herds, but I want to start with the bay stallion's herd, since that is where Stomp went."

"_Stomp_?" Grov said from behind her. "Have you already named her?"

Ayla nodded again. "Yes, and I think you will agree that it is quite fitting. Besides neighing a lot, she stomps her hooves constantly." She smiled. "It is perfect."

"Well, okay then," Danta said with a smile. "At least we don't have to spend any time thinking about her name."

"Hey, speaking of names." Davaria was frowning. "Didn't you say you needed to name Nicuria . . . _properly_?"

"Yes, I think we should do that before we go off to track _Stomp_." Ayla was making a plate of food for Grov, then noticed the children approaching. "_Hungry_?" she asked them. The four children nodded their heads. Ayla offered Annaliza some first, but the one-year-old, two middle fingers in her mouth, shook her head; she wanted her mother's milk. The others sat down and accepted their morning meal.

**xXx**

After eating, everyone went outside for the horse's naming ceremony. Grov was going to act as Mog-ur and Ayla would be take the place of the horse's mother. She wouldn't be able to pick him up and hold him in her arms as was Clan custom, but they decided it didn't really matter.

Ayla led them over to a muddy area that she'd seen when she'd come out earlier. Nicuria nosed around the cloudy stream near the cave, then began to drink.

Ayla swished her fingers around in the mud and made a mark on her forearm. It made her smile. "Look," she said to get everyone's attention. She pointed at the brownish red stain on her skin, then picked up a handful of the squishy, rich brown mud at the water's edge. "It's _almost_ red."

"Red?" Davaria asked questioningly.

Ayla looked at the man. "Yes, red earth is _always_ used for naming ceremonies . . . and when people die." Davaria nodded. He _knew that_, he just didn't know that the _flatheads_ understood the purpose of the sacred red earth. They _must_ be human, he thought. Why can't our people see that? he wondered.

"But I think this mud might be better for the horses," Grov interjected. "Can you call him over to you, Ayla?" They turned to look at the horse. He had drunk his fill and had moved off.

"I will try," she said. "_Nicuria_," she called. The horse's ears perked up, but he didn't join them. She called him again. "Little horsey, come here." He swished his tail and nickered. Ayla nickered back at him, which caused him to repeat the sound, but he still didn't come. He even seemed amused by the game of making noises back and forth. Ayla decided she'd have to go get him, but when she moved to do so, he pranced away. Ayla immediately stopped and turned around, as if to ignore an insolent child.

Nicuria eyed her and nickered again, but when that elicited no response from her, he whinnied loudly. And when he still got no response, he came up and nosed her back. Ayla finally turned around and scratched him, then gestured for him to follow. This time he seemed to understand.

"Ayla, you will have to hold his head," Grov said, holding a handful of dark, reddish mud. Ayla put her arm around the horse's neck and scratched him, trying to calm him, then waited for Grov to begin. Ayla watched the set of Grov's shoulders and could tell that he was uncomfortable. He was clearly nervous, and Ayla knew that it was because he didn't want to offend the spirits by naming a horse in the same way the Clan named its people. Ayla wished the horse would settle down; it might help Grov relax as well.

Grov was thinking along the same lines as his mate, but waited patiently. It couldn't matter, could it? he asked himself. He took a deep breath, _then_, at the precise moment that Nucuria stilled, he began.

First, he made some movements in the Old Language requesting the attention of the spirits. Everyone watched his graceful movements, but only two there understood him, Ayla and Durc. Ora and Annaliza might have understood, if they were older, but neither had been around long enough to have seen much of the Old Language used. Davaria and Danta watched with rapt attention, understanding none of the beautiful movements the man made, yet thinking it a wonderful way to name the horse.

"The name of this male horse is Nicuria," Grov said, making the Clan gestures at the same time he spoke the words in Sungaean. Then he smeared the wet reddish-brown earth down the colt's face, from the tuft of dark brown hair on his forehead to the end of his long nose.

As soon as Grov finished, Nicuria pulled away from Ayla and pranced away. He let out a loud nicker and tossed his head wildly, expelling the wetness from his face. It splattered on the people sitting there watching. They all laughed.

"Well, now that _that's_ done, we should start thinking about tracking _Stomp_," said Grov, as he wiped a spot of mud off of his face. Nucuria snorted, then came up and nudged the man. "What are we going to do with him?" he asked.

Ayla frowned. "I am not sure _what_ we should do. In my vision, he was with us when we were trying to get Stomp and the other horse to follow us. That is _how_ we were able to attract them. That, and the apples," she said with a smile. "But we are just going to track them today, right?"

He nodded. "Unless you think we can track them _and_ entice them to come with us all in one day."

Ayla continued to frown. She didn't know what to do. "I am sure we can _find_ Stomp, if the bay stallion's herd didn't go too far, but we don't even know if the other mare is with that herd."

"Well, was she in your vision?" asked Grov.

Ayla shook her head. "No . . . but neither of them were. In my vision the two of them were alone, and we used Nicuria and apples to draw them near to us."

"You could take Nicuria with you even if you're just tracking them today," Davaria suggested. "I mean, it wouldn't hurt, would it?"

Ayla shrugged. "I guess not . . . unless his presence causes the herd to flee again."

Davaria frowned. "True . . . but what if his presence could actually help you?"

Now Grov was frowning. "How do you mean?"

"Well, remember the way that mare tried to come to him?" They nodded. "Well, maybe she'll make it easier to _get her_ than you think. Maybe she'll leave the herd on her own and come with you willingly, if her colt is there to draw her away."

Ayla grinned and threw her arms around the man. "Yes, I think that is a great idea," she said happily.

Davaria blushed, but hugged her back. "I'm glad you think so."

"I think we will need a rope," Ayla said. "Not that I think we could restrain Nicuria with only a rope, but we had one in my vision, so maybe we should make one."

"No need," Davaria said. "I didn't know what Danta and I might get ourselves into on a journey across unknown land, so I brought one with us. It's in my pack in the cave. I'll go get it for you."

While the man was gone they discussed what they'd bring with them for a day's worth of tracking. They decided to keep it light, and only bring the necessities: water, weapons, a small amount of traveling food, including a few apples for Nicuria, and Ayla's medicine bag, just in case there was an injury.

When Davaria returned with the rope, he handed it to Ayla. "I hope this will work," he said. "It's rather old."

Ayla took it from him and tested its strength. "It will be fine," she said, hugging him again. "Thank you." Ayla looked over at Nicuria, who was drinking out of the small, murky stream again, and let out one of the whistles she used to call Shriek. The horse's ears perked up and he surprised her by starting in her direction, but she was even more surprised when she heard a loud shrieking noise coming from the plateau above. Everyone turned to see the woman's large predatory bird soaring above them, searching of his landing spot.

"Oh _no_," Ayla whined, and started for the cave. "My glove is inside." She was glad to see Shriek, but knew she couldn't let him land on her bare arm.

"Wait, Ayla," Grov said, pulling his tunic over his head. "We can use the rope to tie this around your arm."

"But I don't have any food for him."

"I will go get some, Mama," Durc quipped. "Come on Danara," the boy said, grabbing the girl's small hand. Danara allowed herself to be pulled, but had to run hard to keep up. Ayla's eyes met Danta's and both women grinned; their children were already good friends.

Ayla finally turned to Grov and put out her arm so that he could wrap the makeshift protection around it. When he finished, she held up her arm, giving Shriek his signal that she was ready. Shriek circled around one more time, then dropped quickly, landing lightly on her arm and ruffling his feathers.

"Hallo Shriek," she said. "It is so good to see you." He shrieked in her face and cocked his head to allow her to rub his favorite places. While Ayla was petting him, Nicuria approached curiously, causing Shriek to squawk loudly and flap his wings. The horse immediately shied away. Ayla reached up and ran her hand down Shriek's back, and waited patiently for him lower his outstretched wings. "_Shhhhhh_." Then she looked over at the spooked horse and made the nickering sound that seemed to calm him. When his ears came up, she held out her free hand to him and made a beckoning motion, hoping he'd come closer. He nickered back at her, and took a step toward her. He could not help himself; he was too curious.

Shriek eyed the equine suspiciously and almost took flight when the colt brought his nose up close and blew out, but instead, he only puffed up his feathers and shrieked again. Nucuria nickered, then seemed to lose interest and headed away for another drink.

"Here Mama," Durc said, returning with a few strips of meat.

Ayla smiled. "Would you like to feed him, Danara?" she asked.

The little girl's eyes became as round as river stones. "_Me_?"

Ayla nodded. "Sure. Durc can show you."

Durc took Danara's hand again and led her closer. "It's easy. _See_?" he said, holding the meat out to Shriek. Shriek took the offering, then waited for more. Danara was still scared, but decided to be brave. If Durc could do it, then so could she.

**xXx**

Shortly after feeding him, Shriek took off again. Ayla watched him fly overhead, then disappear as he flew toward the plateau. She hoped he'd stay close; perhaps even stay in one of the trees on the plateau. She decided she'd have to go back up there when they got back, if only to go looking for him.

Slowly, she turned back to the group. She had removed Grov's tunic from her arm and handed it back to him. "So, what should we do with this?" she asked, holding up the rope.

Grov smiled. "I don't know, Ayla. It was _your_ vision. You will need to tell _me_ how we used it."

Ayla frowned and started working with the rope. She made a loop and then tied a knot, then shook her head. It didn't seem right. She tried again and smiled. "I think it was something like this," she said, holding up the rope again.

"All right," Grov said. "Now what?"

Ayla glanced over at Nicuria and whistled; this time he came right away. When he got to her, she held the rope out to him. He sniffed it curiously, then took hold of it with his teeth. When Ayla didn't let go, he thought it was a game and pulled harder. The more Ayla tried to pull it out of his mouth, the more he resisted. Finally, Ayla had to let go, but she decided to let him know she wasn't happy by turning her back on him. He hadn't liked that before, so it just might work again.

Still holding the rope in his mouth, Nicuria nudged her gently. Ayla folded her arms across her chest and refused to look at him. He nudged her again, and this time, when she ignored him, he dropped the rope and circled around her. She smiled and bent to pick up the rope. This time, before he could take it in his mouth, she slipped the loop over his head and slid the knot higher, so that he could not remove it himself, not that he didn't try. Everyone laughed when the colt took the length of rope that dragged on the ground and pulled hard. The only thing that happened was that he turned himself around in a circle. He whinnied his frustration and raced down the beach, rope flying in the wind behind him. When he returned, Ayla handed him an apple, then coiled up the rope so that it would not hinder the horse's movement. He seemed so preoccupied with his treat that he ignored the old rope around his neck.

"I think he will be all right," she said, watching him chew the apple up, then bend down and tear a mouthful of grass out of the ground. "Do you think we should go now?" she asked Grov.

Grov nodded and leaned to take Annaliza out of Danta's arms. He set her down on the ground next to Ora and sternly told them to behave. He was not worried about Annaliza's behavior, but Ora was another story. He figured he'd give them both the lecture, just in case. He didn't worry about Durc; he knew the boy would help out wherever he could.

Very quickly, they had their supplies packed and were ready to leave. Everyone said their good-byes and walked them to the river. At the river's edge, Grov and Ayla stripped down, and packed everything in packs to carry on their heads; they didn't want to have to travel in wet clothing. Davaria crossed the river with them, to help get their things across, but the horse stood there, seemingly unwilling to enter the water.

Once on the other side, and dressed again, Ayla called out to him.

"_Nicuria_. Come here," she called. He walked along the beach, splashing in the shallow river's edge, but he didn't enter the water to cross. "Why won't he come?" she asked in frustration.

"Maybe he's afraid, Ayla," Grov said. "Maybe he has never crossed a river before."

Ayla frowned. "But all the other horses crossed the river," she said, almost in a whine. She didn't want to leave him behind.

Grov smiled. If he knew his mate, and he thought he did, she had already accepted the horse as one of her children and was worried about him. "He doesn't have to come with us, Ayla. _None_ of the children are coming with us. And besides, we will be back this evening.

Ayla smiled at him. He knew her so well. "Well, I guess he will have to stay here with you, Davaria. Do you mind?"

Davaria shook his head. He had been nervous about sharing their cave with the large animal, but after watching the way Ayla treated him, he was no longer worried. Nicuria was just a big baby, he thought. "No, it is not a problem, Ayla."

Grov and Ayla stood there as Davaria crossed back to the other side of the river, then they waved good-bye and turned to leave.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Grov and Ayla turned and gave one last wave at the people across the river. They could see three tiny hands give the clan's customary come back motion. A slightly worried looked crossed Ayla's face as they went behind the wall rock that blocked their view of the children.

"Do not worry, Ayla," Grov said to her as they walked through the sand toward the incline of the hill where the bay stallion had gone with his mares. "We will be back with the children before the day's end."

Ayla frowned. "I know. It is not that. I . . . I guess I was just looking forward to Nicuria coming with us, and I didn't even know it."

Grov nodded, as he reached to assist the woman up the beginnings of the hill. "I can understand that," he said. "I was too, but if he's afraid to cross the river, then he's afraid. There is not much we can do about that."

"But what do we do when we have to go back to the Clan?" She continued walking up the slope, speaking with her back turned to him as they walked. "There is no way to get there without crossing rivers. How can we get him there? Or the other horses?"

"I don't know, Ayla," he answered her. It wasn't something he had considered, but now that she'd brought it up, it worried him too. Then he shook his head; they could not control these things, so why worry about them. "We will find a way, Ayla. Let's try not to think about it right now."

She stopped and looked at him. He looked so sure. She smiled. He was right; they would figure out a way to get them back.

**xXx**

They spent some time hiking up the hill. When they reached the top, they made a detour to the edge, so that they could look down upon their valley. The hill on this side of the valley was taller than the other side. To the north, they could see across the valley to the plateau on the other side and the stand of trees where Ayla had acquired Nicuria. Ayla squinted and pointed at Shriek. The hawk was flying over the trees.

To the west, they had a perfect view of the buckskin stallion's herd. The plateau that the herd was on was higher than that of Nicuria's trees, but still lower than where they were now. They had a perfect view of them, though somewhat far away.

Ayla smiled and glanced down. Below them, on the valley floor, they could see Davaria and Danta managing the children, and Nicuria drinking from the river. Ayla whistled and waved, wanting to send one last farewell before leaving for the day. Everyone waved, except Nicuria, of course, who nickered, then swished his tail around and ran long the river's edge again.

Grov and Ayla could not hear the horse's nicker, but his movement told them he was frustrated at not being able to reach them. They did, however, hear his loud squeal as he made his decision and galloped headlong into the river. From their vantagepoint they watched him cross, then head for their trail; he would be coming with them after all.

Ayla smiled as she and Grov made their way back over to the edge of the hill's decline. Ayla noticed from across the length of the valley that the buckskin stallion's herd had been listening intently. She wondered how much they could see from their distance. They were so far away, but she could tell that _they_ had gone back to their grazing.

"So, you decided to join us, _Nicuria_," Ayla said, holding his head affectionately and scratching his neck. "I am so glad."

Grov watched her and smiled. She could sure become attached to things quickly, he thought.

**xXx**

They headed in a generally southward direction and moved as fast as their feet could carry them. With no small children to slow them down, and a horse that could easily keep up, they covered a lot of ground, in less time than they would have thought. It was still quite early when Nicuria's ears perked up, letting them know that something was near.

"Maybe one of us should go on ahead," Grov suggested. "If he is reacting to the herd, then we do not want to scare them off."

Ayla frowned. "Yes, I think that is a good idea," she said with a nod, but when he did not move to go, she continued. "Did you want me to go?"

"Don't you think that _you_ should go?" he asked. "After all, you know which horse you want."

Ayla glanced toward the hills ahead of them. They could not see the horses yet; they must be around the bend, she thought. The woman wasn't sure what they should do. If _she_ went ahead to scout, then they'd know immediately if they had the right herd. But that would mean leaving Grov behind to deal with the rambunctious young colt that, so far, only wanted to listen to Ayla. If _Grov_ went ahead, Ayla would probably be able to handle Nicuria, but her mate may not be able to tell her if Stomp was with the herd. Ayla looked at the young horse, who now seemed perfectly happy to graze on the side of the hill.

"And you will hold _him_ back?" she asked, biting her lip.

"I think I can do it," he said. "There are a few trees over there." The man pointed. "We could tie him to one of them, so that he cannot follow you."

Ayla smiled. "I do not think he will like it very much, but it just might work."

**xXx**

After persuading Nicuria to come over to the trees, Ayla unlooped the rope that hung around his neck and wrapped it around one of the trees. Nicuria followed her and nosed at her hands as she tied the knot, then tried to follow her when she walked away. Before moving out of his reach, she turned around and handed him an apple, then stepped back to stand next to Grov. They both watched as the colt chewed the apple, then smiled when he moved to join them; he couldn't take more than two steps without the rope going taut.

For a moment Nicuria just stood there, then he tried again. The second time he pulled harder, but still got nowhere. Then he nickered softly and backed off. He went to investigate. Ayla and Grov watched him walk back to the tree. He sniffed the rope and walked around the tree, then went back to where Grov and Ayla were standing. Now he was one step farther away from them. He whinnied his frustration. Ayla went to calm him.

"I am not sure about this," she said as she untied the rope. "I do not want to keep him captive." She held the end of the rope in her hand and starting walking back to Grov. Nicuria followed her. "I do not tie up Shriek."

"We will not _always_ have to tie him up, Ayla," Grov said. "We are just doing it now so that you can go see if the bay stallion's herd is grazing over there."

Ayla's forehead was creased, but she nodded. "I know, but . . . I would not like to be tied up, would you?"

"Of course not, but if we don't tie him up, he might scare the other horses away."

Ayla took a deep breath. "You are right. But I think we should spend some time with him, so that he knows we are not leaving him tied up here."

Grov smiled. "Ayla, we're not _leaving_ him here. I am staying with him, and you are only going to be gone for a few moments. How long do you think it will take you to walk around that hill, make sure the herd and Stomp are there, and come back?"

"You are right again." Ayla started walking back to the tree, but when the rope went taut, she had to stop. Nicuria knew exactly where the woman was taking him and he didn't want to go back there. Ayla pulled on the rope, but he just stood there while she pulled. Then she walked back to him and went to his hindquarters. She tried pushing him with all her strength, but the large animal just wouldn't budge; he was too strong.

"_See_? He does not want to be tied up," she said in frustration as she wiped a sweaty strand of hair off her forehead.

"I know, but he does not have a choice this time." Grov stopped talking for a moment and thought about the situation. "I think you need to pretend you are a man of the Clan."

Ayla's eyes opened up as wide as possible. "_What_? A _man_? How can _I_ be a man of the Clan?"

Grov smiled at her confusion. It _was_ a ludicrous suggestion. "What I mean is, if you make Nicuria _think_ you have more status than him, then he will do as you wish. He needs to know that _you_ are the leader. You need to dominate him, like Clan men dominate Clan women."

Ayla frowned and looked at the horse. "But I do not _want_ to dominate Nicuria, Grov. I want him to be our _friend_."

Grov's brow furrowed. He understood the feelings she was having, as he had no wish to dominate anyone or anything either. Then something struck him and he smiled. "All right, Ayla. I want that too, so let's look at this differently. What if you just treat him like he's your son?"

Ayla glanced at the large horse skeptically. "My _son_?" she said incredulously. She couldn't imagine giving birth to something so large. Durc had just about killed her. "And how do you purpose I do _that_?"

"You already have been, Ayla," he said. "Think about this morning, when he would not come to you. What did you do?"

Ayla thought for a moment. "I ignored him."

"And when he wanted to play with the rope when you wanted to tie it around his neck. What did you do then?"

"I ignored him again," Ayla said with a smile. "All right, I can do this."

The woman started for the tree again, and just as before, Nicuria resisted going with her, so she let go of the rope and walked over there on her own and turned her back on him.

Nicuria nickered, trying to get her attention, but she ignored him. The young horse turned his head to look at Grov, then approached the woman. When he reached her, she scratched his neck, then took the rope and tied it around the tree again. She continued to scratch him for a few moments, but backed away slowly. Nicuria followed her until the rope tightened, then he pulled hard, swished his tail and pinned his ears back. He still looked agitated to Ayla, so she quickly went and untied him.

"Here," Grov said, reaching for the rope. "Let me try." Ayla handed it over willingly and watched her mate walk the horse around in a circle, and then another one. Nicuria pricked his ears forward and followed curiously. Grov made several rounds, then led him to the tree and tied him up again. This time when Nicuria tried to pull away from the tree, he only nickered softly. He did not look so upset. Ayla smiled.

Grov untied him again and walked him back to Ayla. "Now you try."

Ayla took the rope and repeated Grov's actions, finally bringing Nicuria to the tree. He did not resist one bit. Ayla was so happy that she rewarded him with another apple.

Grov grinned at her. He could tell that she was happy and _that_ made him happy. "So, are you going now, or what?"

Ayla smiled. "I am going now," she said.

**xXx**

Grov did not figure that she'd be gone very long, but while she was he stretched out under one of the trees and closed his eyes. He was not tired, but it felt good to relax. A gentle breeze blew through the grasses on the hill and he could hear the rustle of the tree's leaves. He opened his eyes to see the tree above him sway and smiled when Nicuria lowered his head and blew in his face. The horse did not seem at all upset about being tied to the tree.

"Stop that," the man said, pushing the horse's nose out of his face.

**xXx**

Ayla was on her way back. She had found the herd, _and Stomp_, and had gotten more than she had counted on.

When she came across the herd, they were not grazing lazily, as she had expected them to be. They were at the far end of the high meadow and all were at attention; they seemed to be watching something else. But what? Ayla wondered, as she tried to see through the thick cloud of dust at the other end of the meadow.

Ayla looked around. Spotting a boulder that Ursus had conveniently placed just a few steps from her, she climbed up for a better view. She still could not tell what was going on, so she sat down to observe with some comfort. After a few moments of watching them, she realized that there was no stallion present. "What is going on here?" she said out loud. She did not expect an answer, but continued to watch.

Then suddenly, out of the haze, the bay stallion materialized, and he was coming straight for her. When he reached her, she was still sitting on the boulder, but that changed quickly. He circled the boulder, and her, rearing up and squealing angrily.

Ayla's fear was great, but she tried to stay calm. She reached for her sling; she had driven him off with it before, but to her dismay, her pouch of stones had fallen to the ground when she had jumped to her feet. _Think_! she told herself, as she turned around and around, trying to keep the wheeling horse in view. "THINK!" she screamed at herself in frustration. What should I do? "What should I do?" she repeated out loud, as she tried to keep her focus. The spinning was having a dizzying affect on her, but she knew she had to staying facing the angry animal, and she _had_ to stay on the boulder; it was the only thing keeping her from being kicked by the mad beast and trampled to death.

Ayla took a deep breath and slowed her turning. The bay horse's circle was becoming larger and larger, allowing the speed of her spin to slow. That was when he stopped circling. He snorted and pawed at the ground, then took a step toward her. She backed away from him as he came closer, and took another deep breath. She knew he couldn't get her as long as she stayed up on the boulder, but her heart was pounding and she wished Grov was there to help her. She wanted to run, but she knew that that would do no good; the stallion would only chase her down. She had to stay put.

Then suddenly, the stallion let out another loud squeal of anger, and as quickly as he had come, he raced off across the meadow. It took only moments for Ayla to calm down, and when she did, she saw the reason the bay had rushed off with such speed; there was another stallion in the area. Ayla suddenly realized that _that_ was what caused the bay to come after her in the first place; he had seen a threat coming from both ends of his territory and he had reacted. He had chosen unwisely, though she did not think that he usually made such mistakes. He had . . . she squinted to count . . . fourteen mares to look after. She knew he would not have so many if he was always so careless.

Carefully, when she was _sure_ the bay would not come for her again, she jumped down from the boulder, and headed back to Grov and Nicuria.

**xXx**

Ayla had started her way back to Grov at top speed, but slowed quickly. She kept glancing over her shoulder, just to make sure the stallion had not changed his course and come after her. She wondered at his strange behavior. Surely he did not me as another stallion, she thought. Maybe a predator then, which I guess I am. She smiled at the thought. They were not planning on _hunting_ the horses, but they _did_ intend on stealing two of the stallion's mares. Yes, I guess we _are_ predators.

Ayla walked at a good pace, not fast or slow, and came upon her sleeping mate and her new horse friend. Nicuria saw her first and nickered, happy to see her. Grov opened his eyes at the sound and focused on Ayla. He knew immediately, without her saying a word, that something had happened. He was up and crossing the distance to her before she could even call out to him.

When he reached her, she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. He held her for a moment, then pushed her back and looked her over. He noticed that she was quite sweaty and her hair was overly windblown. Much more so than her short jaunt should have caused, he decided. And there was also a smudge of dirt on her cheek. It almost looked like she had been crying.

"_Ayla_?" said the man questioningly. "Are you all right?"

She placed her hands on his chest and nodded. "Yes," she answered breathlessly. "I am fine." She leaned against her mate to draw some of his strength into herself, then pushed back and looked into his eyes. "Let's sit down. I will tell you about it."

**xXxXxXx**

None of the dirty bunch had gotten up, but all were angrily glaring up at the unwanted _visitors_. Most had only just recently rolled out of their furs after another long night of drinking too much bouza, but this visit could wait no longer; the sun was past the center of the sky and this was serious business.

"Oh-ho, look what we have here," Ivarsia said, waving his arm about lazily. "_Visitors_." Then he smirked at those standing before him. "So, to what do we owe _this_ honor?" he asked, looking up at Oak Camp's headwoman who stood in front of the rest.

Tiflona stood perfectly still, biting back her sarcastic remark. She absolutely detested this man; she always had. She thought back to when they were still youths and grimaced. How he had become a leader was completely beyond her. He had _never_ had leadership qualities. But _then_, no one from any of these camps had the ability to lead. She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"We have come with an offer," she said simply.

Ivarsia narrowed his eyes at dark-haired Oak headwoman, wondering what kind of offer they might have. He could tell they didn't want to be here, yet _here_ they were, and with an _offer_ too. He shook his head. "You have _nothing_ we want, Tiflona."

Tiflona looked around in disgust. The place was a mess; things were strewn about haphazardly; some things were broken, but not removed from the area. Tents had holes in them and it was obvious no one planned to make the necessary repairs. Several tools were lying on the ground in a heap, yet they looked as if they had never even been used. There were even a few dead animals sitting next to one of the fires, unskinned, as if someone had suddenly become too tired to finish their task, or too full of bouza, Tiflona thought.

Tiflona glanced at those sitting around. The people were dressed in shabby clothing. Clothing hardly fit to wear, in _her_ opinion. They were filthy and reeked of bouza, yet most looked perfectly content living life the way they were.

"Hummmm," the Oak headwoman said with a sigh. "_That's_ hard to imagine," she said under her breath. She paused and studied the man, then continued. "_Unfortunately_, you have something _we_ want."

The man laughed. "Oh _really_? And what is that?" He glanced at Tagnolia, who hadn't said anything yet. It wasn't like the man to let his sister do _all_ the talking. Ivarsia remembered quite a few youthful arguments with the man; he certainly didn't hesitate to defend his sisters, yet he was keeping silent for some reason. Ivarsia turned and narrowed his eyes at the woman again.

"It's three somethings, really," Tiflona said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, and pausing for a more dramatic effect. She _really_ did not want to have this conversation. She knew it was not going to go well, but she had to take the proper steps if Oak Camp had any hope of adopting Danta, Danara and Davaria without their presence. The first step was a direct request to the birth camp of those to be adopted, and then a petition to the Council of Sisters if, for any reason, the request was denied, which they were sure it would be.

In actuality, Sumac Camp would not be able to stop Danta, Danara, or Davaria from leaving their birth camp; no one had to live where he or she did not want to be, they only needed to find a camp to take them and they were free to go. They were lucky that they had made friends in Oak Camp; it would be a welcome change, and Oak Camp was happy to have them, but without the adoptees there to say what they wanted, no one could be _sure_.

Tiflona stood silently for a moment, considering the people before her. We just have to go through the process, she thought. It will look better for Oak Camp when the matter goes to the Sisters if we do things the way they are supposed to be done. And, there really isn't anything they can do to stop this, she told herself.

Suddenly, Iyena stood up and placed her hands on her hips. "Why has Oak Tent sent a delegation to Sumac Tent, Tiflona?" she asked. "We don't have time for _this_!"

Tiflona took a deep breath, then nodded. "You are right. We _also_ don't have time for this." The Oak headwoman glanced briefly at those behind her, then she swallowed; she knew what their answer would be, but she continued on anyway.

"As headwoman of Oak Camp, I have brought with me a delegation to request Sumac Camp's permission to adopt Danta, Danara and Davaria."

Iyena looked at her brother, who had gotten up and was approaching them. "You can't serious. Do you really think we are going to give up a brother and a sister?"

"We are very serious, Ivarsia," Tagnolia cut in. He had placed his hand on Tiflona's shoulder, and had pulled her back slightly; he did not want Ivarsia to touch her. "And yes, we do expect you to give up a _brother and sister_." The Oak Headman glanced around the atrocious surroundings, then back at Ivarsia. "They are only taking up space here anyway. Why do you even care?"

For a moment, Iyena seemed to be at a loss, but she recovered quickly. "Well, you cannot have them," she spat possessively, as if the three people in question had suddenly become valued members of their camp.

"And why is that, Iyena?" Tiflona asked.

The Sumac Headwoman frowned. She did not want to admit that the three had already left Sumac Camp. "Because . . . because, they were born to Sumac Camp, they will stay with Sumac Camp."

Gredenzia stepped forward. "Now, Iyena, you know that's not how this goes. You may not _want_ to let them go, but it is not _really_ up to you, is it?" the Oak Shogur asked with more patience than anyone else present was feeling. "Maybe we need to discuss this with Danta and Davaria," he added.

"They are not here right now," Ivarsia put in quickly. "You will have to come back later." He started to turn away, but the smile on Tiflona's face made him freeze. "What are you smiling about, Tiflona? I do not think this is very funny; Oak Camp coming over here and announcing that they want to steal three members of Sumac Camp."

"You are right, Ivars. This is _far_ from funny," Tiflona said seriously. "But it is quite interesting how you are trying to keep people here that don't want to be here, people you don't even _want_ here."

Ivarsia's face turned bright red and he clenched his fists. "_Tiflona_, you should watch yourself," he warned angrily.

"Why? Because I am speaking the truth?" she asked. "Why does it upset you so that we want them? It can't be because _you_ want them, or is it because _they_ don't want _you_?" she asked.

"What makes you think they don't want to be here?" Ivarsia countered.

Tiflona raised her eyebrows. "Well, they are not _here_. That speaks volumes to us."

"They are just out," Iyena put in quickly.

"Oh really?" Tiflona said, glancing around at the watching people. Some of them tried to stare her down, but several looked away. She noticed that Trata stood nearby, arms folded across her chest. "Trata, where are your son and daughter? They haven't left Sumac Camp for good, have they?" The older woman only tightened her grip on her own arms, but she did not dare reply. Tiflona waited out the pause, then looked around again. Her eyes stopped on Ivarsia. The man stood only inches from her.

"Ivars, we are only here to get your consent, but if you will not give it, then we will go to the Sisters."

The Sumac Headman gave her a baleful glare. "Then I suggest you do that, Tiflona," he said through gritted teeth. "We _will not_ agree to your request!"

Tiflona gave the man a clipped nod; she had known it would go this way. "Very well. You can expect to get a summons from them then." With that, the Oak Camp delegation turned and left.

They went directly to the Sister's tent.

**xXxXxXx**

"Well, we found them, Ayla," Grov said. He was sitting behind her, trying to rub the tension out of her shoulders.

"I know," she sighed and leaned back into him. "But with all the confusion, I am not even sure I _saw_ Stomp."

Grov wrapped his arms around her. "I am just glad that you got away from that stallion." He still wondered where he'd be if this woman had not been given to him and he didn't like to think about losing her. "We should turn him into some weapons, water bags and a few meals."

"_Grov_!" Ayla said with a smile. "How can you say that? He is a magnificent creature."

The man squeezed her tightly. "I am only concerned about _this_ magnificent creature." He leaned to nibble on her neck.

"Mmmmm, that feels good." Ayla moved to give him better access to her neck and smiled as she slipped her arms around his neck. "It is so nice to have some time alone with you."

"Mmmmm, this man agrees with you," he gestured, then shifted and moved her to her back.

The two struggled to remove their clothing, using their tunics and leggings to protect them against the rocks and brush that made lying on the ground uncomfortable, and giggling like it was the first time they had shared one another.

**xXx**

Afterwards, they lay quietly in each other's arms, smiling contentedly. Grov was cradling her head in one arm, his fingertips tangled in her hair, and he was running the index finger of his opposite hand along the dip of her waist. She was so precious to him.

"Are you _sure_ that you are all right?" he asked her.

She smiled. "I am fine, Grov. _Really_. He was very angry and I was _very_ scared, but the stallion did not touch me."

"Are you sure you do not want me to turn him into an evening meal?"

Ayla giggled again. "Are you offering to cook a meal?" she asked. "Because, for _that_, I might agree." He gave a rather guttural laugh and squeezed her again.

"You are pushing it, woman," he said jokingly, rolling her over onto her back again.

"And what would the Clan say, if I bring back my cooking mate . . . along with our horses?"

He grinned. "I do not care _what_ they say, Ayla," he said, leaning down to kiss her. "It is only you that I care about."

She smiled and kissed him back, then started to sit up, but something caught her attention and she froze. "Grov," she whispered. "Look." Her eyes were wide and she was nodding toward the dip between the two hills.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Grov looked over his shoulder to see what Ayla was staring at. Off in the distance he could see two very similar looking horses, one dun yellow, the other more of a whitish color. He moved to get off of his mate and she slowly got to her feet, picking up her tunic as she went.

Nervously, Ayla looked down the narrow valley, wondering if their bay stallion had accompanied them. She did not see him. That was a good thing; she did not want another meeting with him. He must have lost these two while dealing with another stallion. Ayla wondered if it was the buckskin, or if there were other stallions nearby.

Ayla glanced at Grov, who was now standing next to her. He had pulled on his leggings and foot coverings, but didn't move to put on his tunic. Ayla briefly admired his tanned chest, then quickly dressed and went to Nicuria. Though he had seen his approaching dam and was at full attention, he was not straining against his ties to join her. Ayla bent to pick up her pack and produced an apple to distract the horse before he did try to go to his mother.

"Ayla," Grov said, coming up to her. "What should we do?"

"I do not know." She looked down at the bag of fruit she was holding and smiled. "I am hoping we can lure them with these." She looked up at him. "That is what we did in my vision."

He nodded. "All right. What do you need _me_ to do?"

She grinned again. "Actually, you were just standing here with Nicuria while I tried to entice _them_ to come to us."

The look on his face matched hers. "So _you_ are the hunter this time? Well then, go to it," he ordered.

Slowly, Ayla crept out of the shade from the trees and worked her way toward the two horses. Both pricked their ears up. The lighter horse, Stomp, as Ayla was calling her, pawed the ground and cantered away somewhat, causing Ayla to stop her approach. It looked as if that horse was ready to bolt. The other horse whinnied loudly, but did not move to leave. Stomp stopped when her sister did not follow her.

For long moments Ayla stood in the center of the long, narrow high valley. From her distance, she studied the two horses before her. The dun yellow mare was much closer and seemed less frightened of the human standing there, completely still. Ayla did not want to scare her by moving, but wanted to try and tempt her with an apple. Reaching for her bag, she pulled one out and held it up for the horse to see, then tossed it to Grov.

"Hold it up, for her to see, then give it to Nicuria," she signed. Grov nodded and did as she had asked. Then Ayla pulled out another apple and held _it_ up; she wanted the mare to know that she was offering food.

The horse took a few curious steps toward her, but she stopped out of reach. Her ears twitched and she nickered softly, giving Ayla another idea. She glanced back at Nicuria, who had finished his apple and was now watching with his usual amount of curiosity. She sent a calming nicker to him, then turned toward the mare and made more quiet nickers to her as she extended her arm to hold out the apple to her, trying to gently coax the large animal to brave the extra few steps to come within her reach. The horse was not fooled. She whinnied loudly and pranced away.

Ayla and Grov watched as the yellow horse tossed her head and galloped a short distance away. But as she did this, the lighter horse came forward, stomping her hooves on the ground in front of the woman. They could tell that the horses wanted them to release the younger horse, but they would not relinquish the prize they had so recently gained. Ayla glanced back at Grov and saw him scratching Nicuria's neck. Both seemed relaxed.

Then, looking back at the horses, Ayla stood patiently. She continued to hold out her treat-filled hand, keeping her eyes on the nearest horse. Stomp pawed the ground roughly a short distance from her, causing the yellow horse to whinny loudly and prance around again. The yellow horse had retreated halfway down the small valley, and wasn't very happy, but the lighter horse was coming closer; she was more interested in the woman and what she held in her hand. After pawing the ground again, a little less harshly this time, the curious mare came up and snatched the apple out of the woman's hand, then trotted away exuberantly to enjoy the treat. The woman touched her palm where the horse's lips had nibbled her and giggled with delight, then she reached into her pack to get another apple, hoping to lure in the other horse.

Grov and Ayla watched as the yellow horse went to sniff her sister's muzzle, then nicker softly as she cautiously approached the apple-holding woman. Ayla held her breath and stood perfectly still. She waited for the yellow mare, but the lighter horse came forward again and quickly snatched a second apple. This time she did not move too far off, deciding instead, that the woman with tasty treats might be safe, or at least, handy.

Ayla grinned and pulled another apple out of her bag. Again, she held it out to them. This time, when the lighter horse approached, the yellow horse nipped her, then braved her fear of the human and slowly came forward. As she neared, Ayla relaxed her arm slightly, trying to make the horse come just a little closer, but the mare held up a bit and nickered, then finally took the apple like her sister had done. Ayla smiled and glanced back at the man, who, with one hand, held the rope that restrained Nicuria. He was still scratching the horse's neck with the other hand.

"Did you see that?" she signed to him silently. He nodded and smiled at her. She was about to say something else to him, when she felt a not-so-gentle nudge on her left arm. It was the dun horse, nosing her for another treat.

"Did you want one of these?" she asked the mare. She had produced another apple, but she held it close to her, to make the horse come closer. As she held the apple in one hand, she reached out with the other. The horse whinnied, snatched the apple from Ayla and backed off, just as the woman's fingers were caressing the horse's cheek.

Behind her she heard Nicuria blowing. She knew he wanted a treat too, and probably some water. They should start back soon, but would these horses follow them? she wondered.

"Should I untie him?" Grov asked, nodding toward Nicuria.

Ayla frowned and looked at the mares. Would they take him and run? Or was he content to stay with them, even if his dam and the other mare left? She was nervous, but she knew they had to try it sometime. They couldn't stay there all night. She nodded.

Grov went to the colt and, pulling on the end of the rope, he quickly undid the knot. Nicuria was free and he was excited about it. He burst forth, going directly to Stomp and nuzzling between her legs for the mare's familiar milk. Stomp stood there patiently, allowing her son to find out on his own that she no longer had any milk for him. When he did notice, he lost interest and nosed Ayla for more treats. Soon, she had three horses crowding her for more.

**xXx**

After spending some time feeding the horses, the couple sat down to eat their own meal. It wasn't much of a meal; traveling food wasn't the most exciting thing to eat, but they did eat a few of the horse's apples. And every time they did the hay-colored horse whinnied.

"I think you have had too many apples, little horsey?" Ayla said with signs. The mare cocked her head, as if trying to understand the woman's motions, and whinnied again in response. "I wonder how much horses eat."

Grov shrugged, took the last bite of his apple, then gestured. "I don't know." They had fallen right into using the Clan's way of communication again, and were enjoying the peaceful silence. "Why are you thinking about that?"

"Because they will have to eat during the winter and I do not know if there will be enough food for them by Brun's cave. If not, then I will have to get food for them."

Grov grinned. "I am still wondering how you are going to convince Brun to allow you to keep horses."

Ayla frowned. "I am thinking about that too, but I have a plan," she gestured with a smirk. "I am hoping that . . . the _future_ leader will help with that part."

Grov's eyes popped open. "_Me_? What do you want me to do?"

Ayla kept smiling. "You could _suggest_ to him that they will not be a problem."

"But Ayla, I do not know that they won't be." He had gotten to his feet and was looking out at the horses. "I could not tell Brun something that I do not know for sure."

"I know, but by the time we get there, you _will_ know." Her eyes were pleading with him. She was speaking out loud now. "I have even thought about where they can stay in the cave."

Grov's brow wrinkled and he turned to face her. "Where?"

"That area where Igra spent her first woman's curse. It would be perfect; the horses would be able to go outside on their own, without actually being in the midst of the people, and _I_ would be able to visit them without having to go outside, when the weather is bad." She paused to study him. He had turned from her again, but only slightly. She could tell he was considering. She tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention. "What do you think?"

He nodded his head. "I think that it _might_ work."

She threw her arms around him. "Oh _thank you_!"

"But we still have to get Brun to agree." He pushed her back and continued on. "I am not leader yet, Ayla, and even when I am, I cannot do everything that you want, just because you are my mate. I would not be respected if I did."

Ayla looked up into his eyes and swallowed her smile. "Yes, Grov, I know that you can't. I do not expect things to be like they are here; I just want your help." She was mildly irritated. She didn't think he had to remind her of how things would be at the Clan's cave.

Grov studied her face, searching for the smile that had just been there, but he couldn't find it. She was not just hiding it. It was completely gone, and now he felt bad. "Ayla, I do not mean that I won't do things to make you happy. I _like_ making you happy. I just can't allow _you_ to dictate things. I would not stay leader very long if I did, and then Durc would lose out on leading too. Do you understand?"

Now it was Ayla's turn to search _his_ face. She knew that he liked making her happy and that he almost always did things just for her. She knew he was right and it made _her_ feel bad, but the freedom she had here, in her movements, in her speech, was going to be hard to lose when they went back to the Clan. She considered Ora and wondered if the child was going to be able to fit back in.

"Maybe we need to go back to acting like we are with the Clan, Grov. At least within our own hearth. It is getting much too easy to have my own opinion."

Grov grinned. "Ayla, you have _always_ had your own opinion," he said, pulling her into his arms. They stood like that until the yellowish horse nudged them, then they separated.

"Are you listening to us, little horsey?" she asked. The horse whinnied and tossed her head.

"I think she is trying to talk to you, Ayla."

"She is going to have a hard time talking without hands." Ayla shook her head. "I cannot understand you, little horsey."

"Well maybe we are going to have to learn her language, like we learned Sungaea and Mamutoi," he suggested.

Ayla eyed the horse. "Are you trying to talk to us with all that noise you are making?" she asked. The horse whinnied again, and Ayla attempted to copy it, just as she had copied Nicuria's nicker. She made a fairly good approximation of a horse's whinny, so good in fact, that the horse whinnied back. "I think we need to name her." The horse neighed and tossed her head.

"Make that noise again, Ayla. I think she is listening for her name."

Ayla looked at the horse and whinnied. Again, the horse whinnied back. "They must _all_ have the same name. I cannot tell them apart." She paused and looked at the horse again. "Whiiinneeey!" Ayla mimicked her again. "Is that what your sister calls you?" Ayla stomped her foot on the ground and was surprised to see the other mare approaching. She smiled at Grov. "Well, I got _one_ of their names correct."

"So we will call her Stomp," he said, stroking the pale horse's back.

"And _she_, will be Whinney," Ayla finished, making the name sound like a horse's whinny. "What do you think of their names, Nicuria?" The young colt only nickered his response. They decided that he liked the names too.

**xXxXxXx**

Oak Camp's delegation left Sumac Tent and went over to the tent of the Council of Sisters. They wanted to get their petition to the Sisters immediately. When they entered, they looked around the tent in search of the Head Sister. They found her quickly.

Breidara was standing at the other end of the tent having a discussion with a few Cedar Camp women who seemed to be quite angry about something. Tiflona indicated that everyone should take a seat; she thought it best to wait their turn. Their business with Breidara was not as pressing as the muffled, yet angry, argument seemed to be.

From where they sat, they could not hear the conversation, but they watched carefully. It was obviously a heated topic, and the Oak Headwoman wondered what was going on. Had there been _more_ trouble, trouble _outside_ Oak Tent. Surely it did not involve Sumac Tent; women from Cedar Tent would not be complaining about people from their neighboring camp, would they?

For some time they waited and watched. Breidara kept shaking her head. One of the women was crying and waving her arms around angrily, so much so that one of the other women had to restrain her. Finally, the crying woman threw down a bundle she had grabbed from someone else, then stomped out of the tent. The Cedar women gathered up the discarded items, then followed her out. Breidara watched them go, then took a deep breath and turned around. Seeing Tiflona sitting there waiting caused a momentary flicker of annoyance, but then she relaxed. She knew the Oak Headwoman well enough to know she wanted something, but at least Tiflona would not be reduced to tears.

"Hallo, Tiflona . . . Tagnolia, everyone. How can the Sisters help you all today?"

Tiflona stood and kissed Breidara's cheek. "Good afternoon, Breidara." Tiflona waited while the Head Sister greeted everyone, then she continued. "We have come today to request permission to adopt three people into Oak Camp."

Breidara smiled. "Well, isn't this happy news. I _love_ adoptions. They are so happy." She looked around at the delegation and shook her head. "Not this time though, huh?" She rolled her eyes. "Who do you wish to adopt, Tiflona?" she asked.

The Oak Headwoman bit her lower lip. "Danta and Danara . . . and Davaria too."

Breidara exhaled loudly. "Can I assume you have already gone to Sumac Tent?"

"Yes."

"And they have said _no_. Am I correct?"

"Yes, you are correct, they have said no."

The Head Sister rubbed her face and sighed. "This summer meeting is too much," she said, shaking her head. "Remind me to turn down hosting a summer meeting the next time it is our turn." Tiflona gave her a sympathetic smile.

"All right, obviously Danta and Davaria have accepted, or you wouldn't be here. This shouldn't be _too_ difficult."

"Well, that is a problem as well," Tagnolia cut in. "Danta and Davaria have left Sumac Camp."

"Then we will have to wait for them to come back," Breidara stated plainly.

"No, you do not understand," Tagnolia continued. "I do not just mean Sumac _Tent_; I mean they have left Sumac _Camp_. They have left the summer meeting and the Sungaea."

Breidara frowned. "Are you sure?" Oak Tent's delegation nodded. "Then how do you propose to adopt people that are gone?"

"Ayla and Grov have gone after them, to extend our offer. We agreed to wait five days for their return."

"I am confused." Breidara shook her head and held up her hands. "Are you saying that they are back now?"

Tiflona shook her head. "No, Ayla and Grov were only going to return if Danta and Davaria's answer was no."

Breidara frowned. "That makes even less sense. Why wouldn't they return if the answer was _yes_?"

"I'm sorry. If you will let me finish, then I think you will understand." Breidara nodded. "Five nights ago, Danta and Davaria stayed over at Oak Tent after an evening meal. When we woke up the next morning, they were gone. After talking to a few people, it was decided that they left the Sungaea. All of their things were gone; they ran away. Trata even came over to Oak Tent and accused us of stealing her son." Breidara nodded, she had heard about the incident.

"Now, this is where it gets a little strange. Some time back, Ayla started having . . . visions, or dreams. I don't know what they were, but it seems that she had one about a valley and some horses, and she was waiting for a sign to leave. She said that sign was the disappearance of the sun. She and Grov said they would go after Danta and Davaria. They said they would return in five days if their answer was no, but if it was yes, they would take them on their short journey. It has been five days; they have not returned, so Danta and Davaria must have said yes."

Breidara frowned as she considered the situation. "And how much of this does Sumac Tent know?"

"They are obviously aware that Danta and Davaria are gone, but other than that." Tiflona shrugged. "I do not know. When we went to request permission to adopt Danta and Davaria, they wouldn't even admit that they were gone from the summer meeting. They just claimed that they were out."

Breidara ran her hand through her hair and sighed. "And you are sure Danta and Davaria _want_ to be adopted?"

Tiflona shrugged. "Our only sign is that they are not here. That was the plan. Besides, why would they _want_ to remain at Sumac Camp if another camp wanted them. Almost _any_ camp would be better than Sumac Camp."

"I know that, Tiflona. And _you_ know that," Breidara said. "Oh Mother," she exclaimed loudly, throwing her arms up in the air. "_Everyone_ knows it . . . but we cannot be hasty here. This is going to cause more bad blood between our camps." She paused for a moment to think. "I will talk to the leaders of Pine Camp, Alder Camp, Elm Camp and Beech Camp first, then we will send a delegation to Sumac Tent. You both will need to be present again," she indicated Tiflona and Tagnolia. "But we will not need all of you." The members of Oak Tent nodded. They knew that they weren't all necessary, but they had wanted to support their leaders in the original delegation. "I will call the meeting with the High Camps tonight and present your case, but don't count on being called until tomorrow."

Tiflona nodded. Usually Oak Camp would be at a meeting of the High Camps, since they were the fifth ranked camp among the Sungaea, but due to the fact that the issue involved them, they could not be present.

"Thank you, Breidara," Tiflona said, touching the woman's cheek with her own. "This really means a lot to Oak Tent."

Breidara smiled. "I know. And I also know that Oak Camp would stand by Maple Camp. And don't forget that you will have Tigassia and Tarana there. It is convenient to have many brothers and sisters, is it not?"

"Yes, you are so right."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

"So, how old do you think _she_ is?" Grov said, nodding toward Stomp as they walked back to the valley. The three horses were trailing behind slowly, but all were following willingly.

"Well, she is Nicuria's mother, and I would say he is about two years, so maybe she is close to five years."

"What about the other mare?" he asked.

Ayla looked at the hay-colored mare, then over at Nicuria. "I think they are close to the same age. I would say she is around two years too."

Grov frowned. "What makes you so sure."

"I am not _sure_, but I looked at their teeth. Nicuria's teeth look like hers do, but Stomp's teeth look different."

Grov smiled. "I would not have thought of that, Ayla. You are very smart."

"Well, thank you, but I have to admit it was by accident that I saw Whinney's teeth, then I decided to check Nicuria's. When I saw that his were the same as hers, I decided to see if Stomp would open her mouth for me. Of course, I cannot be sure if teeth are an accurate way of detecting a horse's age . . . unless I had a foal to keep an eye on for several years."

"You will have that, next year. Right? Didn't you say that you saw them pregnant, in your vision?"

"Yes, they were very pregnant in the vision that takes place at the beginning of next summer, so I would guess that they are only just pregnant now. Horses are pregnant for long time, almost a year."

"How do you know this?"

Ayla shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just pay attention."

**xXx**

Davaria had spent most of the day making a spear. He had borrowed one from Grov, so that he could duplicate it, but his spear making skills were rather lacking, and he was getting frustrated.

"Why does Oak Camp even _want_ us?" he asked dejectedly, then flung the spear into the sand and hung his head. "I'm not even capable of straightening a spear shaft."

Danta had just given the children a snack and was now playing with Ora and Annaliza, but asked Durc and Danara to look after them so she could sit with her brother. She picked up the spear that he had discarded and examined it. It definitely wasn't the _best_ she had seen, but it had its good points.

"You make beautiful spear points, Ari," she said.

Davaria straightened up and looked at her, then took the spear back and looked at his spear point. It _was_ a nice flint tip, he thought. "But what does it matter that my point is good? If the shaft isn't straight, then it will never hit its target. _It is useless_!" He stabbed the spear into the sand next to him and looked away.

Danta placed her hand on his arm to get him to look at her. "Please don't worry, we will learn everything we need to know once we are at Oak Camp. I cannot imagine they'd let us continue on without any decent skills. I want to learn how Jendoza makes those beads that everyone at Oak Camp decorates their things with. Have you seen them?" He shook his head, though he had.

"They will _teach_ us, Ari," she went on. "They will be our new family. That is what an adoption means. And they will be family that actually cares." She smiled and patted his leg. "They are adopting us because they are good people, and they can see that we are be good too. Or _can_ be, if we're given a chance."

Davaria sighed. "If you say so, Danta."

"I _do_ say so. Think about it. They are the fifth ranked camp among the Sungaea. Would their status be so high if they didn't have a skilled toolmaker?"

Davaria frowned. "I suppose not." He hadn't even considered that someone might be willing to _teach_ him something. No one at Sumac Camp had ever been willing to teach him anything. He had only decided to make himself some weapons a few years ago, because they had been short on food and nobody seemed to care. He had made a crude-looking spear and stuck with it for years. It had been serviceable, but certainly not pretty. He glanced at Grov's spear and smiled. "I will learn, Ata. I promise to learn."

She smiled at him. "I know you will. Ayla says that Vincenzia makes _fine_ spear points. Maybe he would be willing to work with you. You should ask him," she said.

"Yes, I will do that."

"And I'm sure Grov would show you how _he_ makes spears. Have you seen that Clan spear he has?"

Davaria nodded and smiled. "Now _that_ is an interesting spear if I ever saw one. I can't imagine throwing it though; it's too heavy."

"Me either, but he seems to be _much_ stronger than other men to me. Did you see how much he carries?" Davaria nodded. "And he doesn't even look tired when we rest."

Davaria narrowed his eyes at her. He wondered if she was interested in Ayla's mate, not that he'd blame her; he was quite taken with _Ayla_. She was beautiful and she seemed capable of doing anything.

"Laurana said that he carried her for an entire day, when they were going to visit the Mamutoi."

"Really?" Davaria looked skeptical. "That's hard to believe."

"And _Danie said_ he had to carry her on that journey too."

"Well, I've heard those flatheads are pretty strong. Even the women look strong, though they don't seem willing to _use_ their strength."

"_Davaria_!" Danta exclaimed with a shocked look on her face. She glanced over at Durc, who was just out of earshot. Thank the Mother, Danta thought, as she turned back to her brother. "I'm surprised you'd even bring that up. It is horrible, what you and your friends did to those women. It is detestable!"

He blushed. "I'm sorry, Danta. I know it is. I was not thinking, then or now."

Danta folded her arms across her chest angrily. "No, you weren't, were you? And I'd prefer that you don't use the word _flathead_ anymore. It isn't right. Grov and Ayla have been so good to us, even after finding out what you did. You should be more respectful.

Davaria sighed. "I know, _Ata_. It just slipped out."

"Well, try to be more careful. It would have been awful if Durc had heard you." She looked back over at the boy and smiled. "He has been so sweet to Danara. Look at how he takes care of her."

Davaria turned to look at the children. They were climbing on some rocks near the edge of the river. Durc had Annaliza on his hip, but he was holding Danara's hand as she climbed up to join Ora, who was already sitting on top.

The man smiled. "You are right again, Danta. I will not make that slip again. I promise."

Danta flashed her identical smile back at him, glad that he was so willing to change, and that she had broken his bad mood. "Now, you have been working on this all day, brother," she said, standing up and pointing at the spear sticking up out of the sand. "And you haven't eaten. Would you like a meal?"

Davaria looked at his spear, then up at his sister. "Why yes, I would . . . I think I am starving."

Danta rolled her eyes. "Ari, you have _never_ been starving, though . . . it might not hurt if you tried to eat more," she said, poking him in the ribs. "You're sort of skinny. No woman's going to be interested in you if you look like a boy."

"Hey, I'm not too skinny," he exclaimed. "I am just . . . _in good shape_."

"Um-humm, _okay_. If you say so," she said, starting for the cave. At her movement, Durc looked up and she motioned for them to follow. He quickly gathered the girls and did as he was bid.

Davaria frowned, but followed her. "I _have_ been with a woman, Danta," he said.

"Your Redfoot doesn't count," she said, as she continued to walk toward the cave. "Because she was not interested in _you_. She was only interested in teaching you how to treat a woman." She paused, then went on. He wasn't going to bring it up, so she decided to. "And the Clan women didn't count either."

"_Why n . . ._" he began, but his mouth snapped shut when she spun around, hand held up.

"Don't _even_ ask me _why not_, Ari. Do you really want to go through that again?" He shook his head. "Okay then, let's get you some food," she said with a smile.

**xXx**

It was evening when Grov and Ayla reached the top of the hill that overlooked the small river valley that they were calling home for a time. They didn't see anyone on the beach and figured they were inside. They stood for a moment, waiting for the horses to come to them. Ayla scratched Nicuria and gestured that he should go down. The young colt seemed to understand perfectly and began his descent. Stomp pawed the ground, but followed him, and Whinney followed her. Grov and Ayla smiled at their new horse clan.

At the bottom, they stripped and crossed the river, just like they had done that morning. This time Nicuria didn't seem so nervous about the crossing, though he was still the last to get across. Ayla grinned as he nickered loudly and took off across the beach at full speed.

**xXx**

Danta had fed the older children and was trying to feed Annaliza, but she was fussing. She wanted her mother and was refusing any sort of solid food that Danta offered. She had just popped the middle fingers of one hand into her mouth and turned away from Danta when a nicker could be heard from the beach. She pulled her fingers out of her mouth quickly, eyes wide.

"_Curia_," she said as she stood up. "Mamma's with Curia."

Danta smiled. "I bet she is," she said and scooped the one-year-old up. "Let's go see."

The other children had already made it to the cave's entrance and were staring wide-eyed at what they saw.

"_Mamma_! Look!" Danara exclaimed with much excitement. "Ayla and Grov brought back _more_ horses. Can we go _see_?"

Danta frowned at Davaria, who had just come up beside her. "I don't know. What do you think Davaria? Do you think they are safe?"

He shrugged. "I don't think they would have brought them back if they weren't." He smiled and waved at Grov and Ayla. They were still on the beach putting their clothes on. I think that we can go down." He picked up Ora, who still had trouble on the slope and started down. Durc grabbed Danara's hand and they went next. Only Danta stayed on the ledge with Annaliza, until she complained.

"I want to go too," she gestured tiredly. Danta didn't understand the child's signs, but her meaning was clear enough. Danta sighed and followed the others.

**xXx**

Davaria reached the couple and the horses first and smiled at them. "Well, it seems you got what you went for."

"We did," Ayla said. "We will name them tomorrow, but that is Stomp," she said pointing across the beach to the nearly white animal. "And _this_ is Whinney." She ran her hand down the length of the hay-colored mare's back, then leaned against her. It seemed that the horse leaned into her too.

Davaria's jaw had dropped open. To him, the sound she made was not a name – it was a perfect imitation of a horse's whinny. "Ayla, you sound just like a horse."

She grinned. "I know. I have been practicing as we traveled. I think _they_ think I'm a horse too." She turned to accept her youngest child from Danta, then put her arm around Davaria and started for the cave. "But you can call her Whinney." This time she said it more like a word than a horse's whinnying sound. "That is what Grov is choosing to call her."

At Ayla touch, Davaria glanced back at his sister and blushed slightly, remembering their earlier conversation. Danta had a smile on her face that told him she understood his attraction to the beautiful blond woman.

**xXx**

Once inside the cave, Danta prepared a plate of food for the returning couple. Both accepted the food, but Ayla set hers down to nurse Annaliza first.

"Did everyone behave?" Ayla asked.

Danta nodded. "Of course. They were perfect."

Grov arched his brow. "Don't forget that we can tell when you don't speak the truth."

Danta giggled. "Well, I did have to reprimand Davaria. Does _that_ count?" Davaria blushed, causing Grov to laugh.

"Ayla did say _everyone_. So, what did you do, Davaria?"

Davaria's face got even redder than it already was. "I'd rather not talk about it, if you don't mind," he said, looking away. He didn't want them to know she'd scolded him for using the word _flathead_.

"No. I don't mind at all." Grov could tell he was embarrassed about something and didn't want to push. "This is very good, Danta."

"Thank you. Cooking is about the only thing I can do _well_," she said. "Though I'm sure I will be learning quite a few new things after we are adopted." She smiled. "Ayla, didn't you say that Vincenzia is a good toolmaker?"

"Yes, he is. Better than good, I would say. Wouldn't you, Grov?" The man nodded. Ayla went on. "He grew up at Willow Camp and learned much about toolmaking alongside his brother, Vilognia, and their sister, Vinoza, but he says he's learned a lot since then too. Apparently he learned quite a bit from my mother and _her_ people."

"_Her people_? I did not know your mother was not Sungaean. Who were her people?" asked Danta curiously.

"Vincenzia says they are called the Rosantio, and that they live quite a distance to the east. My given name, Andreyta, is actually a Rosantian name. I think it was my mother's, mother's name too." Ayla was trying to remember all that Vincenzia had told her, but there were just so many facts to remember. She shook her head. "Anyway, he says he learned much from them."

"Hummm, do you think that he would be willing to teach _us_ how to make better tools?" Davaria asked when it appeared Ayla story was finished.

Ayla smiled. "Well, I cannot say for sure, but I do not see why he wouldn't. He also knows how the Mamutoi make their tools. Their way is similar, but not exactly the same. He will have much to teach you, if you really want to learn."

Davaria smiled. "I think that I would like that."

**xXx**

Everyone was tired, but after tucking the children into their furs, the adults sat down for a final cup of tea. All seemed relaxed, except for Davaria; he was eyeing the horses strangely.

The horses had come up to the cave a short time before and were now resting in Nicuria's spot. Whinney and Nicuria had lowered themselves to a lying position and were quietly blowing back and forth, but Stomp had apparently decided to continue standing.

Not taking his eyes off the large creatures, he wondered if some horses slept standing up. "So, what do we do now that we have them? Do we go back to the meeting?" Davaria asked, to no one in particular. Ayla was the one that answered.

"Actually, if no one would mind, I would like stay here for a little while, at least a few days. I think it might be good for the horses; they need to get to know us."

Grov was nodding. "I would have to agree. And I have seen a lot of good flint on this beach. We could spend some time making tools. I am still not very good at making spear points the way the Others do, but my blades come out fairly well. What do you two think?" He was looking at Danta and Davaria.

Danta shrugged and looked at her brother. "I don't care. I'm enjoying this time away." And I'm not exactly looking forward to returning and having to face Trata, she thought silently.

Davaria smiled. "Well, okay then, we stay."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

For the remainder of that day, the mood at Oak Tent had been subdued. They wondered how the meeting of High Camps was going and wished that they didn't have to wait until the next day to be summoned. But, as it was, all they could do was wait.

Since they had to wait, and to cause a bit of distraction while they did, those of Oak Tent decided to make an evening out of it and invited several from Birch Tent over for an evening meal. And though he knew Belana was likely to object, Dimia had gone to Beech Tent to collect Seriana. She was supposed to stay in bed, per Ayla's orders, but with Mikolavia's help, she was carried over to Oak Tent and placed comfortably on some carefully placed furs to enjoy the evening.

"Thank you, Mikolavia," said Dimia, to Seriana's brother. "It means a lot to me that you have helped."

Mikolavia finished settling Seriana, then eyed the man that was promised to his sister. What was it about the man that bothered him so? he silently asked himself. He was tall and thin, and considerably older than Seriana . . . but he _did_ love her, Mikolavia could tell that much.

"You're welcome, Dima," he finally said, using, for the first time, the more feminine name that most called the man. He wondered why a man would _want_ to go by such a name, but had never wanted to ask. He _was_ rather feminine looking; he was too thin and had much less body hair than other men, Mikolavia thought. He looked around. Everyone was getting ready to eat. "I guess I will go back now," he said, getting up to leave.

"Nah, don't go," Ivanolia said, coming up behind them with Danie. "Why don't you go back to Beech Tent and get Mirra . . . and Kristana too."

"Yes, Mikolavia," Tiflona said, overhearing the young people talking. "You should join us."

The young man frowned at the Oak Headwoman; they had never invited him over before. "Are you sure you don't mind?"

Tiflona smiled at him. "Our camps are related, Mikolavia. Of course we don't mind. Besides, we have plenty of food for everyone. My mate has been cooking all day. He does that when he is worried about something." She paused and looked over at Wäglodia. He was offering a platter of some kind of seasoned meat to Tiflona's older brother and sister. "I can only thank Sumata that _he_ enjoys cooking. _I_ can't stand it." She grinned as she looked back at Mikolavia. "And you should invite your mother as well." Tiflona caught the expression on Seriana's face as she turned away and guessed that the young, pregnant woman was hoping for a night away from her overbearing and prejudiced mother. "That is . . . if you would like to."

Mikolavia glanced at Seriana. He knew that _she_ would not like him to. "Thank you Tiflona. I will go get Mirra and Kristana. Would you mind if Kristana brought her sons?"

"Of course not," replied Tiflona.

Mikolavia had gone back to Beech Tent, collected his mate and his sister and her sons, then they all had enjoyed an evening at Oak Tent.

**xXxXxXx**

Ayla woke up to the soft nose of one of the horses nudging her gently, then blowing in her face when she opened her eyes. She had to smile. It was the mare she had named Whinney. Ayla looked around the cave to see if she was the first one awake; she was not. Grov, Durc and Davaria, along with the other two horses, were gone, but Danta and the girls were still there, sleeping. Ayla yawned, wondering why she was sleeping so late so often, then got up.

"How did you sleep, Whinney?" she signed silently, not wanting to wait the other sleeping people. She lovingly took hold of the mare's muzzle and exhaled into the mare's face in the same way that the horse had blown into hers. "And where is your sister and her son?"

Whinney cocked her head, as if trying to figure out what the woman was saying, then nickered softly. Ayla smiled and patted Whinney's rump as the horse turned to leave the cave, then went to the fire pit to start a fire to make tea. The woman's eyes were still on the mouth of the cave as she knelt down, but she quickly noticed that someone had already stoked the coals; the fire was already burning, though quite low. She decided to go outside to the pile of wood they had stacked on the ledge to get a few new pieces to build it up.

Once outside on the ledge, Ayla realized it was later than she realized. The sun was fairly high in the sky and it was remarkably warm. _Well_, it _is_ summer, she thought with a smile. Then, scanning the beach, her eyes focused on the horses. Whinney was just joining the other two horses at the western end of the valley and Stomp was drinking water out of the river, while Nicuria tried to get her attention. He had quickly realized that his mother no longer had any milk for him, but that did not stop him from nuzzling her. Ayla smiled when Stomp snorted and nipped at her son to get him to leave her alone and then pawed the ground when he tried to approach her again. Nicuria backed away and whinnied loudly, then exuberantly raced down the beach.

The direction that Nicuria went focused the woman's eyes on the three people sitting down on the rocky beach. Grov and Davaria appeared to be working on something. _Spears_? she thought, as she squinted down at them. It looked like they were making spears. Ayla noticed that Durc was sitting there too and seemed to be listening to them intently. She smiled, then picked up two logs and went back inside.

"Mamma," Ora whispered. She had gotten up. "Where did you go?"

Ayla smiled. "I went to get wood," she said, holding a piece of it up. "I'm going to make tea and then a meal. Are you hungry?"

Ora smiled and nodded, then looked around. "Where is Grov?"

"He and Durc are outside making spears?" answered Ayla as she carefully placed the logs into the fire and then started some water for their tea.

"I want to go outside too."

"You will have to eat first, Ora," Ayla signed. "And then you can go outside to wash your cup and bowl." The woman paused and glanced over at Danta. The other woman was stirring. "When that is done," she continued. "You can play outside . . . if someone is out there to watch you."

Ora frowned. She wanted to go out now and she didn't want to have to wash her cup and bowl, or wait for someone to _watch_ her. "Mamma, I'm not hungry."

Ayla had just fished out the first set of cooled stones and added more hot stones to her basket of water, but stopped and turned to look at Ora. "_Ora_, just a moment ago you said that you _were_ hungry, now you're saying that you are not. Which is it?"

Ora continued to frown. She _was_ hungry, but she wanted to go outside. She shrugged.

Ayla sighed. "Well, I want you to eat first. The meal will be ready very soon, so you can wait." Ora pouted, causing Ayla to shake her head.

**xXxXxXx**

Breidara stood with the other members of the High Camps, discussing their meeting from the evening before one last time. Only the headman of Alder Camp, Andovia, seemed unsure of an adoption without the adoptees present, but he had allowed the others to override his objections, claiming that the majority should rule.

"Okay then, I will go and get Tagnolia and Tiflona," stated Breidara when they had finished. "I would like to get this over with."

"Yes, we all would," Tegassia said with a nod. "But, let us go get them." He tipped his head toward Tarana. "After all, they _are_ our brother and sister."

Breidara smiled. "We will wait for you here."

**xXx**

Tegassia and Tarana walked swiftly to Oak Tent. Just as the rest of the High Camps, they did not like the situation, but they were glad that _someone_ was stepping up to give Danta and Davaria a chance; and they were proud that it was Oak Camp that was doing it.

"This is a good thing," said Tegassia as they neared Oak Tent. No one seemed to be outside the tent yet, but he was sure someone was awake inside.

"A _very_ good thing." Tarana smiled. "_Now_, if only we could get other camps to help with others like Danta and Davaria."

Tegassia smiled at his sister. "It takes time, Tarana." The woman nodded as Tegassia scratched on the closed flap of Oak Tent.

**xXx**

"They're _here_," Tabita called out. She had been sitting with Fürlasa on Tinozia's bed, but went to let in her aunt and uncle when she heard the scratching.

"Hallo, Tabita," Tarana said, hugging her sister's daughter. "Are they ready to go."

Tabita nodded, then hugged Tegassia. "I think so. Come in. I will go get them."

"No need," Tiflona said, coming down the narrow tent passageway with Tagnolia. "We are ready." She stopped next to her younger brother and sister. "How did the meeting go?"

"It went well," Tegassia said. "Everyone agreed that Danta and Davaria deserved to be at a better camp." He frowned.

Tagnolia eyed his brother. "What is it?"

Tarana smiled and patted the man's arm. "Andovia wasn't sure we should do this until Danta and Davaria return . . . but don't worry, we convinced him. He has agreed to accompany us over to Sumac Tent."

**xXxXxXx**

"Oh, Ayla," Danta exclaimed. "You should let _me_ make the morning meal. You have done far too much already." Danta had woken up to the smell of Ayla's cooking and was feeling rather guilty about her lack of assistance. She wasn't used to helping others, just as no one at Sumac Camp ever helped anyone else, but she knew that things would change once they moved to Oak Camp. She wasn't worried about changing. _That part_ wouldn't be difficult at all, but she wanted to start getting in the habit of offering to help, even when no one had asked.

Ayla smiled as she looked at the sleepy-eyed woman. "I am usually awake early enough to have a meal ready . . . though not _this_ morning it seems," she said with a frown. She shook her head. "I usually wake up quite early, but Grov and Davaria were up and down on the beach before I woke up." Ayla smiled at Danara, who had gotten up to sit beside her mother, then she looked back at Danta. "Maybe you could be responsible for our evening meals, since I get up early . . . _usually_, and you seem not to."

Danta smiled. "I'd be happy to, Ayla." The woman stood and pulled on a tunic she'd borrowed from Ayla, then got up to join the other woman next to the fire. Danta glanced over at Ora; the child was facing away from them, talking under her breath to her doll. She didn't look very happy.

"Do you want me to take her outside," Danta whispered as she pointed at the child.

Ayla glanced at her three-year-old and frowned. "No," she said, shaking her head. "I wish she would stop this . . . this pouting. Things are going to be very difficult for her if she doesn't. And she has to stop resisting. This behavior will not be accepted when we get back to the Clan. Some man is going to cuff her if she keeps it up.

Danta gasped slightly and frowned. "How can you let that happen, Ayla?"

"There is nothing I can do about it, Danta," Ayla said, looking sad. "I would only get cuffed myself if I said or did anything, and that would make Grov look bad. I cannot do that to him. And if I cannot teach her how to behave properly, then they will look down on me. I have high status, because I am a medicine woman, but that will mean nothing if no one respects me."

Ayla could not help but think back on her own life; it had been anything but easy. "Life for girls within the Clan is not easy," she said, then frowned. "That is not completely true." Ayla was shaking her head. "Life for a girl _of the Others_ is very difficult, if she grows up with the Clan."

Danta was listening carefully. "Are you talking about _your_ life, Ayla?" Danta knew about the rape Ayla had suffered and wondered if that was something that typically happened within the Clan, or if it had only happened to Ayla.

Ayla looked down at the pot of boiling water and poured some into two cups. After adding the herbs that she liked in her morning tea, she handed Danta a cup and continued. "Yes, my life was quite difficult . . . but it isn't anymore."

Danta waited for her friend to continue, but when Ayla didn't say anything else, she took a sip of tea and gestured for Danara to get up. Danara hadn't gotten up when her mother had, but instead had snuggled down into the woman's bed. But now that her mother wanted her, she got up quickly to join the two women. For a moment, the slight girl stood next to her mother, but when Ayla's youngest sat up, she went to the baby.

"Thank you, Danara," Ayla said to the girl as she accepted her baby. Then she shifted the way she was sitting so that she could nurse her daughter.

**xXxXxXx**

After meeting at the tent of the Council of Sisters, Tagnolia and Tiflona, followed by the group of High Camps, started over to Sumac Tent. They entered the filth-ridden area and stared around in disgust. No one seemed to be there. The arriving group glanced at each other; all knew they were probably too early for this particular group of people and wondered if they should wake someone or come back later. They were about to leave, thinking they'd have to make a second trip, when they noticed a young woman sitting near Cedar Tent's fire.

Cedar Tent's fire, which was not grouped with the other three Low Camp fires, was positioned just southwest of the Shogur's Tent, but clearly out of the path of most people. Tiflona narrowed her eyes, then nodded in the woman's direction. They could speak to her.

As the small group made their way over to the woman, Tiflona realized that the woman kneeling on the ground and staring into the flames could hardly be called a women; she had probably just had her first rites, though Tiflona did not recognize her from Womanhood Camp. The Oak headwoman frowned as they approached. When they stopped at her side, she did not even look up. Tiflona glanced at those standing with her. Breidara shrugged and knelt down next to the woman.

"Excuse me," the Head Sister said, laying her hand on the woman's shoulder lightly. They were shocked by the reaction they received. The young woman simultaneously cringed and gasped loudly, then jumped to her feet.

"W-what? W-what d-do you w-want?" she exclaimed fearfully as she backed away from the group that had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

"We are sorry that we have frightened you, . . . " Breidara offered, waiting for a moment to allow the woman to tell them her name. But, when no name came, Breidara studied the women a bit more. She did not know her, yet she seemed familiar.

Breidara glanced at the others, then continued. "We have come to speak to the headman and headwoman of Sumac Tent, but they do not seem to be around. Is it too early?" The young woman nervously looked toward Sumac Tent and frowned. She seemed close to tears, which confused them, but they waited patiently for her answer.

"Umm, I . . . " she started as she looked back at the group of people. "I d-don't know. Maybe."

Breidara was still kneeling where the young woman had been, but stood when she noticed another woman approaching.

"Have the High Camps come to do something about that _man_?" the woman demanded angrily after marching up to the group of people. The younger woman standing there blushed a deep shade of red, then rushed into Cedar Camp's tent.

Breidara frowned as she watched the woman go, then shifted her weight to the other foot. "No, Hetara. That is not why we are here today."

"Why not? Can't _something_ be done?"

Breidara glanced around at the other headwomen and headmen and sighed. She had not had time to mention the matter to them, as they had been discussing other topics, but she fully intended to do so, once the matter at hand had been cleared up. This summer meeting was turning out to be far more difficult than she had envisioned.

"The councils have not talked about it yet, Hetara," the Head Sister replied. The headmen and headwomen present stood there listening, but did not comment; they knew they'd hear about it when the time was right. "We have been tied up with other issues. _But_, if you remember correctly, I told you that your daughter was going to have to come forward to lodge the complaint herself."

"But she won't," the woman cried unhappily. "She is afraid. I am surprised that she was even out here. She has refused to do anything since . . . ." Finally the woman broke down in tears and refused to continue. Instead, she held up her hand and walked toward her tent.

Breidara, along with the other High Camp leaders, watched her go, then the woman turned to the others.

"This is getting ridiculous," she said, almost to herself. "It seems we have _another_ issue, when we conclude with this one. I will have to explain later." She paused. "Right now we have to decided what we want to do about the adoption."

"I want to wait here until someone wakes up," Tiflona said.

The other leaders of the High Camps frowned, but it was Breidara's brother that spoke. "But we don't know how long that will take, Tiflona."

"I do not care. I want this matter finished so that we can relax," she said with frustration. "And so that we can move on to other issues. It sounds to me like we're going to be discussing problems all summer, instead of enjoying being together, and I, for one, am tired of it."

Bolodenkia frowned. He was tired of it before it even began. "I completely understand. Maybe we could come back after our midday meal. They are bound to be up by then."

Tiflona frowned and looked at her brother. "What do you think?"

Tagnolia shook his head. "It seems we don't have much of a choice. We can't speak to people that are not awake."

Tiflona and the others nodded, accepting that they'd have to wait just a little longer.

**xXxXxXx**

After eating, the women and children went outside to join the men. Ayla had given Ora and Danara their few dishes to take to the river to wash, much to Ora's dismay. The child did not believe her mother was really going to make her do her own dishes again. Ayla and Danta watched the two girls go, both noticing that Danara seemed perfectly happy to help out. Ayla sighed in frustration, then continued on to where Durc and the two men were sitting.

"Is anyone hungry?" she asked when the got there.

Grov looked up and smiled. "Yes, I think we are," he replied, then looked at Davaria.

Davaria was nodding and he looked quite proud of himself. "Look Danta," he said, holding his spear. "It's straight."

Danta smiled. "It is very nice." She took the spear from her brother and inspected his work carefully. She noticed that there were some carvings along the shaft. "Hey, this looks like Nicuria," she exclaimed. Ayla leaned in to look at it. "I didn't know you could carve," Danta said.

Davaria smiled. "I didn't either. I was just watching the horses and decided to give it a try. I am going to carve the heads of all three of Ayla's horses into this one, because I am making it for _her_."

Ayla had been running her finger over the man's carving, and it took a moment for his words to register in her mind. "What? For _me_? But why, Davaria?" she asked.

"Because, Ayla," he said with a smile. "It is because of _you_ that Oak Camp is offering to adopt us, and I want to let you know how grateful I am."

Ayla was stunned and attempted to blink back tears, but finally she just let them fall.

Davaria stood up. "Thank you, Ayla, for all that you have done," he said, hugging her. Grov watched his mate cling to the other man as tears of joy swept down her cheeks, and smiled at her happiness. He never dreamed that taking her to meet her people would make her so happy, but he was glad that she was.

Davaria pushed her back slightly and looked into her tear-filled eyes. "But you can't have it yet. I need to finish it and it will have to be the gift I give you at the adoption ceremony."

Ayla frowned. "Gift?"

"Yes, gift," Danta said. "When someone is adopted, there is a ceremony and gifts are exchanged." The woman looked at her brother and frowned. "But we don't have anything to give everyone, Ari. What will we do?"

The man shrugged. "What _can_ we do? We'll have to make things while we are here."

This statement only seemed to upset Danta more. "But how can we _make_ enough for everyone at Oak Camp, in just a few days?"

Ayla smiled and patted Danta's arm. "Don't worry, Danta, we can help you. We will hunt and fish and gather, and make whatever you want to make."

Danta smiled. "Thank you, Ayla. You are such a good friend," she said, hugging the blonde woman.

**xXxXxXx****

The High Camp leaders waited until the sun was directly overhead, then they came together again and went to Sumac Tent. _This time_ the camp was not empty and the two Sumac leaders were lounging lazily in their usual places. As they always did, both looked tired and much too thin, and seemed to be nursing a morning headache with a large cup of something. All assumed it was bouza.

Heads turned when the delegation entered their space, but just as before, no one got up to welcome them. Instead, they just received angry stares, as if Sumac Tent hadn't been expecting them.

"_Back so soon_?" Ivarsia slurred as he squinted up at them. "What can we do for you _today_ . . . Tiflona?" The man then drank deeply from the cup in his hand, apparently draining it, because he held it up and someone came with a skin to refill it. His sister sat at his side, but she did not say anything, she only scowled.

"You _know_ why we are here, Ivarsia," Tiflona said through clenched teeth. "We want to . . . " she began, but then she felt a hand on her arm so she stopped. It was Tarana; it was nice to have Beech Tent's support.

Breidara stood there calmly. Though she personally wished they could just rid the Sungaea of these vultures, she also didn't want there to be a scene. Unfortunately, she knew that a _scene_ was quite likely; these weren't people to give up easily, even when they didn't really have a choice. Silently, she asked Sumata to help them, all of them, including the ignorant members of Sumac Tent.

The Head Sister glanced at her delegation of people. She _was_ grateful that Tarana and Tegassia were there to help keep Tiflona and Tagnolia's anger in check, not that they needed it in general. Their anger only seemed to surface around Ivarsia. Breidara guessed that something had happened between them in the past, but she didn't know what, and she didn't want to ask; they had enough problems.

"Ivarsia, Iyena," the Head Sister said, looking at both of them in turn. "It has been brought to the councils' attention that Oak Camp would like to adopt Danta, Danara and Davaria, and that you have denied their initial request."

Ivarsia raked his eyes over the group. "Yes, that is correct. We are have no intention of giving up a brother and a sister. Who knows," he said, throwing up his arms. "They might be our leaders one day."

Now it was Tiflona's turn to scowl. "Not very likely though, is it Ivars?" she spat. "Considering how highly you all regard Danta." She looked over at Trata, who looked away quickly.

"That is not your concern, Tiflona," Iyena said coolly. "Regardless of the feelings of _some_." She glanced over at Trata. "We still do not want to give up a brother and a sister."

"Well, you can't always have what you _want_, can you?"

Iyena narrowed her lips and stood, then sneered at Oak Tent's headwoman. "No, _you_ can't."

Tiflona was standing, hands on her hips, about to counter the woman's words, but Breidara stopped her.

"Tiflona . . . Iyena," Breidara said warningly. "Iyena, I'm afraid that this _is_ our concern. Oak Tent has made a request and Sumac Tent has denied it. That means the councils will have to decide . . . unless . . . "

"Unless _what_?" Ivarsia said, suddenly standing up and joining his sister.

"Well . . . unless you can produce Danta and Davaria, and they let us know that they do not wish to _be_ adopted. That would end the matter immediately."

"Well, like we told _Oak Tent_," Ivarsia said. "They are not here right now, so you will have to come back at another time."

"Hummm, it seems like I haven't seen them around at all lately," Breidara said. "And I've heard that they've left the summer meeting." She was looking at the Sumac leaders, but turned her head toward Trata. "Trata, where are your son and daughter?"

Trata's pinched old face turned red as she folded her skinny arms over her sunken chest. "My _son_ is out hunting," she lied. "And his _sister_ must have gone with him." The old woman didn't like being put on the spot and honestly didn't care one bit if Oak Camp took Danta and Danara off their hands. And Davaria . . . well, she was just about ready disown him as well; he had clearly chosen with whom he wanted to be and it wasn't with her. She believed this was all Danta's fault. Everything is _always_ Danta's fault, she thought angrily, and she didn't understand why Ivarsia and Iyena were putting up such a fight for the worthless and ungrateful parasite.

"All right," Bolodenkia cut in, trying to settle the potentially ugly scene. "We can still solve this easily. We will just go after them; we can send a runner with a message to return." He paused. "Which way did they go?"

"North!" Ivarsia said, just as Trata threw out, "East!"

Everyone glanced between the two of them. Bolodenkia sighed. "Well, which is it?"

Iyena shot Trata a dirty look. "Northeast."

"Yes, northeast," Trata said nodding.

Tiflona pursed her lips, then smiled. "Fortunately for us, Iyena," Tiflona said, shaking her head. "We know that this is not true. Danta, Danara and Davaria were sighted traveling _south_, and they weren't only carrying hunting gear; they were fully loaded. They were _leaving_, leaving _permanently_!"

Trata's eyes widened and she wondered how this had all happened. Suddenly she made a decision; she didn't want to deal with this anymore. She could put an end to it all immediately and she would. It would be easier to just be alone. Slowly, she crossed the short distance that separated her from Ivarsia. The headman had backed off from the group of people slightly and looked down at the older woman. They whispered back and forth for a moment and seemed to be arguing. The man's face turned a bright shade of purple; he was clearly furious with the old woman, but he nodded at her and she turned to look at the High Camps.

"You can have them, _permanently_," she finally said. "And let Davaria know that his mother is dead to him now." With that, the woman turned and stalked off. Everyone watched as she disappeared into Sumac Tent, then they turned back to the scene.

Iyena was staring at her brother in disbelief; she could not believe he had allowed Trata to make such a decision, even though it was true that they never really had a chance of keeping Danta and Davaria there against their will. She was stunned into silence, but Ivarsia was not.

"Well, apparently, you can have what you have come for," he said, sitting down again and picking up his abandoned drink. "_But_, not without paying a price." He looked at Tarana and Tegassia, who had recently _adopted_ several members of Cedar Camp. "We have already lost a few to other camps and we can't afford to let more go. It will leave us without resources that we need."

"What is it that you want, Ivars," asked Tagnolia. "After all, this is where this was going from the beginning, wasn't it?"

Ivarsia glared at the Oak headman, then looked at the Head Brother. "As payment for losing three _valued_ members of Sumac Camp, we would like Oak Tent's share of the summer meeting hunt." He held his hand up; he could see Tagnolia nodding, but he wasn't finished yet. "_Actually_, we want your share of _all_ of this summer's hunts."

"WHAT!" Tiflona yelled. "You have got to be joking. You know that the meat we gain is a gift from the Mother and it is for all to share." She was seething. "Are you insane?"

"Oh, I do not mean just the meat. We want it all . . . and we want Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia's shares back as well," he added. He did not expect to get what he was asking for, but it was bringing him great pleasure to watch Tiflona become irate.

"Now wait just a moment," Breidara interrupted. "First, you cannot have meat back that has been paid as restitution for crimes that have been committed, so you can forget about getting Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia's shares back. Secondly, you cannot have meat, or other materials from the hunt, that have already been used. And third, Tiflona is right, the Mother wants everyone to benefit from the summer hunts. That is why Sumac Tent gets a share even though you don't bother to participate in the hunt or assist in anything worthwhile during the summer. When was the last time one of you hunted with us?" Nobody answered, but many looked away. "And finally," Breidara went on. "No matter how much Oak Camp wants these three people, no three people are worth _that_ much meat and supplies."

Ivarsia was smirking. He completely agreed with the woman's final statement. "Yes, especially the three people that Oak Camp wants, but that is what we want."

"Well, your request is denied!" Bolodenkia said. The expression on Tiflona's face told him that she just might agree to the man's unreasonable demands, but he could not let that happen. It would set a precedent that the Sungaea could not afford.

"It is too late to give you anything from the first hunt," the Head Brother said. "As Breidara said, much has already been eaten, used, or prepared. And she is right about Zadneetsia and Kurvlodia's shares as well. You will _not_ get that meat back."

He paused and glanced at Tiflona and Tagnolia; both stood, arms crossed over their chests, silently waiting for him to make a decision. They knew he'd be fair.

"And though it seems Oak Tent would be willing to give up everything from the second and third hunt," he went on. "I have to agree that that is too much in exchange for three people. I will grant you half of Oak Tent's share of our _second_ hunt."

Ivarsia shook his head. "That is not acceptable. Give us _all_ of their share of the second hunt, including several decent hides."

Bolodenkia shook his head. "That is too much. Who do you think you . . . ?" he started to say, but Tiflona interrupted.

"We will accept your offer," she stated. It was a lot of meat, but Oak Camp was quite wealthy and could make it up.

Bolodenkia frowned down at her, wondering why Oak Camp was fighting so hard to obtain these three people. It wasn't like they were related to them in any way, and no one was asking to promise to either Danta or Davaria. It just made no sense to him, but if they were willing, who was he to dispute it?

"So are we finished then?" the Head Brother finally asked, looking at the four head people involved. Tagnolia and Tiflona nodded simultaneously. Iyena looked at her brother, then reluctantly added her agreement. Finally, Ivarsia gave a clipped nod and smirked at the Oak headman and headwoman. He believed Sumac Camp had gotten the better deal. It was a deal that rid them of three leeches and gave them almost enough meat and supplies to get through the winter. It would only be necessary to arrange a few minor hunts. He was pleased.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

After everyone had eaten the meal that Ayla and Danta had brought out, the conversation turned toward practical matters. "Well, maybe we should get started then," said Grov, setting down his empty plate and standing up.

Everyone frowned up at him. "Get started doing _what_," they all said at the same time. Then they looked at one another and smiled.

"What do we need to start doing, Grov?" Ayla asked.

"We need to get started on making _gifts_," he said excitedly. He had never made things for others before and it seemed interesting. "_Right_?" He looked toward Danta for confirmation. She nodded, but she was still frowning; she still couldn't imagine making something for _everyone_ at Oak Camp, even with Ayla's help. Grov brow creased, then he glanced at Ayla. Ayla's frown had changed into a smile, as her mind briefly conjured a picture of him sitting calmly weaving a basket.

"_What_?"

Ayla's smile faded as she shook her head and tried to focus on her mate. "I was . . . well . . . I . . . " she mumbled, not wanting to tell him what had gone through her head.

The man looked confused. "You were _what_? What were you smiling about?" he asked, knowing she wouldn't avoid a direct question.

Ayla blushed. "I . . . I was imagining you . . . weaving a basket . . . to give to someone at Oak Camp." She cringed slightly, as if she expected a reprimand for envisioning him doing something so female, but none came, he only laughed.

"I could weave a basket," he said through his laughter. "If I _wanted_ to."

Ayla smiled at him. "Oh _really_?" she said. Then, feeling a little more confident, she went on. "Well, _I_ would like to see you weave a basket."

Grov folded his arms over his chest and tried to look serious, though he really wasn't. "You don't think I can, do you?"

Ayla eyed him carefully. He was trying hard not to smile, but Ayla could see the humor in the way his eyes sparkled. "Well, if you weave a basket anything like you cook, then I'm not sure we will be able to recognize it as a basket," she finally said.

Grov laughed again. "Fair enough," he said, remembering the morning meal he had cooked for her children one morning; it was indeed unrecognizable as food, though Durc swore it was good.

Danta was watching them closely and liked the way they teased one another. Though all in fun, she was sure that any man at Sumac Camp would have taken offense to their kind of teasing, and was glad to see that it was taken better by other camps.

What she didn't know was that Grov and Ayla did not do much of this at their clan's cave, at least not outside of their own hearth. No one there would have understood their joking and many would even be angry if they carried on there, the way they did here. In fact, Broud often became frustrated with the goings on within the hearth, but he didn't have enough status to complain.

"Baskets," Danta said. "I _could_ make several baskets rather quickly." She frowned. "But not for _everyone_. Baskets won't do for most people. And we don't even know what everyone at Oak Tent likes," she almost whined. "We don't even know what their hearths are called."

Ayla smiled. "But we can help with that, Danta. We know their hearths," she said, scrunching up her forehead and thinking about Oak Camp's earthlodge. "The first and second hearths are the Visitor's Hearth and the Cooking Hearth, then there is a long center passageway. On the left there is Antelope Hearth, the Healer's Hearth, which is empty most of the time, but I think Travie is going to take it. And then Winter Stoat Hearth and Reindeer Hearth . . . and that last one is kept empty too, plus there were two other empty hearths toward the back of the lodge, and something called a sweat bath."

Davaria frowned. "Their Reindeer Hearth is _empty_? Why do they have so many empty hearths?" He couldn't imagine keeping a space empty when there were probably plenty of people that could use _more_ space. Sumac Camp's lodge was extremely over populated; many arguments started over space, people there just never seemed to have enough.

"It is a very large lodge . . . I _think_ anyway," Ayla said with a frown. "I haven't seen other Sungaean lodges though, so I am only guessing, but it seems like everyone has plenty of space."

"Actually, I talked to Vincenzia about this," Grov interjected. "Reindeer Hearth belonged to Vincenzia and Vilognia's sister, Vinoza and her mate Teglodia, who was Tagnolia good friend. They are honoring them by keeping it empty."

Davaria nodded his understanding, though that was something that would _never_ happen at Sumac Camp. Someone would have moved in right quick if a death had occurred within Sumac Camp. There was no question in his mind. "What about the right side of the passageway?" he asked, curiously.

Ayla thought for a moment. "On the right they have Antelope Hearth, Bison Hearth and a small gathering space that is used by Gredenzia. Then there's a short passageway leading south to three other hearths: Cave Bear Hearth, Arctic Fox Hearth and Gray Wolf Hearth. And on the other side of the passageway is Snow Leopard Hearth, the food storage area, and another sweat bath."

"Which hearth is your hearth, Ayla?" Danta asked.

"We do not have a hearth at Oak Camp; we do not live there," Ayla stated plainly. "We stayed at the Visitor's Hearth while we were there . . . but we were only there for a very short time."

"Oh." Danta didn't know why she was surprised, but for some reason she was. She knew that they did not live at Oak Camp, but had assumed that they still had a hearth there. "What is your hearth called at your clan's cave then?"

"The Clan does not name its hearths," Ayla informed her.

"That's not entirely true, Ayla," Grov interjected. "There is the leader's hearth, Mog-ur's hearth, the visitor's hearth and two medicine hearths." Ayla frowned, thinking it not the same, but then she nodded.

"Hummm. So then, if you lived at Oak Camp, what would you call your hearth?" Danta persisted.

Ayla looked at Grov, expecting him to answer, but he only shrugged. "My totem is the Leopard, but they already have a Snow Leopard Hearth."

Davaria shook his head. "It does not matter what spirit protects _you_," he said with a smile. "Among the Sungaea, the hearth belongs to the woman . . . though you'd never guess that at Sumac Camp," he said with a tinge of embarrassment in his voice.

Danta was shaking her head. "But, Sumac Camp isn't a good representation of a decent Sungaean Camp . . . _as we all know_," she added, almost under her breath. She looked at her brother and saw him blush slightly. "But sometimes a hearth can be named after a man's protecting spirit," she went on. "If he isn't mated when he makes his hearth. But _usually_, the name changes when he mates, unless there is already a hearth with the woman's animal spirit."

Davaria was nodding his agreement. "She's right there," he said, then he looked at Ayla. "What would _your_ hearth be called, Ayla?"

Ayla's eyes opened wide. "Ah, I am not sure. My totem is the Cave Lion, so I guess we would have the Cave Lion Hearth," she said with a shrug.

Danta frowned and shook her head. She was thinking space again. "Are you sure that they have room for three more people?" she asked. If they hadn't given space to the daughter of Vincenzia's hearth, then perhaps there really wasn't enough room for them. She didn't want to be in anyone's way.

"Well, they talked of adding on to the lodge," said Grov. "Donzolnia said that they added on at the end of last summer, but that they wanted to give Tinozia his own hearth." Danta nodded.

"And there are the two unnamed hearths," Ayla added. "I am sure they have plenty of space for you. What will your hearth be called, Danta?"

Danta looked at her brother and then shrugged. "I've never thought about it before. At Sumac Camp, there is only Bison Hearth. No one else ever names their hearths there. I think they just don't want to trouble themselves with extra names."

"Originally," Davaria began hesitantly, "Mother's hearth was Mink Hearth."

Danta brow furrowed. "I don't think I want to name our hearth after anything that even _closely_ reminds me of Trata," she said, shaking her head vehemently. Davaria frowned.

"All right," Ayla said, hoping to calm a potentially ugly exchange between the two siblings. She knew that Danta hated Trata, and in Ayla's opinion, for good reason. And even though she herself believed the older woman to be quite detestable, they couldn't expect a son to dislike his mother. "What animal do you _like_ then?"

"I don't know. I guess I will have to think about it," said Danta, trying to push aside her frustration over Davaria's attachment to their mother. Then she changed the subject. "Maybe we can start making some baskets. If I show you how the Sungaea makes baskets, would you show me how the Clan makes them?" she asked Ayla.

Ayla smiled. "Of course," she said, then looked at Grov. "You weren't _really_ going to attempt basket weaving, were you?"

"Well, maybe you can teach me later," he said. "I was thinking that we should get some hunting done. I know we have several furs, from our trip here, but if they have to give gifts to everyone at Oak Camp, then they're going to need more."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

As a group they discussed their hunting options; there were so many possibilities, yet they seemed to find something wrong with all of them. South was eliminated first. Grov and Ayla had already gone over the southern hills and hadn't seen much more than the bay stallion's herd. They knew that there was probably plenty that they hadn't seen, and indicated a wish to explore more later, but struck south from their options.

Then Ayla expressed that she'd also like to explore the northern plateau, where she found Nicuria; she had seen much to gather in the area, and was already forming an idea for what Danta and Davaria could give to Travie. And further, she was hoping to find out what Shriek was up to up there, but didn't want the two hunters to scare away fauna that may lead to him finding a new place to reside. Grov agreed not to go north.

West was not desirable either, mostly due to the fact that the sheer wall of the western plains was much too difficult to climb. It was brought up that there _was_ a passable, though steep and narrow, path that had given the buckskin stallion's herd an escape, but in the end, they decided that east was most probably the best direction to go. Plus, they also knew that there were herds of deer, bison, horses and even a small band of saiga antelopes to the east, though Ayla asked them not to hunt the horses, thinking that her new friends might not like it. She was yet to understand that they wouldn't care for anything dead, horses or otherwise.

The woman glanced over at her three horses. Nicuria was still frolicking at a shallow area of the river, trying to get Whinney to play, while Stomp looked on as if they were beneath her. Ayla smiled, then looked back toward the two men. They had just arrived at the slope. Both women waved as the men headed up the gradual incline that gave easy access to the steppes east of the valley.

"What did you want to make first, Danta?" Ayla finally asked once the men were out of sight.

"Umm, I don't really know," replied the woman, thinking hard about the people of Oak Camp. The only person there that she knew prior to meeting Ayla was Ivanolia, but she didn't really know him very well either. She tried to think about what she'd heard. "Didn't Grov say that Tinozia was going to make his own hearth soon?"

Ayla nodded. "He still lives with his mother, but he spends so much time with Fürlasa that I think they wish to give him his own space." Ayla paused, looking thoughtful, then continued. "Though I'm not really sure if they plan to do that right away. I think I remember Gredenzia saying something about him going away to train." She shook her head to stop her musings. "So, do you have something in mind for him?"

Danta smiled. "I think so. I was thinking that, if he's going to make a hearth, then he might like to have some nice bowls and cups, but instead of weaving them out of grasses or reeds, I could use some of these chunks of wood," she said, picking up a small piece. "Don't you think that would be better for man?"

Ayla smiled. "It will be hard work, but yes, I think a man would like that better than a woven basket." Ayla glanced over at the playing children. Durc and Danara were entertaining Ora, while Annaliza sat with them sucking her middle fingers. "If you pick out what pieces you'd like to use, and tell me how you want it done, I will get started on one."

Danta smiled, picked out eight pieces, four for bowls and four smaller ones for cups, then explained her method. Soon the two women were hard at work.

**xXx**

"Well, what do you think?" Davaria asked Grov as they stood on the plains east of the valley. There was a herd of horses off in the distance, which they had already agreed not to hunt, some deer grazing, who were standing stock still, eyeing them nervously, and several bison that seemed somewhat less fearful of the human duo.

Grov shrugged. "I am not sure that we could chase down any of those animals," the Clan hunter said. "There are only two of us."

Davaria looked over the herds again and nodded his agreement. "That's what I was thinking too, but we do need a large animal or two to make all that we need . . . so what should we do?"

Grov frowned. "We could build a surround . . . like we did on the bison hunt," he said, thinking hard. "But there are still only two of us. We couldn't possibly build it while guarding to make sure they don't bolt, _and then_ drive them into it. I think we are going to have to stick to smaller animals . . . at least until we come up with a better plan," he added when he saw Davaria's upset look.

"I guess you're right," Davaria said with a nod. "Besides, anything is better than nothing, right?"

Grov smiled. "Right."

**xXx**

As it turned out, the two men spent a considerable amount of time sitting and watching the herds of animals before finally going off to hunt. They were there for so long, in fact, that even the skittish deer went back to grazing, only glancing up at them when they finally decided to leave.

**xXx**

"This is going to take forever," Danta said, brushing the beads of sweat off of her forehead with the back of her arm and looking up into the hot sun. She was holding the chunk of wood that was now roughly the shape of a bowl in one hand and Grov's hand-axe, which she was using as an adze, in the other. She had spent the better part of their time gouging out the inside of the wood piece, and she was exhausted.

Ayla grinned and set down the knife she had been using. "Not _forever_, but probably several days." She hadn't finished her first piece yet either, but held it up for Danta to see. "What do you think?"

Danta smiled and emptied her hands so that she could look at Ayla's work. "It looks great," she exclaimed. "I can hardly wait to see them when they are finished." She rubbed her shoulder and stretched out her arms. "But I think I need to call it quits for today."

"Okay," Ayla said.

Danta glanced at the children. Annaliza had fallen asleep on a mat that Ayla had placed under a nearby tree and Durc was still playing with the other two girls. He had arranged some rocks in the shallow water and they were stepping from one rock to another, trying to keep from getting wet.

Danta looked back at Ayla, who was also watching the children. "How about a swim?"

"That sounds good," Ayla answered, standing up quickly to remove her clothing. Danta did the same, and when the children saw what they were doing, they readily joined in.

**xXx**

"We didn't do so bad," stated Davaria as they walked west toward the hill that would take them down into the valley. He was carrying two large rabbits that Grov had taken down with his sling and one that he had been lucky enough to skewer with his spear. But their biggest prize, was the injured deer they had come upon.

The two men had stopped short when they saw the buzzards flying overhead. They listened carefully, to make sure they didn't hear predators of the sharp-clawed, fanged variety, or any others for that matter, then crept slowly through the waist high grass to find the wounded deer.

It had appeared to have broken its leg. Grov had noticed that it was an especially bad break and, looking around, then up at the birds waiting for it to die, wondered why nothing had finished it off yet, but was grateful all the same. He had grinned at Davaria, who had pulled out his spear and raised the it over his head to put the creature out of its misery, then closed his eyes to thank the Mother before ending the deer's earthly existence.

"No, not bad at all," Grov agreed, hoisting the heavy deer on his back. There was no way Davaria could have carried it back, but the stronger mixed man was easily shouldering the burden.

"But maybe we can set some traps next time, so we can concentrate our efforts on hunting larger game."

Grov frowned. "Traps?"

"Yeah, traps." Then seeing that Grov had no idea what he meant, he went on. "My sister, Dreena used to do it a lot," he said sadly. His eyes seemed to become unfocused as he talked about it. "I always used to tell her it was cheating, but she _was_ good at getting her own food and furs. Fox was her favorite fur."

He shook his head and went on. "The traps are easy to make, I _think_. I haven't actually made them, but I'm sure Danta knows how. Basically, using sinew you make a loop and place it along a trail where there are animals you want to catch. In Dreena's case, _red_ foxes. Then, _when the animal runs along the trail, the head goes through the loop and as he runs, it tightens the noose around his neck. The more the_ animal _struggles, the tighter the noose gets._ And the best part is that you don't even have to be there for it to work . . . that's why I always said it was cheating."

Grov nodded. He could see why the man thought so. Clan men would _never_ consider that hunting. "It's a good idea though."

The two men walked the rest of the way without talking. Davaria couldn't stop thinking about Dreena, and her daughter Dätara , and wondering if they would have lived had Sumac Camp had a healer. The possibility that their deaths were unnecessary made him hate Sumac Camp even more, and he felt terrible about how he had teased her in the past, though he knew that's how brothers and sisters were. He'd give anything to have her back, hunting any way she liked. Then he thought about how others had treated Danta, in comparison to Dreena, and his face flushed with anger. He would make it up to her; _she_ would be his number one priority.

Grov walked alongside the man, knowing that he was deep in thought. It wasn't hard to imagine his line of thought; he had not missed the man's watering eyes or the obvious sadness that emanated from him anytime his dead sister was brought up. Grov had also lost a sister, many, many years before, but he had never talked about it to anyone, not even Ayla.

"Hey look!" Davaria exclaimed as they made their decent. "They're _swimming_." He looked at Grov. "And here we were, out hunting."

Grov grinned. They were able to approach unseen. Then, dropping their kills next to the fire that Ayla had built up on the sandy beach, they stripped and dove into the water.

"Working _hard_, I can see," he said, coming up behind Ayla and grabbing her around the waist.

She grinned. "We were, but it got too hot. Did you have any luck?" she asked.

"Um-hum," he answered, caressing her breast under the water. "Three rabbits and a deer."

"A _deer_?" she said with an impressed expression. "That is _very_ lucky."

Grov smiled. "We sort of cheated though," he finally said, using Davaria's word.

"Cheated?" She looked confused. "I do not understand. How can you cheat at hunting?"

"I would have asked the same thing." He was still smiling at her and couldn't help but lean forward to kiss her. She was even more beautiful when water was glistening off her summer-tanned skin.

"Actually," he went on, "We only found a dying deer and Davaria speared it, but you should hear about the other ways I've learned to cheat at hunting."

"Other ways to hunt?" She ignored the cheating part; she was always interested in different ways to hunt.

"Yeah . . . but we will have to talk about it later. I have been out hunting all day and I'm hungry." He started for the shore.

"Oh yes, we knew you would be. Danta made our evening meal. I have already fed the children . . . I hope you do not mind."

"No, of course not," he said, as they waded their way out of the river. They dried quickly. He left his chest bare, only pulling on his leggings and she slipped on her thigh-length, sleeveless tunic.

Once they got to the fire the man noticed what they had been doing all day. "Looks like you two _have_ been busy." He picked up the cup that Ayla had been working on. "This is going to be nice . . . and look at all the gathering you have done." He was always amazed at how productive his mate could be.

"I'm not so sure about the drying rack, though," she said with a frown, looking at where she had placed it. "I think I should have made it inside. It needs to be in a cool, dark place. Not outside."

"We can carry it in for you," Davaria offered. "You might have to remove what's on it, but we'll get it in."

Ayla beamed a smile at him. "Oh thank you, Davaria," she said happily. "And I heard all about your hunting luck. It will not take long to make all that you will need if you keep up this pace."

Grov grinned. "Too bad we can't find a dying deer every day, because we certainly can't hunt them with only two of us."

"Hummm." Ayla frowned. "Then we will have to come up with some other way, because we can't make _everything_ out of rabbits," she said as she sliced open the deer and started removing its parts, placing them on a mat that she'd made for that purpose.

While the two men ate, Ayla and Danta finished gutting the animals, and started carrying things up to the cave. It was getting late and the sun would be dropping behind the western mountains shortly, so the men got up to help.

Ayla glanced up at the retreating sun and looked down at Ora. "Ora, I want you to wash Grov and Davaria's dishes," she said, handing the child the two bone plates and pointing toward the shallow pool.

Ora pouted as she usually did, but the look on Grov's face stopped any protest. "Durc, please watch your sister," Grov said.

Durc got up to stand protectively over her while she worked and Danara joined them, intent on helping Ora with her work.

**xXx**

It was nearly dark by the time everything was inside, including the horses, who settled down in their spot. Grov and Davaria had just finished setting up the drying rack when Ayla decided she'd need a second one for the meat.

"Would you mind making me another rack?" she asked her mate. "I think I have too much for that one . . . plus, I would like to keep the meat separate from the plants.

"Umm . . . okay," he said, looking around. "Where is the wood?""

I gathered plenty of long sticks, but they are on the ledge."

"I'll do it," Davaria said, noticing Grov's furrowed brow. "Do you have more cordage?"

"Yes, it is in my pack." She watched as Grov got up to get it and then proceeded to help Davaria with the construction. While they worked, Ayla and Danta skinned the animals.

When the rack was finished, Ayla asked the men to place it near the fire and immediately began cutting the meat into thin strips and placing them on the rack to dry. Danta did the same. Ayla also saved some deer meat, which she began cooking in a pot, and she put one of the rabbits into the shallow ground oven, along with a ptarmigan that no one had noticed.

After all the meat, and all the other various parts of the dead animals, had been taken care of, the women turned to scraping the hides. Once they were reasonably satisfied with their work, they rolled them up and sat down to rest with a cup of tea. It had been a long day.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

For several days following Grov and Davaria's _lucky_ hunt, the travelers sat out by their fire on the beach, working hard to process the spoils of what had already been gained, and used the time to make more gifts for Oak Camp.

On one side of the fire, Grov and Davaria worked on many different projects, from wood, bone and ivory carving, which was quite interesting to the Clan couple, to flintknapping, knife making, shaft straightening and spear assembling. And on everything that he possibly could, Davaria carved very realistic-looking representations of his new camp's symbol: the oak leaf. And on some pieces he carved the animal that showed to what hearth the person belonged.

Grov noticed that Davaria seemed to be taking great pride in his work, something he didn't think the man usually did. And though Grov helped where he could, making flint blades and points, Davaria tried to make sure that the majority of the work was done by himself. It didn't bother Grov at all that he wasn't helping more, because he knew that this was a good time for him to watch and learn about how the Others made things. Plus, he had the time to make things for himself. Grov smiled at how the other man had changed. This was definitely a different Davaria, he thought to himself.

Davaria, on the other hand, knew that the gifts didn't _have_ to be made solely by himself and his sister, but he felt a great need for them to be, as much as possible, truly from just the two of them. He did, however, like the help, limited as it was, but enjoyed the companionship even more. He was not used to working so closely with someone, or to having someone to talk to. He had already decided that Grov was a good man; a man that he would definitely call a friend. As they worked, his mind kept drifting to thoughts of living at Oak Camp, and he wished that Grov was going to be there over the long winter.

On the other side of their beachfire, Danta was having similar thoughts about Ayla; she didn't want to spend the winter away from her. After all, awful as it was, they were leaving everything they knew to live out the rest of their lives with people they hardly knew. It was what she wanted, and knew it was for the best, but it was a frightening thought that might have seemed less so, if only Ayla and her family were going to be at Oak Camp too.

About the process of making gifts, Danta didn't seem as concerned about who made what. She and Ayla had finished the wooden cups and bowls by rubbing them smooth with round rocks and sand, and sat to admire them; they were exquisite. Then the two women moved on the other things. They wove mats for sitting and baskets that they planned to fill. Some with vivid designs, while others were quite subtle. They discussed each and every person at Oak Camp. They were still having trouble coming up with ideas for some people, but they figured that, eventually, something would come to mind.

Ayla also spent time with her horses. She talked to them constantly, brushed their coats with a dried piece of teasel, and spent long periods of time gathering grains and hay to feed them and make them comfortable. It was obvious to everyone that she already loved her newfound friends and that _they_, in return, loved the two-legged creature that took them in.

Ayla loved to watch her three horses interact, and noticed that not a day went by without them grooming each other, even if she had just done it for them. Sometimes they would stand side by side, or nose to tail, using their teeth to scratch each other's itchy places. Other times they'd stand, huddled together, nickering softly back and forth. Ayla soon realized that, much like humans, touch was an important sense to a horse. That body contact was frequently used to communicate mood. There were also times that the contacted served more of a purpose; sometimes she saw all three of them, with their heads together, using their tails to swat the flies away.

Through her observations, Ayla noticed that Stomp was much more reserved than she had previously thought. And though she obviously enjoyed the companionship of the other two horses, she generally preferred to graze in peace, sometimes even alone, while Whinney and Nicuria had the tendency to be more playful and curious.

Whinney had taken to watching Ayla intently whenever the woman was talking to her, and even sometimes when she was not. And though she never got in the woman's way, the yellow mare also seemed to like to follow her around; like she was more relaxed when the woman was in sight. Sometimes Ayla would look up to find Whinney standing there, silently watching her work, and she'd smile, stop what she was doing and give the horse some attention. Other times, Whinney would nudge her gently to let her know it had been a while since she'd had spoken to her or touched her. Ayla wondered why the horse was so interested in what she was doing. Why would the horse find _her_ more interesting than anyone else? she wondered. But it wasn't really that hard to figure out; Ayla was the one that was always providing attention.

_Nicuria_ also liked to follow Ayla, though his presence was sometimes more bothersome than the woman would have liked. His nudges weren't always so gentle and Ayla found herself irritated with him often, though not too badly. He was, after all, only a horse, she thought.

Another of Nicuria's quirks was that he seemed to enjoy taking her things. If she was working on a hide, but set it aside, he'd pick it up and walk away with it, causing her to go after him. He always dropped it when she turned her back on him, which led her to believe that he only did it to make her get up. It annoyed her, but it also made her smile.

Another one that was annoyed by him was Stomp; she seemed extremely bothered by her son and his antics, but that was soon to end. After a particularly hard kick to the face, he stopped trying to suckle his mother, and generally stayed out of her way. Though Ayla understood the mare's frustration, she felt bad for Nicuria and did her best to compensate, giving him treats whenever he behaved. She was sure that the young colt noticed her extra care.

"Am _I_ your mother now, Nicuria?" Ayla had asked him one day after she'd finished brushing dirt out of his short stand up mane. He had nickered softly and leaned into her, as if answering.

**xXx**

On another day, early in the morning before anyone else had risen, Ayla got up and went out onto the broad ledge outside the cave. The moon had gone through half a cycle of its phases since they had arrived, and they had managed to accumulate almost everything that they wanted, though they had not worked out how they were going to get everything back yet. They had hunted three more times since their first _lucky_ hunt, only managing to kill small animals, and still wanted to make a bigger kill, but they had not figured out how to do it yet. Other than being short one large animal, and having a few things to make, they were essentially ready to go back to the meeting. It would not be much longer, Ayla thought. In a way it made her sad, but she _was_ looking forward to seeing everyone again.

Standing on the ledge, she sipped her tea and watched the horses. Stomp and Whinney were casually drinking water from the river, while Nucuria wandered around, looking for things to get into. Ayla had to smile as she watched them.

Finally, having drunk the last of her tea, the woman went down to the beach for a morning swim. After saying a silent _good morning_ to her horses, she removed her clothing, put them on a large piece of driftwood, and before diving into the water, she dropped her amulet onto the pile.

Using powerful strokes, the woman pulled herself upriver, then allowed the current to bring her back. Looking back at the shoreline, she noticed Nicuria, following her on the beach as she drifted back downstream in the river. She smiled and thought about why they had come to the valley in the first place: to get horses that she was supposed to _ride_.

Ayla relaxed in the water as the current pulled her even further downstream, then turned over to push her way back up. Once at the place where she had entered the water, she decided to get back out again.

Breathing hard, she got out of the river. As she crossed the beach to the log where her clothes lay, she pushed the excess water from her body. She pulled her amulet over her head first, then quickly dressed again. Finally, she turned her attention to Nicuria and Whinney, who had come to receive her scratches. Her mind was trying to process the absurd thought of sitting on a horse's back. She frowned and shook her head, wondering if it would work. She glanced at Stomp, trying to decide which horse she should ride. The white horse was the calmest of the three, when left alone, but tended to let everyone know she was upset by pawing the ground roughly, and Ayla had seen her lash out angrily at her own son on more than one occasion. Not a good sign, she thought. What would she do if Ayla attempted to sit on her back? Maybe she wasn't the best choice for a first ride.

Ayla ran her hand down the length of Nicuria's nose and considered him. Unlike his mother, he probably wouldn't object, she thought. She watched as he took a few steps away from her, shift on his feet and shake his head wildly. _No_, she thought, not him either; he's not very predictable.

Finally, she looked at Whinney. The mare had watched Nicuria's exuberant movements with calm curiosity. _Would she mind? Ayla thought. Would she let me?_ Ayla watched the mare wander back to where Stomp was, while her mind went to her vision. Whinney _had_ been the one that she'd been on in her vision. She smiled.

"So, _Whinney_ it is," she said out loud. The woman gave a short whistle, to see if the horse would come to her. It seemed to have worked on other occasions and this morning was no different. _She led the horse to the log and climbed up on it, then put her arms around the horse's neck and lifted a leg. Run with me, Whinney. Run and take me with you, she thought, then straddled the horse._

The young mare was unaccustomed to weight on her back, and she flattened her ears back and pranced nervously. But, though the weight was unfamiliar, the woman was not, and Ayla's arms around her neck had a calming influence. Whinney almost reared to throw the weight off, then tried to run away from it instead. Breaking into gallop, she raced down the

small stretch of beach _with Ayla clinging to her back._ When her nervousness at the sudden burst of speed subsided, the woman looked to her side to see Nicuria matching the mare's pace.

After making a circle at the end of the beach, Whinney turned and headed back to where they had been. It had been an amazing ride and before they had even stopped, Ayla slid off the horse's back and threw her arms around the horse's neck.

"Oh, _Whinney, that was wonderful!" Ayla_ exclaimed loudly, _her eyes sparkling with excitement. She lifted the drooping muzzle with both hands and laid her cheek on the animal's nose._ This is what she had come for, she thought with a wide grin. I have what I came for.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Ayla thanked Whinney for the amazing ride again, this time giving her one of the tart apples the horses like so much along with her loving touches. She held one out to Nicuria as well, and laughed when his soft muzzle tickled her palm. Then, picking up a piece of teasel that she had sitting with her small shoulder bag, she began brushing out the horses' sweaty coats. Whinney nickered softly, letting the woman know that she was enjoying the attention, then moved off to get a drink when Ayla finished. After his brushing, Nicuria nudged her for more treats, but Ayla wouldn't be taken advantage of.

"That's enough, Nicuria," Ayla said, gently pushing the colt's head away. "You didn't do anything to deserve a treat." Nicuria nickered back at her, then went off to get a drink of water. He had, after all, run alongside Whinney, and was thirsty too.

After watching the horse's bound away, Ayla sat down by the traveler's daily fire pit. It was cold and she considered making a fire, but she didn't know what everyone would want to do that day and didn't feel like taking the time to make a fire. For a while she continued to watch the horses, wishing that she could ride Whinney again. Stomp seemed interested in sniffing Whinney, making the woman wonder if the other horse could smell her scent on Whinney. Nicuria was his usual curious self, but returned to Ayla after drinking heavily. Whinney followed him.

"Are you ready to take me running already, Whinney?" Ayla asked the young mare. The horse tossed her head and pranced around, which made Ayla smile. Ayla quickly led the horse back over to the log to try again. This time, when she lifted her leg and straddled the mare, Whinney seemed more relaxed. Her ears twitched slightly and she shifted on her feet, but she didn't take off running immediately. Ayla couldn't help but grin when Nicuria came up to find out what was going on.

"Do you want me to ride you too?" she asked him, patting the top of his head. As if answering her, he whinnied, then blew in her face, but she turned her attention back to the mare that carried her.

"Come on, Whinney," she said, gently tapping the horse's sides with her feet and unconsciously leaning forward. "Let's run again." The horse instantly started moving, though not too fast at first, but the more the woman leaned forward, the faster the horse seemed to go. _Is that your signal to go faster?_ Ayla wondered to herself as she leaned forward more. She instantly noticed that Whinney's gait changed and she smiled. It _must_ be, she mused.

As they ran down the beach, Ayla saw Nicuria racing alongside them, then pull ahead. He was a fast runner and had apparently wanted to join in on the racing fun. Ayla watched him move far out in front of them; it seemed like he was going to continue on, but when she signaled Whinney to turn, he pulled up short and, making a sharp arc, burst forth once again to catch up. Ayla watched him over her should with a smile; he caught up quickly.

By the time the woman and the two horses reached the place on the beach where they had begun, all three were breathless.

**xXx**

In his groggy, only partially aware morning state, Grov noticed his mate's absence. He had rolled over to snuggle up to her, but found a cold bed instead. He had stayed up late with Davaria the night before and was still tired, but it had been worth it, because they had continued their work on spear points. He was quite pleased with his own progress at manipulating flint the way the Others did, but Davaria was still better at it.

Opening his eyes slightly, to visually verify that Ayla was not next to him, he gave a cursory glance at the empty space beside him, then he rolled over. Danta was sitting up and smiling at him.

"Good morning," she said cheerfully, then nodded in his direction. "Someone missing?"

Grov pulled himself up onto his right elbow and smiled across the fire at her sheepishly. "Um-hum," he answered. "Is it morning _already_?"

Danta grinned. "Yes, and it's pretty late too . . . I _think_." She glanced at the cave's entrance to judge the position of the sun, then she looked back at him. "But then, I slept late too, and I wasn't up half the night. I guess I can't tease about how late you've slept."

Grov continued to smile. "You've just gotten up too?" he asked.

She nodded. "Though you can hardly call me _up_," she answered, gesturing at her position on her sleeping platform. She blushed slightly, wondering what he thought about her laziness. She was used to sleeping quite a lot at Sumac Camp and supposed that would end when they moved to Oak Camp, but for now, it was still okay.

"How about some tea?" She asked, standing up and going to the fire.

"Sure," he said, lying back again and sighing heavily. "That'd be great." He lay there for a moment, staring at the pattern of rock above his head, then he glanced over at the children. Durc and Ora were still asleep, but Annaliza was awake, staring over at him round-eyed. She was holding her doll, clutched tightly in her arms, but she hadn't made a sound. She was always so quiet; quite unlike her sister, he thought with a smile. Finally, smiling an invitation, he patted the empty space beside him on the bed platform to encourage the tiny girl to get up. Annaliza smiled and, still holding her doll, crawled out of her own bed to join the man on his.

Grov held her lovingly, rubbing the top of her small blond head as she nestled into him. Annaliza was still in his arms, quietly enjoying the comforting embrace of the man of her hearth. Grov could not help but compare this child to Ora, a much more active and mouthy child. Though he was sure there was plenty of time for Annaliza to change, Ora had never been one to allow him, or anyone else, to hold her for very long. In fact, he thought, she was very much like he remembered her mother to be. And from what he'd heard about Nora . . . Evenora . . . the child was an exact replica of her.

Grov tried hard to think about his first mate and frowned. He hardly ever thought of her anymore and when he did, things seemed a little cloudy. His memories of her seemed to be fading. Was that normal? he asked himself. He tried to picture Nora's face, in his mind's eyes. At first could only see Ayla, but then Nora's face appeared. Then a thought occurred to him; if it wasn't for Ayla, I don't think I'd even be able to see Nora's face anymore. He thought about his Clan memories, obviously less than someone that full Clan, and wondered if they could fade over time. He had never been able to remember things as well as the other members of their clan, but to forget a face? That seemed odd to him. He shook his head slightly, then, still holding Annaliza, sat up and looked over at Danta.

"So, where's Ayla?" he asked her.

Danta had just dropped some tealeaves into the man's cup and was pouring freshly heated water over them. "Your guess is as good as mine," she said, shrugging. "My guess is, _outside somewhere_," she said, whispering the last part and pointed toward the cave's entrance.

The man glanced toward the opening of the cave, then back at the woman. "Hummmm, good guess," he said, gently placing Annaliza beside him, so that he could get up and pull on his leggings.

"Would you mind if I left Iza here while I went to look for Ayla," he asked as he picked up Annaliza again and walked toward Danta and the cup of hot tea she was now offering him.

"No, of course not," she answered, smiling up at the handsome man. She held out a cup of her tea to the sleepy man, then took the baby from him. Annaliza laid her head on the woman's shoulder and stuck her two middle fingers into the mouth.

"Thanks," he said, sipping the tea. It wasn't what Ayla would have made for him, but it was good nonetheless.

**xXx**

Once outside on the ledge, Grov stopped and stared at what he saw. He knew that _this_ was why they had come, but he was still shocked that he was actually seeing his woman ride the length of the sandy valley on one of the horses . . . Whinney, he noted, focusing on the golden mare beneath his mate.

Grov watched as they raced down the beach; Ayla's hair streaming behind her, and noticed that she sat up slightly to make the turn, then leaned forward again to urge the mare back into a gallop. He could tell that she already had a handle on the horse and smiled in amazement. Leave it to Ayla, he thought to himself.

"Danta," he called back over his shoulder. "You've got to see this."

Danta was busy fixing the mash that she'd seen Ayla give to her daughter, but stopped and walked out to the man.

"What is it?" she asked, stopping beside him, but she didn't need him to answer. When she looked out across the valley, she leaned into him, speechless for the moment.

Grov looked down at her and grinned at the amazed expression on the woman's face. "_This_ is why we have come here," he said. Danta nodded. She knew that the purpose of their journey had been to attain and ride a horse, but it had seemed so impossible to her that she hadn't really thought the woman would be able to do what she had set out _to_ do. This was utterly amazing.

"I can't believe it, Grov," Danta finally whispered.

He smiled at her again. "I can. There's nothing she won't try."

As the two of them watched Ayla riding back and forth on Whinney, Davaria came up beside them. "What are we looking at?" he asked, first rubbing his eyes and then draping his arm over his sister's shoulder, before looking down into the valley. "Oh _Mother_!" he exclaimed when he focused on the sight. "How did she _do_ that?"

Danta laughed at her brother's exuberance, then shrugged. "I have _no_ idea. You'll have to ask _her_."

**xXx**

After riding for a time, Ayla started to wonder if everyone was going to sleep all day. She had just completed another circle of the beach when she glanced up at the cave's entrance to see Grov, Danta, and Davaria standing there watching her. Smiling, she waved, then slid off her horse to go up to the ledge to join them. She had her answer.

"We see that you did it," said Grov, taking her into his arms; he could smell the horse mixed in with the woman's usual scent.

"Yes, and it was not very difficult either," Ayla said excitedly. "Whinney was frightened when I climbed on her the first time. She even tried to run away from me while I was on her, but she knew that I would not hurt her and calmed down quickly."

Danta looked surprised. "But weren't _you_ frightened?" she asked, thinking that the horses were very large animals. She certainly didn't want to ride them.

Ayla shook her head. "No, Danta, this is why we are here," Ayla explained simply. "I _knew_ Whinney would let me ride her, because I've already seen myself _on_ her. Just as Grov is going to ride Stomp," she finished, smiling at him.

"So . . . is it time to go back to the summer meeting then," Davaria asked with a frown. He was both looking forward to going back and extremely nervous at the same time. He wanted to be adopted by Oak Camp, and going back was the only way for that to happen, but he wished they weren't going to have to see anyone from Sumac Camp when they got there. He truly didn't want trouble, but knew that there was bound to be some, no matter what.

"Well, soon, I guess," Grov said. "There are still a few things that I'd like to make . . . my spears are finished." He paused and smiled at the other man. "Thanks to Davaria . . . but I'd really like to make a new handle for this knife," he said, pulling out the knife in question and holding it up. It was one that Vincenzia had given to him when he had come to see Ayla at the clan's cave.

Ayla nodded. It _was_ in need of a new handle, she thought. "And I would like to make a new hand-axe; I broke mine while I was chopping driftwood that first day we were here."

"And we need to figure out how we're going to get all our gifts back to the meeting," Danta said with a frown. "We were weighted down pretty heavily _before_ . . . when we left the summer meeting. I don't see how we can carry everything now." She worried that they'd have to leave things behind after working so hard to make them.

Grov looked at the woman's stressed expression and almost read her mind. "Don't worry, Danta. We'll get everything back to the meeting." He glanced down at the horses in the valley and smiled. "Maybe the horses can help us," he suggested. "What do you think, Ayla?"

Ayla turned to look at the horses frolicking on the beach below and, raising her eyebrows, considered what Grov wanted to do. Then she nodded. "I think that is a very good idea." Ayla then looked at Danta and patted her arm. "Don't worry," Ayla said, repeating Grov's words. "We will think of something." Danta smiled, glad that she had her friends there to help her.

"So a few more days then," Davaria asked, feeling somewhat relieved. He wasn't completely ready to go back yet.

"I suppose a few more days will be enough to finish everything," Grov said. "But we should definitely get back after that. I'm sure Vincenzia is getting a little nervous about Ayla being gone for so long. How long _has_ it been anyway?" he asked.

Ayla thought for a moment. "We have seen half a cycle of the moon's phases, plus . . . five more days," she answered, pressing her fingers against her leg as she counted the things they had done since they left the meeting.

"Then . . . that is what? About . . . nineteen days?" Grov added quickly, looking to Ayla for confirmation. She nodded. "So, we'll stay here . . . maybe three or four more days, and then start out. How does that sound?" Everyone nodded acceptance. That was certainly enough time to complete the rest of their tasks.

"How long do you think it will take to get back to the meeting?" Davaria asked. He was glad he had a few more days to mentally prepare himself for their return, but he wanted to know exactly how long he had.

"Well, it took us about four days to get _here_," answered Grov. "That's with the detour we took to find you three and a day's worth of rest. I would guess that it will take longer to get back because of all that we have to carry . . . maybe seven or eight days?"

Ayla nodded. "That sounds reasonable. But I will still think about how we can use the horses to help us." She looked down at them again. "If Whinney can carry _me_ around, then I'm sure she can carry a few of your gifts. And with Stomp and Nicuria's help as well, we should be just fine. Maybe it will not take as long as we think."

**xXx**

Everyone seemed quite content for the rest of that day. Ayla made them a late morning meal, then nursed her daughter, before going out again to the horses. She spent a long time riding Whinney, trying different things until she felt like she had a good hand at directing the mare. Then, much to her son's delight, she offered to give him his first ride.

"Come over to this rock and I will help you get on," she said, leading her son.

Durc followed her and, with her help, bravely hopped on the mare's back and held onto Whinney's stiff mane as he had been instructed, while waiting patiently for his mother to climb on behind him. Whinney shifted her feet slightly and flicked her ears back. The extra weight was different, but she was comfortable with these people and did not panic.

Ayla reached around her son to hold onto the horse's mane as well, then spoke. "Fast or slow?" she asked, already knowing his answer. He took one hand off the horse and made the Clan gesture for fast. Ayla smiled at the one-handed gesture; she couldn't help but think about Creb.

"Ready?" she asked. Durc nodded and leaned forward as his mother leaned into him. Whinney knew the signal to go fast and took off across the beach. When they got to the far end, Ayla sat up slightly and tapped her left heal on the horse's side, signaling that she wanted the horse to slow and make a left turn, then they leaned into the horse again to enjoy the ride back.

"Me too! _Me too_!" Ora exclaimed when Ayla pulled Whinney to a stop in front of everyone. She was clapping her hands excitedly. "I want to ride _Whiinneey_.

Ayla smiled as she helped Durc slide down. "You can have a ride, Ora."

Still astride, she held out her arms to the little girl as Grov handed Ora to her. "Hold Whinney's mane right here," Ayla said, showing the three-year-old. "See?" Ora nodded, doing what Ayla told her to do, but seemed a little nervous when the horse swayed to the side. She tightened her grip on the horse.

"Not so tight, Ora," Ayla said, loosening the child's hands and putting an arm around the child's waist. "Mamma will hold onto you."

"Not so fast as Durc, Mamma," Ora said nervously.

"All right, we won't go fast." Ayla leaned forward slightly, which told Whinney to start moving, but to make it a slow ride, and the horse complied. They made a small circle on the beach, then returned once again to where everyone stood waiting.

Ora was all smiles as Grov took her down. "That was fun, Mamma."

"Anyone else?" Ayla asked, looking at Danara. She thought Annaliza was too young, but that Danta's daughter might like to try.

"Oh Mamma, _can I_?" she asked, intertwining her fingers and holding them up to her face. Danta looked nervous, but nodded reluctantly.

Grov set Ora down, then picked up Danta's daughter and settled her in front of Ayla. Danara didn't need to be told to hold onto Whinney's mane; she had already seen the other two ride.

"Okay," Ayla said with a grin. "_Fast or slow_?"

Though Danara was not as nervous as Ora had been, she wasn't sure she was as brave as Durc. But still, she wanted to impress her new friend. "I think . . . like Durc," she finally said.

"_Okay_, ready?" Danara nodded, then gasped as Ayla urged Whinney on. Ayla made the ride exciting for the child, but not quite as fast as Durc's ride had been. Danara didn't seem to notice. When they got back to the others the child had tears of joy in her eyes.

"That was so much fun, Mamma," she exclaimed once she was in her mother's arms again.

Danta smiled. "What do you say?"

Danara turned to Ayla, who had just gotten off Whinney and slapped her rump to let her know she could go get a drink. "Thank you, Ayla."

"There is no need to thank _me_. It was Whinney that gave you the ride. Here," Ayla said, pulling an apple out of her shoulder bag, "you can thank Whinney next time she comes over here." Danara smiled and took the apple; she could hardly wait for the horse's return.

**xXx**

By the time they had finished riding, the sun was well past its midpoint in the sky and was beating down up the people. They had noticed quite quickly that it was significantly warmer in their protected little valley; the canyon walls blocked much of the breeze that one usually found out on the open steppes, and trapped the heat of the sun. Everyone decided that it was the perfect weather for a swim.

They all stripped down and jumped in, enjoying the clear, refreshing water, as they splashed it at one another. After playing with everyone for awhile, Ayla swam upstream to dig up the soaproot she had seen growing there, then brought it back so that she could pound the soapy foam from the roots. She gave some to Danta, then washed herself with it, first rubbing it on her body, then working it into her hair. Afterwards, she dove into the water to rinse, then returned to wash her three children. She started with Annaliza, who calmly sat there enjoying her mother's attention, while Durc washed himself. Only Ora protested; she was having too much fun swimming, but once again, Grov's stern look helped to silence the child.

After being washed, Ora didn't seem to want to go back into the water, but instead was drawn to their outside fire, where Danta was now cooking a late lunch. Ayla shook her head as she watched her naked daughter stroll over and sit down beside the other three children, food now the only thing on her mind. Glancing back at the river, Ayla watched Grov and Davaria climb up the opposite bank and disappear around the corner, then she looked to the horses, trying to think of a way to use them to carry their things back to the summer meeting. She wondered if she could make some kind of basket that the horses could carry on their backs. She looked back at Danta, who was stirring something in a small cooking pot. Danta has other things sitting around, including several larger, tightly woven baskets. An idea started forming in her mind, but she'd have to try it out before she was sure it would work.

Getting up, she walked over to where Danta was working. "Do you mind if I borrow one of your baskets?"

"Of course not, Ayla," Danta said. "What are you going to do with it?"

Ayla frowned. "I'm not sure yet, but I want to see if I can get Whinney to carry a basket for us." Danta continued to silently watch the younger woman; she could tell that she was trying to figure it out and didn't want to interrupt her thoughts.

"And this twine . . . can I borrow this too?" Ayla asked.

Danta nodded. "You can have it."

"Thank you," Ayla said, picking up the basket and twine.

"No, thank _you_," said Danta. "I have _no_ idea where to start on this. I am grateful that you have some ideas."

Ayla smiled. "Well, let's just see if this works." She turned toward the horses and let out a loud whistle. All three heads came up, but only Whinney and Nicuria moved to join the women. Ayla decided to start by giving them a treat, and then another before attempting to set the basket on Whinney's back. When she finally did set it there, it immediately toppled over and fell off the other side. Ayla frowned and went around to pick it up.

"Maybe this basket is too tall," she said, looking at the other baskets Danta had sitting there. There was one that was much bigger around, but significantly more shallow. "Can I try _this_ one?" Danta handed the basket to Ayla, then stood up to watch her work.

Ayla placed the shallower basket on Whinney's back and frowned again. It stayed on, but it was quite large and drooped over Whinney's sides, making the sides of the basket turn in on themselves; this will not hold anything, she thought with frustration.

Danta could tell Ayla wasn't happy and chanced making a suggestion. "What if we weave a basket that's as long as _this_ basket," she said, touching the drooping basket. "But no wider than Whinney's back?"

"That sounds good, but how will we get it to stay on Whinney's back?" Ayla asked, not really expecting an answer. "Because that's the real problem, isn't it? The taller basket would be good too, but it falls off."

"Do you think she would let us tie the basket on her?"

Ayla looked at Nicuria. He still had Davaria's rope around his neck with the length coiled up and dangling. The colt didn't even seem to notice it anymore; he wasn't any worse for the wear, she thought.

"Maybe," Ayla said. "Let's try it, but let's just use that mat." Danta nodded as she picked it up and placed it over the mare's back lengthwise. Ayla then unwound the twine and handed one end to Danta under Whinney's belly. "We could weave it through the side of the mat and then tie a knot." Both women attached the twine to the front end of the mat, then attached a second one at the back so that the mat was strapped onto the horse's back, but it wasn't very tight and it seemed to bother the horse. When Whinney turned her head around to try and pull it off, it slipped to her side, making the two women frown again.

"Well, _that's_ not going to work," Ayla said dejectedly. She pulled on the twine over Whinney's back and looked at the mat on her side. Suddenly another idea came to her.

"I've got it, Danta!" she exclaimed, as she untied the knots on one end of the mat and pulled it off the horse. Excitedly, she picked up the first basket she had tried to use and walked around to Danta's side of the horse. "What if we make two baskets, similar to this one, that can hang on either side of Whinney's back, like this?" She demonstrated by attaching the twine to one side of the basket, but leaving enough length to go over the horse's back. When she finished, she swung the mat over the horse and held it in place.

"Of course it will work better with a basket on each side. And with all of our things in them, they should stay in place nicely. What do you think?"

Danta was frowning, trying to picture the device Ayla was describing, then nodded her head. "Sounds like it'll work, but we'll have to make the baskets the right shape, so that they lay nice on either side of her." She nodded her head again and smiled, then hugged Ayla. "Grov is right, there's nothing you can't do."

**xXx**

As the people sat by their outside fire having a late lunch, Ayla and Danta explained their idea to get everything back to the summer meeting. "We'll still have to walk back, but at least we won't have to carry anything," Ayla said.

"Do you really think we can get everything on Whinney?" Davaria asked, completely ignoring her comment about walking; he hadn't even considered _riding_ the horses back. For one thing, there were eight people and only three horses. But the biggest reason was that he was still frightened of them.

Ayla shrugged. "Well, we have Stomp and Nicuria too. We can make a set baskets to go over their backs as well, though I think they might be less cooperative."

"And a stretcher . . . maybe the horses could carry a stretcher somehow too," Grov suggested. "If we need more help."

"And maybe the children could ride sometimes too," Danta suggested.

"Yes," Davaria said. "Traveling _is_ pretty hard on them."

"And on Ayla too," Grov added. "She's always carrying Iza."

Ayla smiled at him, grateful that he was always thinking of her, then nodded her agreement about traveling with children. Traveling was definitely hard on the young.

As she listened to everyone talk about ways to get back to the meeting, she was quite thankful everyone had ideas about making the trip easier. And though she hoped the panniers worked the way she thought they would, so that they wouldn't have to use stretchers, she was no longer worried about how they'd get everything back. They'd make it, no matter what they had to do. She considered the use of stretchers; they hadn't brought any with them, because they hadn't needed them at the time they left the meeting. It would be extra work if it was decided they needed them now, but it didn't really matter, Grov would take care of it.

Ayla continued to watch everyone talk and laugh and she smiled at the group; they had brought much joy to the journey. She watched her mate laughing with the other man and smiled; she would never have been able to hear him laughing so freely if they hadn't have left their clan for the summer. It was something she would never forget.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

The next morning when Ayla woke, _she_ was the one alone in bed; Grov was gone and his space was cold. She frowned at the empty place beside her, then sat up quickly and looked around the cave, the girls were still sleeping soundly, cuddled up close in their bed, but Durc was not in his. She frowned again as a moment of panic washed over her. Where was her son?

Next, she looked toward the cave's entrance. The light coming from there was only minimal. It must still be very early, she thought to herself. But then . . . where is Durc? she wondered, looking to the back of the cave where her son's bed was. This time she could not even see his bed and automatically closed her eyes. The daylight, low as it was, had caused her pupils to shrink, making it hard to see in the low light of the cave.

Jumping out of bed, she went to stoke the low-burning fire, then squinted into the near darkness with her sunlight impaired eyes to see that Danta and Danara were still sleeping as well, but that Davaria wasn't in his sleeping place. Hoping to be able to see better, she closed her eyes again, then looked back at her girls to make sure they were indeed there. She sighed with relief, they were. But then she frowned again because Durc was not.

"Where _are_ they?" she whispered, sitting down on her bed platform again and searching her mind. Suddenly she remembered. The night before they had talked about hunting again today. Now she remembered saying that she didn't want to go; that she had a few things to do. They are _hunting_, she said to herself, relieved that she had finally remembered, but embarrassed that she had forgotten.

Sighing heavily, Ayla went back to the fire and made herself a cup of tea, then started the morning meal.

**xXx**

With Danta and the girls watching, Ayla spent the first part of the day riding again. She _could hardly keep herself off the horse's back. Riding the young mare as she galloped at top speed was an inexpressible joy. It thrilled her more than anything she had ever known._ And _Whinney seemed to enjoy it as well,_ so _she quickly became accustomed to carrying the woman on her back._

"Okay, who's next?" Ayla asked, smiling at Danta.

Danta smiled back, then realized that Ayla wanted _her_ to ride the horse. "_Me_?" she said, holding up her hand and shaking her head. "I . . . I don't think so."

Ayla grinned. "Oh come on, Danta. It's easy . . . and Whinney's real gentle. She won't go fast."

"Oh, I don't know, Ayla," said Danta, frowning with fear and looking at her daughter, hoping the child would back her up. Unfortunately for her, Danara wasn't any help at all.

"Yes Mamma," Danara squealed delightedly. "You _have_ to ride. It is _so_ much fun." Danta frowned again and looked back at Ayla, who had hopped down off the horse and was quickly approaching.

"Come on, it's easy," Ayla said, taking her friend's hand.

Danta stood up and looked over at the horse, then back at Ayla. "But I'm scared," she admitted, resisting Ayla's gentle tug. "What if I fall off?"

Ayla smiled. "Don't worry, Danta, I will ride with you. You won't fall off Whinney; I won't let you."

Danta glanced at the horse again. Whinney was standing there calmly, her tail swishing back and forth. "You're going to ride with me?" Ayla nodded. "Don't you think Whinney will mind?"

Ayla shrugged. "I am not sure. She did not mind when Durc was on her back with me."

"But Durc isn't as big as me," Danta said, trying to get out of riding. "Do you think she is big enough to carry both of _us_?"

"I think she is," Ayla said, glancing at Whinney again, then back at Danta. She was sure the woman was just trying to make excuses. "Danta, you don't have to ride if you don't want to, but it _is_ safe. I've been riding all day and look at me." Ayla dropped the other woman's hand and spread her arms wide so that Danta could see her better. "I am fine . . . right?"

Danta nodded slowly. "Yes, Ayla, I can see that you are just fine." She looked at the Whinney and stroked the horse's long nose. "Will you give me a gentle ride, Whinney?" she asked, and smiled when the horse nickered and nodded her head. Danta laughed, wondering if Whinney could really understand her.

"Are you going to ride Whinney, Mamma?" asked Danara with a smile.

Danta knelt down in front of her daughter and smiled. If the child was brave enough to ride, then surely _she_ could, couldn't she?

"Sure I will," she answered her daughter. Danara clapped her hands together loudly, and so did Ora and Annaliza.

Ayla smiled. "Well okay then. "Let's go over to the rock so we can climb on," she said, pointing excitedly at the rock she had used to help the children get on the horse.

Danta grinned at her friend's excitement, then nodded and followed Ayla. When they got to the rock, she grabbed Ayla's hand again and nervously climbed up. Then, just as Ayla was explaining what she should do, Danta hesitated, frowned, and jumped back down from the rock.

"What is it?" Ayla asked, thinking that Danta had changed her mind.

"How are you going see if you are behind me?"

Ayla frowned and cocked her head to the side. She hadn't thought about _that_ part. "Maybe _I_ should be in front then, and you can hold on to my waist instead of Whinney's mane. What do you think?"

Danta shrugged. "I don't know, Ayla. Whinney's _your_ horse. If you think that's best, then that's what we'll do."

Ayla grinned and grabbed onto Whinney's stiff mane to swing herself onto horse's back. Once settled, she moved closer to the rock that would help her friend; she no longer needed it, but she knew that Danta did. Calmly, she waited as the nervous woman took a deep breath and climbed back onto the rock again. Finally, she patted Whinney's back behind her and looked at Danta.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Ayla asked, holding out her arm to assist the other woman. "Come on up."

Taking another deep breath, Danta placed her right hand on Ayla's outstretched arm and gingerly lifted her left leg to slide it over the mare's back. Ayla used her strong right arm to help swing the other woman up behind her, then waited while Danta settled herself.

"You can put your arms around my waist and just lean with me." Danta nodded. "Are you ready?" Ayla asked. Danta nodded again, but when Ayla leaned forward and Whinney took off, the woman let out a scream and buried her face in Ayla's hair. Ayla slowed a bit, to allow Danta to calm down, but kept going. Eventually Danta pulled her face out of Ayla's hair and looked around. They were already almost to the far end of the beach. Danta blinked with surprise, hardly believing that she hadn't fallen off.

By the time the two women arrived back at the children again, Danta couldn't wipe the grin off of her face. Riding the horse was an experience she had never dreamed of before; one more exciting than anything she knew.

After jumping down off Whinney, the women and children swam for awhile, before going back to their fire for an afternoon meal. Ayla had lifted a few fish out of the river before getting out and, as promised, Danta had cooked them, while Ayla ran off to gather some fresh greens. The meal did not take long to make, or eat, then they got out the things they would need to start the horse panniers.

Sitting to Ayla's left, Danta glanced at Ayla's hands as she quickly wove the basket's base and copied the size and shape as exactly as she could. She knew that Ayla wanted the two baskets to be identical, so that they would lie nicely on each side of the horse, but it was hard to keep up with her. Danta smiled with joy as she listened to the other woman chattering away and shook her head in disbelief. Not only was she fast, but she could talk the whole time that she was working.

For a moment, the dark-haired woman stopped and watched Ayla's speedy hands as her thoughts turned inward. She hadn't thought it possible to truly live again, but now she knew she had been wrong. She just _knew_ she could be happy again . . . if her luck did not change; she just hoped that happiness wouldn't be ripped from her, like it had been when her mate-to-be had died. Then, knowing she had no control over luck, she shook her head and focused on her weaving again.

**xXx**

"I _cannot_ believe our luck!" Davaria exclaimed as he walked behind Grov's loaded carrying contraption. They had been out since before dawn and had managed to take down two deer all on their own.

As Grov walked, carrying the front end of the stretcher, he smiled down at Durc, who walked beside him. "I would not call that luck at all, Davaria. You are a very good hunter; Oak Camp is lucky to be getting you."

Davaria beamed at the other man's praise. He knew that he hunted well enough. Sometimes it was the only way to keep himself and his sister fed at Sumac Camp, because eating wasn't always a priority there. It felt good to hear someone else say it though; no one from Sumac Camp _ever_ passed out compliments so freely.

"And that sling of yours," Davaria went on. "It's hard to believe someone could be so accurate with it, or that you just took down a full-grown deer with it, or that _Durc_ could pluck a ptarmigan out of the sky with it." He nodded his head up into the air, his long dark hair swinging back out of his eyes.

Grov smiled down at the boy again. "Well, he learned from the best; he's definitely his mother's son," he said and watched the boy puff up his chest with pride.

"And this _thing_ you have created," Davaria continued, now nodding down toward the stretcher, "it's ingenious!"

"_Actually_, this is not my creation," Grov admitted, shaking his head. "There was this very interesting, old couple that visited the clan I belonged to before I met Ayla's clan; they brought it with them and left it with us when they finally decided to leave."

"What were a couple of old people doing out on their own, _and_ in fla . . . ," Davaria started to say. Then, thinking better of it, he blushed furiously and corrected himself. "I mean . . . in Clan territory?" Davaria asked.

Grov raised his eyebrow and looked at Davaria over his shoulder. "That's a good question," he said, ignoring the man's mistake, "but what makes you think the couple _wasn't_ Clan? I didn't say they weren't."

Davaria frowned. Grov was right, he hadn't said the old couple wasn't Clan. But then, he hadn't said they _were_ either. "Were they Clan?" Davaria asked, still feeling strangely about calling the ones he had always known as _flatheads_ Clan, and feeling guilty that he couldn't seem to get it straight in his head, so that the wrong thing didn't come out of his mouth. He glanced down at Ayla's son and blushed again. He could believe he had made such a mistake, especially since Ayla's son was right there with them.

Grov smiled. "No, they were Others . . . _well_, not completely. I was just a child when they visited, but I'd guess that they were about as much Clan as my mother was. They could almost pass as Others, but not quite," he said, shaking his head, then smiling again.

"They were _great_ storytellers. I remember one that they told about a river crossing. They were on some kind of floating device that got out of control. Apparently they had to jump off of it before it broke up on some rocks. They ended up on opposite sides of the river and had to search for help. They said it was a great adventure, but that they were quite terrified at the time."

"I can imagine," Davaria said. "Did they find help quickly.

Grov shook his head. "No, just as the Others think of the Clan as flatheads or a bunch of animals, the Clan believes the Others to be . . . well, unintelligent and dangerous. They are extremely fearful of you Others. And as for those that are mixed, well . . . they are considered deformed and unlucky." Both men glanced at Ayla's son, but neither saw a reaction.

In fact, it didn't bother Durc one bit; he was used to such talk and, at the young age of five, already considered it pure nonsense. He knew he looked different, but that certainly didn't make him deformed. And he wasn't unlucky either. He had a good man at his hearth, two cute sisters, and a _perfect_ mother. He was a good hunter and already had a girl promised to him. He was quick, strong, intelligent _and_ funny. _And_, he had several friends. What more could he ask for?

"They said that they had a lot of trouble finding someone that was willing to help them; it took many moons to find help," Grov continued.

"That's just awful," Davaria said with a frown, "but I guess it ended okay, right? Or you wouldn't have met them."

"Yes, they wintered with a small group of mixed people on the most southern part of the peninsula; very close to where Ayla's clan used to live, then they moved on again when the summer came. That's when they wandered north and into my clan," Grov finished.

Davaria continued to frown. "I still think that it's awful, to be old and alone. Did they talk about what people they came from?"

Grov shook his head. "No. They said that _that_ was one story they would never tell. It must have been very sad, because they both teared up when my mother asked about their people." Grov thought about the tearful old man; it was the first time he had seen a man cry.

Still frowning, Davaria was thinking about what would have happened to Danta and himself, had Oak Camp not offered to adopt them. Would they have wandered the land into old age, all alone? He shuddered at the thought. "I wonder what happened to them."

Grov shrugged. "They were pretty old then and it's been years." He frowned. "I was about Durc's age when they visited our caves, and Teglodia and Vinoza hadn't yet join our clan," he said, feeling a sudden rush of emotion for the people that had loved him like a son and had allowed him to mate their daughter. His adoptive family had died _so_ young, he thought, then shook his head slightly to try to shift his thoughts back to the old couple again. "I suppose they're dead by now."

"So, _this_," Davaria said, tipping his head down toward the stretcher, "was their invention then?" Grov nodded. "Well then, thank Sumata for the old Clan couple."

**xXx**

It was close to evening when the small hunting party finally made it back to the valley. Their hunt had taken them pretty far to the east and they had been walking for nearly half the day. When they finally came to the trail that led down into the valley, they breathed a sigh of relief; they were exhausted, hungry and somewhat cold.

As they approached the place where their daily beachfire usually burned, they noted that it had been banked to burn long and low; surely a sign from those within the cave that they were expected back _after_ darkness. All would be glad to have them back early.

After setting the heavily loaded stretcher down beside the beachfire, and tossing a few pieces of driftwood into it, they turned toward the cave. On their approach, their stomachs growled in anticipation; the air promised that an evening meal was waiting for them. Having only brought with them a few dry, tasteless traveling cakes, all three were ready for something more.

"We're back," Davaria called out from the bottom of the steep slope.

Almost instantly, Ayla appeared on the ledge above them with a sleepy Annaliza on her hip. She smiled down at them, then looked out at the blazing beachfire.

"You had luck, I see," she said. "I will put Annaliza down, then I will come help you." She disappeared again and was gone for a moment, then returned with Danta just as the hunters got up to the ledge.

Ayla hugged her mate, who was bare from the waist up, then picked up her son. "You are both so cold. Why aren't you wearing your tunics?" she asked, walking back into the cave and over to the fire.

Grov smiled at her back. "We were not cold while we were walking," he said, sitting down by the fire.

Ayla went to her bed and pulled the furs off of it, then dropped them over her mate and son. Looking at Davaria, she pointed at his usual place beside the fire and went to get his furs. Danta was busy preparing a plate of food for each hunter.

"Mama, I killed a ptarmigan with my sling . . . just like you do," Durc informed her.

Ayla smiled. "You _did_? In the air?"

"Yes," he exclaimed excitedly. "_High_ up in the air."

"That's wonderful. Did you search out its eggs?" The boy nodded. "Well then, I will stuff it and put it in a ground oven. I will make Creb's favorite meal for our morning meal. How does that sound?" she asked as she ruffed his hair. He only smiled and nodded; his mouth was too full to speak.

**xXx**

As the hunters ate, Ayla and Danta went outside to guard and start processing the meat. They wouldn't dare leave it out there alone for too long, some predator was bound to come take it if they did.

With Ayla working on one animal and Danta on the other, they went to work. However, close inspection of the animals let them know that the men had already started their work. The animal's throats had already been slit, and they had attempted to make _a straight cut from the anus up the belly, chest, and neck, to the throat._ She could immediately tell which animal Grov had worked on; he had almost no experience with butchering, but he had done a fairly decent job, probably with Davaria's instruction. Ayla inspected the cut and noted that though it was not perfect, they had made a better effort at not cutting into the meat during their first cut, so that skinning would be easier. She smiled at the work of the men, glad that they had gotten it started; it was not quite clean, but it was definitely serviceable.

Leaning down to look inside the deer, she was pleased to see that they had also removed the entrails, _cleaned the usable parts – stomach, intestines, bladder – and put them back into the abdominal cavity along with the edible parts._ Again, she assumed Davaria had helped Grov through the process.

"It looks like all we have to do is skin them and then process the meat," Ayla finally said.

Danta stopped her inspection of the dead deer and nodded. "Do you want to do that out here or inside?"

Ayla looked up at the sun, which was quickly falling behind the western mountains. The sky was riddled with pink and orange clouds as the sun disappeared. She wiped at a stray stand of hair that the evening breeze had blown into her eyes and noticed it was rather chilly. "I think I'd rather do this inside," she finally said. "What do you think?"

Danta smiled. "Inside."

**xXx**

After eating, Grov and Davaria left Durc in charge of the cave so that they could go down to help bring up the deer. It was a hard job, lugging the dead weight up the steep incline, but once it was finally done, they were able to rest.

The women began by pulling out the animals' innards, which the men had so carefully removed, cleaned and put back into the animals for safe keeping. They took the stomachs and intestines, rinsed them again, then filled them with water to keep them soft for later use, then set the other organs aside or discarded what they did not want. Finally, they set to work skinning.

Ayla held her sharp, flint _knife in her hand with her index finger along the back and the cutting edge up,_ and inserted just under the skin to gently sliced the connective tissue away from the skin. Sticking her hand in and sliding it back and forth, she easily separated the two materials. After making the initial tear, she would only have to use her knife when the tissue was too tough to clear away with her bare hand, but for the most part, skinning was an easy job.

After separating the skin from the deer, Ayla rolled it up and put it to the side, to be scraped and cured later. When Danta finished her deer, she tossed the skin at Davaria, then the two women began cutting up the meat. _When the first thin, tongue-shaped slices of meat were ready to hang,_ Danta started picking them up to hang them over the drying rack, while Ayla started a stew that they'd be able to eat for the next few days.

It was fairly late when the two women had finished the task of processing the men's kills, but when they were finally done _there were strips of drying tendon for sinew, lengths of washed intestine, a pile of hooves and bones and another of lumps of fat waiting to be rendered and poured into the intestines for storage._

"I am so tired," Danta said, standing and brushing herself off.

Ayla was still kneeling on the ground, considering what she should do next, but looked up at the other woman. "Me too."

"Then let's go to bed," Grov said quickly, hoping Ayla would agree. He was sitting beside her, using her scrapper to removed the bloodvessels from the back of one of the deer hides. It was a job that would be considered women's work if they were with the Clan, but he didn't feel right about just sitting there since Danta had put Davaria to work. Ayla frowned and was just about to shake her head, but Danta spoke first.

"I think that's a good idea. We've done so much already; the rest can wait, can't it?" She too looked hopefully at Ayla.

Ayla looked at her three companions. Grov sat silently, with no expression on his face. He did not want to influence her decision by looking eager. He knew she would drop what she was doing to go to bed if he wanted her to, but he wanted it to be her decision. Ayla smiled to herself; she knew what he wanted even though he was trying to hide it. The other two didn't even bother to hide their opinions. Davaria looked utterly exhausted from hunting all day, and Danta just looked as if she was tired of working on the deer.

Ayla smiled. There was definitely more work to do, but they were right, it _could_ wait. "_All right_," she finally said, nodding her head and standing up. The effort made her realize that she was exhausted from their work as well, _and_ a bit sore from riding Whinney all day. Looking down at herself she sighed, then glanced wistfully at the cave opening, wishing it wasn't dark. She was covered in blood and would have loved to run down to the river to bathe.

Grov had followed her eyes as she looked from herself to the dark hole that led outside. But even if he hadn't been watching her, he would have known what was going on in her mind; he knew his mate well enough to know that all she would be thinking about now was cleaning herself up. And he didn't even have to look at himself to know how filthy _he_ was. After a day of hunting, gutting, walking, and then hide scrapping, he knew he must look awful. He had to admit he was uncomfortable, but he'd have waited until morning, if it wasn't for Ayla.

"Do you want to go down to the river?" he asked knowingly.

Ayla smiled. "Would you mind? I don't think I could sleep like this," she said, holding her arms out so that he could see how dirty she really was.

"No, I don't mind," he said, shaking his head. "The beachfire is still burning, so we'll have _a little_ light." He paused and looked at Davaria and Danta. "Do you two want to come along?" Both of them frowned, not relishing the idea of a nighttime dip in the cold glacial river.

"Maybe I'll just wipe myself down with a wet piece of leather," Davaria said, thinking that the last thing he wanted to do at the moment was go outside, take his clothes off, and jump into the river, though he desperately needed to.

Danta continued to frown. She _also_ didn't want to go outside, but she knew she'd feel better if she did. "I guess I'll go with," she finally said. "Won't you come too, Ari? You're very dirty."

Her twin sighed, then said, "_okay_, I'll go . . . but don't you think we should go in shifts?"

"In _whats_? Grov and Ayla asked in unison.

"You know, _shifts_. You two go first, and then when you get back, we go," he explained. "So we don't leave the children alone."

"Oh yes," Ayla said. "That is a very good idea." She didn't think they had anything to worry about, most animals would stay away from a cave with a fire burning brightly within it, but she was grateful that Davaria was concerned about the children.

Grov was nodding his agreement. And he was glad to hear Davaria's concern as well. He didn't imagine that the man was usually so thoughtful, but it was good to see that he was adapting to a new lifestyle; it was important that he did, or Oak Camp wouldn't be likely to keep him.

Then, glancing down at Ayla's son, Grov frowned. "Do you think we should take Durc with us?" Grov asked. The boy had been sitting next to them for most of the evening, but was now slumped over, sound asleep in front of the fire.

Ayla looked down at her son and smiled. "No, I will just put him in his sleeping place. He can swim tomorrow."

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Everyone slept late the next morning, but when they woke up, they were quite hungry. Ayla had stuffed the ptarmigan that Durc had killed with its own eggs and put it into the ground oven to slow-cook throughout the night. It was one of her favorite meals, but everyone else seemed to like it too.

After eating, Grov left the cave, saying that he'd start the beachfire, while the others busied themselves around the cave. In the warm summer heat a beachfire was not entirely necessary, but they liked having it burning. Predators didn't like fire, so it made them feel safer.

They all worked quickly because they wanted to get outside as well, especially Durc, who was still rather dirty from the day before, but he was getting impatient.

"Mama," the boy said. "I need to get cleaned up."

Ayla smiled at him and nodded. "Yes, I know that you do, but I am not ready to go yet." He frowned, but nodded acceptance. He could see that she was busy.

"I will go out with him," Davaria offered. Ayla and Danta were still cleaning up after their morning meal and still had to ready their daughters.

"Oh, would you?" Ayla asked. "That would really help me a lot."

Davaria smiled at her. "Sure."

"Would you mind taking Danara too?" Danta asked her brother.

The man gave his sister a loving grin. "Of course not," he said, turning to Danara, then picking up the skinny little girl and throwing her over his shoulder. She squealed delightedly as she hung upside down.

"You better get dressed then, if you want to come outside with us," he said to her.

"_I can't_," the red-faced child replied, still dangling over his shoulder.

Davaria pretended to be confused. "But why not?" he asked.

Danara giggled. "Because you have to put me _down_ first, _silly_."

The man laughed and swung her around, setting her lightly on her feet. "_Oh_. That'd help, wouldn't it?" he asked, poking her in the belly and making her giggle again. She nodded and ran off to get dressed.

"But, don't put too much on . . . if you want to swim with us."

**xXx**

Durc and Danara were quickly ready to go and Davaria left with them, one under each arm. Durc mostly considered himself too old for such goings on, but things here were much more relaxed than he was used to, and Davaria certainly made things fun. Ayla watched them go, suddenly worried about losing the freedom to laugh and play, like they could while they were away from the Clan.

On their way down, they passed Grov, who was on his way back up.

"I brought some decent sized pieces of flint over to the fire," Grov called over his shoulder as he headed for the cave. Davaria nodded and continued on; his mind was on swimming, not flintknapping.

**xXx**

"Aren't you ready yet?" Grov asked when he came into the cave and found Ayla and Danta still cleaning. "This place is clean enough."

The two women smiled at him and looked around; it was rather clean, much cleaner than a temporary shelter needed to be.

"I think that you are just trying to get me outside so that you can ride Whinney . . . like everyone else," Ayla said, looking at him suspiciously.

"You win! That's _exactly_ what I want," he said, but took her into his arms and kissed her.

Danta grinned at them and, for a moment, wished she had someone like Grov to take care of her, though she didn't believe she could ever be _that_ lucky, or happy.

"Well, if you ever want to ride," Ayla said, pushing him back, "then you better stop kissing me and help bring these girls down to the beach." She picked up Annalisa and plopped her into Grov's arms, then picked up Ora. "Ready?" she asked.

**xXx**

Down on the beach, Ayla went through the same process of giving Grov a ride on Whinney that she had gone through with Danta, though Grov didn't seem frightened at all. Ayla knew that though he _might_ feel some nervousness about the new experience, he would never show it, and her keen Clan senses could not detect even the slightest bit of fear in him.

At first, she rode with him, as she had with Danta and the children, but then he wanted to try it on his own, so Ayla nodded and easily slipped off Whinney's back; she understood his desire to learn more about the horses. In that way, they were exactly alike.

Once again she explained how she directed the horse, but then let him see what worked for him. He made a few circles on the sandy beach, then took off down the beach. It seemed that he was already quite comfortable. Finally, he returned to the beachfire where everyone stood watching him.

"Now I want to try riding Stomp," he said excitedly.

Ayla frowned. "_Stomp_?" She gave the moody horse a cursory glance, then looked back at her mate. "Why Stomp?"

Grov grinned. "Because that's the horse you said was mine . . . in your vision. Right?"

Ayla nodded her understanding, but still wasn't sure. "I'm not sure it's such a good idea. She's . . . not very nice."

Grov looked over at the nearly white horse and smiled. "Well, I have to try sometime, don't I?" Ayla nodded. "And I'd rather try it here, while we're away from the summer meeting and all the loud people," he said, sliding down off Whinney and handing her a treat. "Would you call her over here?"

"Well, okay," Ayla said, then let out the whistle that had come to be Stomp's call. Each horse had a different whistle and they seemed to understand which was which. That was just one more thing that amazed them about the animals; they were quite smart.

Stomp's head came up right away and she seemed to contemplate the command for a moment before moving to join her human herd. Ayla gave her a treat and stroked her face, then led her over to the rocks so that getting on wouldn't be so difficult. But, it proved to be anyway.

Standing on the rock, Grov leaned over the horse and tried to use her mane to help himself get on her back. But as he did that, his foot gently brushed the horse's side, causing her to startle and abruptly step away from the rock, making him fall to the ground.

"Are you all right?" Ayla and Danta asked, both immediately kneeling down on either side of him to help him up.

Grov took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah." Getting up quickly, they prepared to start again, but the same thing happened on the second and third try as well. Stomp seemed determined to keep Grov off her back.

"What am I doing wrong?" he finally asked, staring at the animal in frustration.

Ayla had been watching carefully and shook her head. "I do not think that you are doing anything wrong. It looks to me like . . . well . . . like Stomp may be . . . _ticklish_," she finally said. "Every time your foot touches her side, she jerks away from you and you fall. But that can't be right, can it?"

They all looked at the horse and shrugged, but Ayla wanted to test her theory. Tentatively, she reached out and ran her hand over Stomp's middle. The horse's skin shuddered, as if trying to remove unwanted flies from her side, making Ayla wonder. Then gently, she poked Stomp in the ribs, and sure enough, Stomp jerked away and even turned to nip at her. Ayla frowned again, then whistled for the other two horses and went through the same thing with them. They did not seem to react to it at all.

"I think she _is_ ticklish," Danta said, after Ayla finished her testing.

"_Ticklish_?" Davaria exclaimed. "I didn't know that animals could be ticklish too."

Ayla smiled. "Well, I do not know about other animals, but _Stomp_ here, is definitely ticklish. I cannot think of any other explanation, can you?" Davaria shrugged and shook his head.

"Grov," she went on, turning to look at him again, "I think you're going to have to get on her without touching her sides."

Grov frowned. "Well how am I going to do that?" he asked, looking at the horse strangely.

For a few moments everyone stood around trying to think of a way, then Danta suggested that maybe they'd have to lift Grov to Stomp's back. Everyone frowned and watched the woman, who had only just recently gotten over her fear of the four-legged creatures, as she stood next to the horse and placed her hands in various locations. Finally she smiled; she thought she had a way that would work.

"Okay, let me show you what I'm thinking," Danta said. Then, looking Grov up and down, she turned to Ayla. "I could probably lift you easier than Grov. Would you mind?" Ayla shook her head and stepped forward.

"I think that if you put your left hand here," she began, placing her hand lightly on the back of Stomp's lower neck, just above the withers, and letting her forearm rest on the side of the horse's neck, "and put your _right_ hand _here_," she went on, reaching over Stomp's back and putting her hand flat against the far side of the horse's broad back. "_Then_, I think you could lean on her while I lift you up." She stood there for a moment while Ayla thought it through. Then, clasping her hands and bending over slightly, she looked at Ayla.

"Now, if you put your left foot in my hands and jump up a little, I'll lift you and you can swing you other leg over her back. _This way_ your foot will never touch her side, and she won't jump away."

They went through several practice attempts without actually trying to sit on the horse's back. Ayla even decided to lay over Stomp's back once to see what the horse would do. They just wanted to see if Stomp would accept someone one her back and let her get used to the weight without an upright rider. It seemed to be working; Stomp was no longer objecting now that she wasn't being poked in the side, though she still seemed quite nervous.

Danta was still holding Ayla up over Stomp's back when Ayla said, "I think you can let me down now."

Danta lowered Ayla to the ground, but frowned. "Aren't you going to ride her?" she asked.

Ayla grinned and shook her head. "Stomp is Grov's horse. I think _he_ should be the first to ride her." Danta nodded her understanding and looked at the man. He was smiling at his mate.

"Maybe Davaria could help you get on her though," Ayla suggested. She knew that she could probably do it too, but she wanted to be able stand back, so that she to see him get on. "Would you mind?" she asked, turning toward the other man.

Davaria shook his head. "Of course not."

Going through the process with Grov was much easier. He put his hands where he had seen Ayla put hers, and then Davaria clasped his hands and hoisted Grov up. In a matter of seconds the man was sitting on Stomp's back and looking around from his new vantagepoint. For a moment, he just sat there, then he thought of something else.

"Okay, now that I'm _up_ here, how can I make her go without kicking her sides? And _how_ do I get down when I'm done?" he asked, looking down at everyone and frowning slightly. He could see all of their expressions change immediately. Now they all looked thoughtful again and he wished he'd thought to ask those questions before he'd gotten onto the horse's back.

"Well, I think that you could probably jump down without touching her side," Ayla said, "like I do when I jump off Whinney." He thought for moment, then nodded. "On Whinney, I only have to lean forward to tell her I want to go, but I think you're going to have to see what works for Stomp."

Grov nodded again and bent over to pat the horse's neck. She seemed extremely nervous about having him there and he didn't want her to be, but he didn't know what to do. "Maybe I'll just let her go where she wants to for a while," he said. "That can't hurt, can it?"

"I don't think so," Ayla replied, eyeing the horse as she shifted on her feet.

They all stood there watching and waiting, but Stomp didn't seem to be losing the nervous edge and she wasn't moving. She stood stiff-necked, swishing her tail around almost violently.

"Maybe you should try leaning forward, like Ayla does on Whinney," Danta suggested. "Maybe she'd figure out that you want her to go."

Grov nodded. "Okay, back up then, just in case she takes off." They moved back, but when the man leaned, like Ayla always did, Stomp only shook her head and pawed the ground, but she didn't even take one step.

"Oh!" Davaria said excitedly. "We could tie a rope like Nicuria's around her neck and lead her."

Ayla nodded and whistled for the younger horse. As he neared, Stomp seemed to get more agitated, so Ayla went to head him off. Quickly, she untied his now ignored restraint, then patted his backside and watched as he went back to the river to drink. Then slowly, she approached the horse in question and tied the rope around her neck, leaving the coil unwound, so that she could try to lead her.

_But_, that idea didn't work either. At first Ayla pulled gently, but Stomp didn't move. Then she pulled harder, but still nothing. Finally the woman pulled with all of her might, but still the horse resisted. Even Davaria gave it a try, but it was no use; Stomp had no intention of being pulled.

Everyone was frowning, but Ayla started looking around. There _has_ to be a way, she thought. Then, glancing at the other two horses, she got an idea and whistled for Whinney this time.

When Whinney arrived, Ayla grabbed her mane and, swinging herself up onto the mare's back, she urged her to circle Stomp and Grov. Soon the dun yellow horse was nosing at her sister and she seemed to be getting a reaction. Whinney seemed to understand the problem better than they did, and without any further encouragement, Whinney went to Stomp's rear and gave her a not-so-gentle nudge. Stomp immediately turned on her sister and whinnied loudly, causing Grov to clutch her mane more tightly. It wasn't exactly a step down the beach, but it was something. And when Whinney did it again, Stomp snorted and took a few steps to get away from her. Grov smiled; it was working.

They went through that a few more times, then Nicuria came to see what was happening. He watched Whinney give another gentle nudge and was about to do it too, but his appearance was too much for Stomp. She had finally had enough. After rearing up, she bolted down the sandy beach, Grov hanging on for dear life.

The man felt a momentary jolt of fear as the horse went up onto her hind legs, but as she came down and took off, he didn't have time to think about being afraid. He held tight to her mane as they flew down the beach. He was not directing her; she was just running. She was running hard. Running from Whinney. Running from Nicuria. Probably running for _him_ as well. Then suddenly he caught movement to his side and saw Ayla on Whinney, and Nicuria too, running alongside them. He saw his mate push her ride hard and pass him so that she could turn Stomp back to the group. Stomp turned and headed back, though much more slowly this time. When they got back, the man slid off the mare as Ayla had instructed and grinned his delight.

"Now _that_ was exciting!" he exclaimed breathlessly, taking his woman into his arms. "I didn't think she would ever go. And then . . . when she did . . . oh Ursus! I didn't think she'd ever stop." Everyone smiled back at him. "It was amazing!"

"Now there's just _one of us_ that hasn't had a ride yet," Danta said, folding her arms across her chest and eyeing her brother.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Davaria frowned when he heard his sister's words and he quickly turned away. He pretended to be looking at the horses, but he wasn't, not _really_. He just didn't want them to see the color that he knew flooded his face, but he could feel it, burning into his skin as it rose from his neck up to his forehead, causing him to feel slightly lightheaded. Silently, he gasped for air, trying to make it go away and trying to come up with a good excuse for not riding one of the horses.

How could he tell them that he had no desire to ride _any_ of the horses, not even Ayla's calm mare, Whinney, without admitting that he was terrified of them. He didn't want anyone to know of his fear; fear was not manly. And besides that, they might laugh at him and he didn't think that he could take that. He had been laughed at far too much in his life. He had learned at a very young age that showing fear, of any kind, was a serious blow to one's manhood. He could still hear Igorvia's raucous laughter and Zadneetsia's calm, yet demeaning taunts, though it had been years since he had given either man a reason to laugh at or make fun of him.

_"What are you so afraid of, Davaria," Zadneetsia sneered. "I told you, it's easy. Just run down there and do it!"_

Davaria stayed crouched down behind the boulder and stared at the animals roaming below. He watched them as they meandered through the meadow; their purpose seemed unintentional, though the ten-year-old boy somehow knew that it wasn't. He knew that they had to have

some _reason, for doing what they were doing, but he didn't know what it was. He only knew what Zadneetsia expected him to do and he frowned._

It was the first time he had been allowed to go on a hunting trip with the men, but this wasn't what he had expected, not at all what he thought

hunting _was going to be like. Early that morning the men had gone off, leaving him alone with some of the older boys. At first he didn't understand, but then Zadneetsia told him what he had to do, what they_ all _were going to do. Zadneetsia said it was a test for bravery. That it was an easy test and that there would be harder ones to follow._

"A bravery test?" Davaria said with a frown. He glanced at Leneevia, who was only a year older than he, but who had gone out

hunting _with the men before. The other boy looked nervous, but he didn't say anything, so Davaria looked back at the older boys._

"What for?" he asked them curiously, then blushed with embarrassment as the boys laughed at him unmercifully. Even Leneevia, his only real friend, was laughing at him; it made him mad. He didn't like being laughed at. Not one bit. He decided right there that he wouldn't ask any more questions. Then he noticed that Zadneetsia and Igorvia weren't laughing and he eyed them suspiciously. Davaria was used to Zadneetsia's bad treatment, but the look in the older boy's eyes made him leery.

"What do you mean,

What for?_" Igorvia was frowning at him. He was three years older than Davaria was and was usually pretty nice to him. Only recently had things changed and the older boy seemed to be connecting more with Zadneetsia, who had never been very nice to anyone. "Are you_ stupid _or something?" Igorvia finally asked, then started laughing with the rest._

Davaria looked around at the boys he called friends and squirmed with shame. When his eyes stopped, he was looking at Zadneetsia; he was the only one that was not laughing.

Zadneetsia forced a yawn and tried to look bored. He was fourteen years old and all the boys looked up to him. He looked at Davaria critically, then held up his hand to quiet the others. Everyone ceased laughing immediately and tried to look serious as they waited for Zadneetsia to speak.

"You can't be a member of Sumac Camp if you're a coward, Davaria," he finally said. Davaria could tell that it the boy was making fun of him, though his voice was even.

Davaria stared at him, then nodded dumbly. He knew

that _. All his life he'd been told that he had to be brave, but he hadn't really known what they were talking about. No one at Sumac Camp seemed particularly brave to him, unless you called pushing the women around brave. The word brave didn't even come to mind when he thought about the man of his hearth, who had always been just a little nicer to the women than the other men were. In fact, the man's niceness actually seemed to lower his status. Davaria frowned at the thought; he supposed that that didn't matter at the moment. Right now, he needed to be accepted._

Once again, he glanced down at the animals, then looked back at Zadneetsia and folded his arms over his chest. "I'm

not _scared," he declared defiantly._

Zadneetsia only smirked at him. "Good! Then let's see you prove it." The older boy cocked his head toward the boulder that concealed their position and waited for Davaria. "It's your move,

Ari_," Zadneetsia said, imitating what the boy's two sisters called him._

Standing up slowly, Davaria tried to look taller than he actually was. Then, with everyone following him, he dashed from behind their cover and ran off to touch one of the flathead women that were in the open meadow collecting whatever it was that flatheads ate.

Taking a deep breath, the man shook his head and turned around to look at his sister and their friends. They were all standing there staring at him, waiting for him to agree to ride one of the horses; he knew that he couldn't say no. _No_, he couldn't afford to show any fear.

"Okay, what do I have to do?" he finally said.

Danta smiled. There was little he could hide from her. She knew that he was afraid and that he was struggling with it. She knew better than anyone what he had had to go through while growing up. She remembered how the older boys had ganged up on him and how he had changed because of it. She was only grateful that she had him back now.

Ayla smiled as well. She could tell that he was frightened of the horses, but sensed that something else was going on. She had no way of knowing what it was and didn't figure that he'd tell her if she asked. Not that she would ask, it wasn't the way of a Clan woman to ask a man personal questions. So instead, she moved toward her horse, so that she could give him a ride. Jumping up on Whinney's back, she motioned that he should get up on the rock. Davaria followed her eyes and knew what she wanted. Having resigned himself to riding Whinney, he took the steps to the rock and climbed up behind Ayla, then sat there wondering what he should do. He didn't have to worry about that part though, because Ayla knew what to do.

"Just put your arms around my waist . . . so that you do not fall off when Whinney runs," Ayla said, taking the man's hands as he tentatively wrapped his arms around her.

As Davaria settled his arms around her midsection, Ayla gave the horse a gentle nudge to move and Whinney surged forward. Davaria stiffened at Whinney's sudden movement and tightened his grip around Ayla's waist. He couldn't help but lean into her as the horse picked up speed. At first he hung on in fear, even closing his eyes to shut out the blur of things flying by. But then, with his eyes still closed, the young man's nervousness suddenly changed as he took in Ayla's woman scent, making him conscious that his body was intimately touching hers. A sudden rush of desire gripped him as he felt a tightness between his legs

Ayla drove Whinney down the beach hard and didn't notice a change in Davaria until she went to turn the horse around. He was still holding on to her, but he had changed his position and was pushing himself backwards. As they started back, the man groaned and finally spoke up.

"We need to stop," said Davaria, just a little louder than was necessary as he gripped her hips firmly in a futile attempt to hold himself away from her.

Ayla frowned, but knowing that _something_ was wrong, she nodded and halted her horse immediately. As Whinney came to a stop, Davaria was no longer able to hold himself back and slid into her again, making Ayla aware as to his reason for wanting to stop. She blushed, wondering what she was supposed to do. She knew that they were not with the Clan and that no signal was coming, but she wished someone had explained what a woman did at a time like this.

Quickly, the man threw his leg over the horse and jumped down. Ayla sat atop Whinney's back for only a moment longer than the man, then she too hopped down, but to the opposite side. An uncomfortable silence followed as they slowly walked toward the others. Neither knew what to say.

Ayla walked, keeping her eyes straight forward and saying nothing. She didn't have much experience with men desiring her and didn't understand. Broud and Grov had been the only two men in her life to show interest, and Broud had only given her the signal because he knew she had hated it. And Grov was her mate and loved her.

But this was different. Davaria was a friend and Danta's brother, not someone that she should have to consider relieving. Or should she? Heat flooded her face as she thought about the hardness of his manhood against her. There was no question that he _had_ wanted her. But now, all _she_ wanted to do was to get back on Whinney's back and run away, so that he could not see her confusion.

Davaria glanced at Ayla over the horse and saw that her face was slightly pink. He wondered why she was embarrassed when it was he that couldn't control himself. He felt terrible that he'd made her feel that way and wished he'd been able to think of a way to refuse the ride on Whinney, but it was too late for that. He stared at her as they walked and ground his teeth to keep from making another mistake. All he wanted to do was push her down onto the soft beach sand and share pleasures with her.

Then, as they approached the others, but were still a short distance away, Ayla stopped and looked at him. "_What?_" she said, feeling like she had done something wrong.

Davaria looked at her and blushed. He knew he had been staring; he had committed _another_ mistake, along with mentally taking her, but he couldn't help himself. _Oh Mother, she is so beautiful,_ he thought, but he didn't say it, he just continued to stare. And he couldn't help the desire that was still in his eyes. He wanted to reach across Whinney's back and take her hand, but he didn't do it; he knew that it wouldn't be right. Instead, he glanced over at Grov, who stood patiently with Danta and the children, and blushed again. How could he be thinking about sharing pleasures with his friend's mate when there was no Mother festival? _Oh Mother_, he wished they could have a Mother festival.

"I'm sorry, Ayla," he finally said. "I didn't mean to make you . . . feel uncomfortable. It's just that . . . I mean . . . it's been . . . ." His voice trailed off as he became frustrated with his inability to express himself. Why would she even care? he wondered. Quickly, he searched her eyes for understanding, then turned and ran toward the cave. Ayla watched him go, then started back toward the others, then changed her mind, grabbed Whinney's mane and vaulted onto the horse's back to take off across the beach again.

**xXx**

Grov and Danta had watched them ride. Danta had been shocked that her brother actually agreed to ride one of the horses. She had sensed that he was terrified of them, though he'd never expressed it. There were just some things that one knew about a twin. But then, when she saw Whinney slow and Davaria get down, she frowned with concern.

Grov noted the lines of worry on the woman's face, but continued to watch his mate and Danta's brother; they didn't appear to be hurt in any way, so he tried not to react. It was only when Davaria turned and ran toward the cave, and Ayla fled on Whinney that he too wondered what had happened. It wasn't like Ayla to run off. She had only done that when Broud had moved into their hearth.

Danta took a step in the direction of the cave, to go after her brother, then looked back at the other man. "I . . . I guess I'll go talk to Davaria," she said.

Grov only nodded. He didn't know what _he_ should do. He didn't want to sit there waiting, just in case something was seriously wrong, and he didn't want to leave the children unattended. And he certainly couldn't catch up to Ayla on foot.

"Mamma!" Annaliza said, pointing in the direction that Ayla had gone. "Where Mamma going?" she gestured.

Grov looked down at her and shrugged, then looked around, feeling a desperate need to follow his mate. Then, when his eyes fell on the other two horses, he decided that he'd go after Ayla on Stomp. He was sure he could find her that way.

"Durc stay with the girls," the man said, as he handed the boy his youngest sister. "I need to go after your mother." Durc nodded.

"Ora," he went on sternly, "you need to listen to your brother." The three-year-old nodded. Grov quickly glanced at Danara. She had taken up Ora's hand. He didn't think he needed to say anything to her, she was quite responsible for her short number of years.

Then, as the four pairs of eyes watched him, Grov gracefully swung himself up onto Stomp's back and race down the beach.

**XxX**

**? (new chapter) ?**

Danta had reached the ledge outside the cave quite quickly, but after getting there she wasn't sure what she should do. She glanced back only once to see Grov speeding down the beach in pursuit of his mate. Her eyes moved to the children, who were already sitting down on the beach, safely playing with the beach stones. She smiled, then entered the cave slowly.

"Davaria?" she called out questioningly. There was no answer, though she heard his heavy breathing in the back of the cave. "Davaria?" she called out again, this time a little louder.

"Go _away_," he replied angrily. Much too angrily, she thought. She didn't go.

"Davaria," she said again, coming up to him. He was lying on his sleeping platform under his furs, and he was shaking in a rhythmic way that made her frown. "Why did you run off?"

"Danta!" he growled, still angry. But then his voice softened. He couldn't be angry with her; she hadn't _done_ anything. "_Please_ go away," he almost whined.

The woman was tempted to go, to leave him alone in his misery, but that wasn't who she was. This was her brother, her _twin_ brother and she couldn't abandon him. Just like he hadn't abandoned her. She sat down on his bed beside him and lay her hand on his arm. His shaking immediately ceased. Now he was more still than ever.

"I will _not_ go," she said gently and then she was silent. She wanted to slip under his covers and hold him, like she had done so many times in the past, but for some reason that seemed inappropriate at the moment, though she didn't quite know why. Instead, she just lay down beside him and stared up at the cave's ceiling.

**xXx**

Grov pushed Stomp into a fast gallop and sped down the beach. Ayla had already ridden out of sight and he wanted to catch up to her fast. He rode hard, pausing at the place where they had burned their first fire, then he turned and followed the river south until he found Whinney grazing peacefully near a small stand of trees. Grov could see Ayla sitting down on a rock among the trees, head in her hands. She didn't seem to have heard Stomp's approach, nor did she look up when the man came to stand beside her.

"Ayla?" he said, kneeling down and touching her forearm.

Startled, she jumped at his touch and stared uncomprehendingly at him for a moment, then she looked beyond him to see Stomp chomping grass next to Whinney. "Humm," she finally replied, looking back at her mate.

"Are you okay?" he asked, physically looking her over for injuries. He could see that she was upset about something, but he couldn't have guessed why, and he was worried, despite seeing with his eyes that she was unharmed.

Ayla could see the confusion in her mate's eyes and felt bad that she had pulled away after running off without word. He was not the cause of her flight, yet something in his eyes made her think that he _thought_ he was. Taking a deep breath, she leaned into him and then sighed.

"Yes, I am fine . . . now that _you_ are here."

Grov held his woman, still not knowing what had happened that had made her run away, but at least glad to know that she was okay.

**xXx**

"Well, are you going to tell me what happened?" Danta asked after a considerable silence. She was tired of staring up at the nooks and crannies of the top of the cave and wanted him to explain himself. "Or do I have to guess?"

Davaria was still facing away from her. He couldn't bear to roll over on his back with his blood pumping through him so fiercely, but her silence had allowed him the time he needed to relax, to let his _blood_ go back to where it belonged. With a sigh, he rolled to his back, where he continued to lie in silence for a while, shoulder to shoulder with his sister.

Danta frowned, but didn't say anything for a moment. She wanted him to say something. Then she decided to try something else.

"Okay then, I'll guess," she said childishly as she grabbed his hand.

Davaria sensed a hint of annoyance in her voice, but there was something else there too. She wanted to play their most favorite childhood game of _Guess What I'm Thinking_. He couldn't help by smile, despite the embarrassment he was feeling.

"You'll _never_ guess," he said, giving the customary response, though he didn't believe she wouldn't be able to guess; Danta had always been the best guesser out of the three of them, and he wasn't sure he wanted to do this.

"_We shall see_," they both whispered in unison. That had been the third line of their game, but now there was not a third person to say it. Both sniffed and tried to go on.

"Hummm," said Danta, trying go on and trying to think up a good question, a question he was required to answer with either a _yes_ or a _no_. "Did something go wrong on your ride with Ayla?" she asked, already knowing the answer to her question.

"Yes," Davaria whispered, feeling his face redden.

"Does it have anything to do with the horse?" She already knew the answer to this one too, but she always threw in similar questions to give him hope that she'd fail to guess.

"No," Davaria said, shaking his head.

"Hummm! How about Ayla?" she said, exaggerating a frown, just in case he was watching. "Is this about Ayla?"

Davaria felt the blood go to his face again, and to somewhere else, as he gave half a nod. His answer was barely discernable, but Danta felt his movement and recognized it as an affirmative. She turned to look at him and to choose her next question carefully.

"Are you in love with Ayla?" she asked him after an extremely long pause.

Davaria's head snapped in her direction, then he dislodged his hand from hers and jumped up. "_No_!" he said adamantly. "I am _not_ in love with her." I do not want play this game with her, he thought in frustration. She doesn't need to know about what happened to me when I touched Ayla.

Danta sat up and watched him pace back and forth. She smiled to herself, though she still tried to look at him with a serious expression. "Oh Davaria," she said gently, getting up and going to him, "you're not the first man to want an unavailable woman."

Davaria stopped and stared at her, then he ran his hand through his brown hair and plopped down on his bed. Now he _knew_ he didn't want to play this game, Danta was too good at it.

"I don't _want her_ want her, Danta. I just _wanted_ her, like I did those Clan women. It was awful." He dropped his head into his hands. "It was all I could do to stop myself."

Danta watched him and shook her head. "Oh come on, Davaria, you wouldn't have done that," she said, almost laughing. "I know that you wouldn't."

"Well, I am not so sure, Danta," he replied. "I'm no better than Igorvia and Zadneetsia."

"Oh, for the love of the Mother, Davaria." Danta pushed herself off the bed platform and threw her hands up on the air angrily. "You are _nothing_ like Zadneetsia," she spat. Now it was she who paced back and forth, while wringing her hands.

Davaria only watched her for a moment, then his eyes narrowed as his embarrassment over Ayla turned to curiosity over Danta's sudden anger. What had Zadneetsia done to her? he wondered.

"What do you mean by that?" he finally asked her.

Danta stopped abruptly and looked at him. "We're not discussing me," she said curtly, then she knelt down in front of her brother and took up his hands. "I do not believe, for one moment, that you would have . . . _forced_ Ayla. _Do you_?"

Davaria looked down at his sister's hands, so like his and entwined with his own, then up into her eyes, before shaking his head. "No, I would not have. I _could not_ have, but . . . I _wanted_ her so badly, Danta," he whined, dropping his head onto her shoulder and heaving a sob. "Sitting on Whinney behind her was . . . unbearable. I had to get down and I had to get away from her." He looked up with tears in his eyes. "How will I _face_ her? How will I face _Grov_?" he asked, forgetting Danta's anger over the other Sumac Camp man.

"I don't know," she said, "but I know that you can do it." Danta reached up and wiped away her brother's tears, but he would not meet her eyes. She hated seeing him in pain; it was as if she too had been injured during the incident.

"Davaria," she said to get his attention, "you have done nothing wrong. There is _nothing_ wrong with wanting to share pleasures with a beautiful woman. It is a natural thing. They will not fault you for your desire." He looked away again. "Do you hear me?" she asked him.

Davaria looked at her again. He could see his pain mirrored in her eyes and felt bad that he had not been strong enough to keep from hurting her. He nodded his head to acknowledge that he had heard her, but he wasn't so sure Grov and Ayla would be as sympathetic.

Danta smiled at him, then stood up and tugged at his hand. "Now come on. Let's go outside. The children are all alone."

"All right," he said, standing and allowing her pull him outside. "But I'm not playing your guessing game anymore. You always win."

**xXx**

"Are you sure," Grov asked her, "that you're okay?"

Ayla pulled back and nodded emphatically. "Yes, I am fine. I think that . . . I am just confused."

Grov frowned. "Why? What are you confused about?"

Ayla frowned back at him, trying to figure out how to explain what had happened. "I am confused about Davaria."

Grov cocked his head and then shook it. "I do not understand. Did he _do something_ to you?" he asked, suddenly agitated about an unknown violation against his mate.

Ayla shook her head. "No . . . no, Davaria didn't do anything to me. He just . . . ." She shook her head again.

"He just _what_?" Grov prompted. "_What happened_?"

Ayla could see that he was frustrated with her reluctance to tell him what had happened on the beach. So, taking a deep breath, she tried to explain. "I was only taking him for a ride on Whinney; that was all it was supposed to be," she said, suddenly tearful. Grov only nodded, not knowing where she was going.

"And then we sped off and it was good . . . or so I thought. But then, when we got to the end of the beach, he started backing away from me. I thought that something was wrong, that _I_ had done something wrong. When I turned Whinney around, he said that we had to stop, so I stopped her right away." She stopped then and looked into Grov's expectant eyes.

"So, what happened?"

Ayla frowned again. "When I stopped Whinney, Davaria slid into me." She paused again, but he only looked confused.

"Ayla, you have not told me anything that I did not see. Why did Davaria _want_ to get down and why did he run into the cave? And why did you jump back on Whinney and run off?"

Ayla sighed. She knew that she wasn't doing a very good job of explaining this to him. "When Davaria got close to me, I could feel . . . that he . . . needed to relieve himself . . . I could feel that he wanted to . . . but I didn't know what to do," she ended, shaking her head.

Grov stared at her, then he blinked. Then comprehension dawned on him. "What _did_ you do?"

"He got down. And then I got down. And then we walked. He said that he was sorry. And then he ran off. I wondered if I had done something wrong. Was I supposed to _do_ something?" she asked. He shrugged. "I was so confused, so I let Whinney run for me."

"Did you _want_ to relieve his needs?" he asked her.

Ayla thought about it for a moment then lifted her shoulders. "It is not for me to say; I am a woman."

He smiled at her and shook his head. "You are responding like a Clan woman, Ayla, but you know that you have a choice here. Did you want to _share pleasures_ with Davaria?" he asked, this time using the words the Others used.

Ayla frowned. "I did not _want_ to share pleasures with him and I did not _not_ want to. I was just confused. I did not know what I was supposed to do."

Grov had watched her and shrugged again. "With the Others I don't think there's anything that you are supposed to do. You just do whatever it is that you want."

"But I am _your_ mate. How can do whatever I want and still be your mate," she asked.

Grov took a deep breath. "Ayla, I will be your mate no matter what you do. And I am not telling you to share pleasures with him, or anyone else, but I also don't want you to . . . avoid it just because you are my mate; you are your own person. And if you remember, I relieved myself with Oga."

"But that is different," Ayla said, shaking her head.

Grov smiled again. "Why is it different?"

"That is not the same . . . because . . . because you are _a man_," she finished lamely.

He laughed. "And _you_ are a beautiful woman. You cannot avoid attracting men, Ayla. Sooner or later you _will_ have to make a choice. I just want you to know that the choice is yours." He leaned down to kiss her. "Let's go back. I left the children alone on the beach," he said, extending a hand to help her up.

Ayla stared at his outstretched hand, then took it. "You will always be my mate?" she asked uncertainly as she rose.

"Of course I will," he said. "Now, let's go back. I left the children alone on the beach."

"But where is Danta?"

"She went to check on Davaria, and I asked Durc to stay with the girls, then came after you."

She nodded absently as she took steps toward the horses, but stopped just short of their vicinity. "How can I go back there, Grov? How can I look at him after not responding to his need? I just said nothing to him. What must he think of me?"

"Ayla, you didn't do anything wrong. Women of the Others aren't expected to _relieve_ the needs of a man just because the man might want them to. I am sure that Davaria will understand. Everything is going to be all right. Besides, you _have_ to go back there," he said, then continued when she looked confused again. "Because your children are back there."

Ayla smiled sheepishly and nodded. She knew it was going to be okay because her mate had said so, but she wished things weren't so complicated. Why were things always so difficult? she asked herself as she gave Grov a leg up onto Stomp, and then mounted Whinney.

**XxX**

**End of Part SEVEN!**

**Post Script**

As stated at the top of this page (part seven)—and every other part—there are TEN parts to this. However, part ten is **unfinished**...and I hardly ever update it anymore. Sorry! **I repeat**...you are reading an **"in progress"** story...which has very little hope of ever _being_ completed. Continue at your own risk!

Thanks for reading and for your patience with my transfer!


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Notes...**

Just thought I'd put up what is _thread_ eight from the other site. Here it's _chapter_ eight...which consists of several chapters. In the beginning I was naming them, then stopped. I think I might have started up naming them again at some point, then it fell away again. *sigh*

Again, I would like to post a **warning**...this is an UNFINISHED fanfic and, at the moment, don't see myself finishing it any time soon. On the other site, I've posted ten threads, but thread ten is just left hanging. I have touched this in _years_, so...remember that as you start this...I make no guarantees about getting back to it. Sorry.

Comments are welcome, I just ask that you be kind. I wrote this YEARS ago and there are many, MANY errors...which I am NOT going to fix at this point. This was my first real writing endeavor.

Enjoy!

**After the Death Curse – Part Eight (of ten)**

**NEW CHAPTER**

Davaria watched their slow approach and flushed with embarrassment. He wanted to run back into the cave to hide again, but Danta had grabbed his hand to keep him from doing so.

"You did nothing wrong," she whispered to him. "And look at her, she thinks that _she_ did something wrong. You don't want her to think that, do you? After all that she's done _for us_?"

Davaria looked at Ayla closely and realized that his sister was right; Ayla looked just as worried and confused as he felt. Quickly, he glanced at Grov to see if there was any hint of anger on the man's face, but the other man's expression told him that it was going to be okay. Grov was calmly riding Stomp beside his mate, occasionally looking over at her, though mostly, he sat facing _them_, a look of patience and understanding in his dark blue eyes. For a moment, Davaria wondered if the other man was even _aware_ of what had happened, but there were no lines of confusion on the Grov's face. Davaria sure that they had discussed what had gone on. Again, he blushed, and tried to stand tall, repeating _I have done nothing wrong,_ over and over in his head, and watching them as they came up and stopped in front of him.

Worriedly, he looked from Grov to Ayla and then back to Grov again. He didn't know what to say or do and he didn't want to offend them by doing the _wrong_ thing. But he needed to do something. After one last glance at Grov, who gave him an almost imperceptible nod, Davaria tentatively stepped forward and offered Ayla his hand.

Ayla stared down at his hand for a moment before looking to her mate. Davaria saw Grov nod his head, though he hadn't looked at the Clan man, and waited while Ayla continued to contemplate what he offered. Then slowly, she reached out and took it, allowing him to help her off Whinney's back. Grov used that moment to slip off his horse and, giving her rump a pat, he turned and approached their beachfire.

"I am sorry, Ayla," said Davaria awkwardly. "I did not mean for . . . what happened, to happen."

Still holding the man's hand, Ayla tried to smile. "I know. I did not think that you did. I just did not understand." She felt no less awkward.

"So, you are not upset with me?" Davaria asked hopefully.

Ayla frowned, then shook her head. "No, of course not. I could not be upset with you . . . you didn't do anything wrong." She continued to frown and shake her head. "I was just confused."

"That makes two of us," he said, almost under his breath, but smiled, hoping to change the subject. "So what do we do now?" It was a question asked to the whole group.

"Well, I think Ayla wanted to make some tools," Grov said from behind, redirecting them to the fire where all their toolmaking implements still lay.

"Oh yes," she exclaimed. "I need a new hand axe." Ayla smiled happily, as if nothing had happened, then plopped down beside her mate and looked up at Davaria. "What are _you_ going to make?" she asked him.

"Umm, I'm not sure," he said. "I guess there are still a couple of things I'd like to make . . . _for Oak Camp_," he added when he saw Danta eyeing him.

"But I thought we were finished making gifts," she said in confusion.

Davaria smiled. "Yes, _mostly_, I suppose. There is just . . . something I forgot."

Danta continued to look at him suspiciously. "Like what?"

"Ahhh . . . like I said . . . I'm not sure what I want to make. I just don't feel finished yet." He paused, but continued on quickly when it looked like Danta was going to ask more questions. "Actually, _Grov_," he said, turning to the man, "could I talk to you for a moment . . . _alone_?"

Grov shrugged and got up again. "_Okay_," he said and followed the man up to the cave.

Danta watched the two men walk away and frowned at their backs. She didn't understand her brother's strange behavior or his dismissive attitude. "It's not like Davaria to keep things from me," she pouted.

Ayla watched them go as well, but didn't think much about it. Shrugging, she glanced over at the children; they were playing a short distance away and seemed to be happy. She couldn't help but smile as she pulled her hamster hide lap cover over her legs to protect her leggings, and prepared to work. "I'm sure that it's nothing," she said, turning her thoughts to the task before her.

Danta nodded. "I suppose not," she said quietly as she watched Ayla close her eyes and reverently hold the small bag that hung around her neck.

Ayla _took several slow deep breaths to calm herself. She didn't make a specific request – she just tried to reach the spirit of the Cave Lion with her mind and with her heart. The spirit that protected her was part of her, inside her, the old magician had explained, and she believed him._

Trying to reach the spirit of the great beast who had chosen her did have a soothing effect. She felt herself relax, and, when she opened her eyes, she flexed her fingers and reached

for the mammoth foot bone that Grov had dragged down the beach for her. Placing it between her legs, she picked up the piece of flint she had preselected and _turned it over and over, trying to decide where to make the first strike_. Then, making her decision, she positioned the chalky gray stone on the anvil and picked up her hammerstone.

"Do you think I should go check on him?" asked Danta. "Maybe he's still upset about . . . well, you know.

"Huh?" Ayla said, a confused look in her eyes. She had just been about to bring her hammerstone down, but held up and looked at her friend instead. "What?"

"Maybe I should go check on Davaria," she repeated. "He may still be upset."

Ayla smiled. "I think that he is fine. You should not worry." Quickly, she lifted the hammerstone again and brought it down, striking the outer covering, then frowned. _The stone was flawed. The chalky surface extended into the dark gray interior, all the way through the core. The inclusion made it unusable and interrupted the flow of her work and concentration._ Not that her concentration had been all that strong in the first place, she thought, but now she was on edge. Then, putting _her hammerstone down on the rocky beach_, she sighed and looked at Danta again.

Danta was looking up at the cave entrance, wondering what the men were doing. As she stared up there, Grov and Davaria came out and began making their way up the slope to the plateau above. "Where are they going?"

Ayla tried to focus on the other woman and not her work. "Danta, what are you so worried about? He seems fine to me. Look, they have their weapons; they must be going hunting," she said and looked at the flint again, wondering _if she could make some usable flakes from it,_ since a hand axe was out of the question.

"I don't know, Ayla. It's just that he was so upset only moments ago, and now he's going _hunting_? What could he possibly still have to make? We've already set everything out and looked it all over; we have _everything_ we need."

Ayla shrugged, shifted the anvil between her legs, and considered the flint again. "Well, maybe there's just something else he decided was necessary," she said absently. "I do not think it is something you need to worry about." She turned the flint over in her hand and sighed heavily. She was frustrated. She had wanted to make a hand axe, but she had failed to produce her intended tool. She was not pleased, but _picked up her hammerstone_ to try again. With the next attempt, _she broke off one flake, but it needed retouching, so she put her hammerstone down and reached for a stone retoucher. But she only glanced in the direction of her other implements. Her eye was on the flint when she picked up a stone from the beach – and caused an event that would change_ their lives.

_When Ayla's hand reached for the stone retoucher, it found instead a piece of iron pyrite of close to the same size. When she struck the exposed fresh flint from the flawed stone,_ it landed on some dry tinder that _happened to be nearby, and the spark produced when the two stones hit happened to fly into the ball of shaggy fiber. Most important, Ayla just happened to be looking in that direction when the spark flew, landed on the tinder, smoldered for a moment, and sent up a wisp of smoke before it died._

"Did you see that?" she asked Danta with a puzzled expression.

Danta turned and looked back at her. "See what?"

"That smoke."

Danta frowned. "What smoke?" she asked.

Ayla _had to think about it before she made the connection between the wisp of smoke and the spark, but then the spark puzzled her more. Where had it come from? That was when she looked at the stone in her hand. It was the wrong stone! It was one of those shiny stones that were scattered all over the beach._

"Look, this is not my retoucher." She held the stone in her hand up so that Danta could see it. "This is something else."

Danta looked at what Ayla was showing her and shrugged. "So."

"Did you see that spark?" Ayla asked her friend.

Danta shook her head. "No, I wasn't looking, sorry." Her mind was still on Davaria's elusive behavior.

Ayla frowned and examined the iron pyrite. It was definitely stone, she decided, and stone didn't burn. Yet something had made a spark that had made the tinder smoke. The tinder had smoked, hadn't it? she asked herself.

She picked up the ball of shaggy bark fiber, ready to believe she had imagined the smoke, but the small black hole left soot on her fingers. She picked up the iron pyrite again, and looked at it closely. How had the spark been drawn from the stone? What had she done? Feeling a little silly, she banged the two stones together. Nothing happened.

Danta frowned. "What are you doing?" she asked, after watching her friend for a few moments.

Ayla looked up at the other woman. "I'm not sure . . . but I am sure I saw smoke when I struck these two stones together."

Danta looked more closely at what Ayla was holding. "Try it again," she said, straightening up and pointing at the stones. Ayla now had her full attention.

Nodding, Ayla raised the stone and banged them together again, with more force, striking sharply, and watched a spark fly. Suddenly, an idea that had been tenuously forming sprang into her mind full blown. A strange, exciting idea and a little frightening, too.

She put the two stone down carefully on the leather lap cover, on top of the mammoth foot bone, then started gathering together the materials to build a fire.

Danta only watched for a moment, then figuring it out as well, she helped with excitement. When they were finished, Ayla _picked up her stones, held them close to the tinder, and struck them together. A spark flew and then died on the cold stones._ Smiling, _she changed her angle, tried again and watched a spark land squarely in the middle of the tinder. It singed a few strands and died, but the wisp of smoke was encouraging._

"Did you see that?" she exclaimed.

Danta's eyes were wide. "Yes. That was smoke. Do it again!"

Ayla grinned and did just that. The next time she struck the stones, the wind gusted, and the smoldering tinder flared before it went out, and she gasped. "We need to blow on it."

"Of course!" Danta said, nodding her head. "A fire needs to breathe."

Ayla struck the stones again, and made another spark with the stones. It was a strong, bright, long-burning spark, and it landed right. Both women were close enough to feel the heat and

they _blew the smoldering tinder into flame._ Then they _fed it shavings, and slivers, and, almost before_ they _knew it,_ they _had a fire._

Danta stared at the small fire, then looked at Ayla with amazement.

Ayla had a look of disbelief in her eyes. It had been too easy, she thought. _It was ridiculously easy._ "Let's try it again," she finally said, wanting to prove to herself that they had indeed created fire with two stones. Danta nodded and gathered more tinder, shavings, and kindling, while Ayla prepared to strike the stones again. Within moments they _had a second fire, and then a third, and a fourth._

The two women stared wide-eyed at the fires they had made, and then examined the stones again.

"Mama, did you make all those fires?" Durc asked, coming up to see what all the excitement was about.

Ayla nodded her head, then frowned. "Well, these _stones_ did."

"Stones make _fire_?" he questioned.

Ayla grinned. "These ones seem to," she said and looked at Danta again.

Danta was thinking that maybe it wasn't just the stones; maybe it was Ayla. "Do you suppose _I_ could do it too?" she finally asked.

Ayla shrugged and handed the stones over. "I don't see why not. It is not _my_ magic," Ayla said.

This time, Ayla gathered together what was needed to make a fire and waited while Danta practiced making sparks. When she thought she had it, she leaned down and struck hard. They watched the spark for only a moment, then they bent to blow it to flames, making a fifth fire.

"Ayla, I can't believe this!" Danta said. "We just made fire with stone. How can that be?"

The blond woman shook her head and examined the stones further. "I didn't think there was anything special about these stones, " she mused. "But _I was wrong. I should have known; my totem gave one to me._ Look Danta," she said excitedly. "Can you see the fire that lives inside them? I can, now that I know it's there. See?" Ayla paused, then pulled her amulet from around her neck and dumped its contents into her hand.

"And look at this, _my Cave Lion gave one to me once to tell me Durc would live. What is he telling me now?_" she asked her friend.

Danta looked at the objects in Ayla's hand. "I don't know, Ayla, but it must mean something. This is powerful magic that has been given to you."

"_Me_?" Ayla said. "You are here too."

Danta shook her head. "No. This magic is yours, Ayla," she said, handing the stones back to her friend. "The Mother showed it to you, not me."

Ayla frowned. "The _Mother_?"

"Yes, the Mother . . . or maybe your _Cave Lion_," she added, not knowing anything about the spirit world. "I do not know which; I am not a Shogur, but I do know that I would never have seen the spark if you had not continued to strike the stones together and bought my attention to it. No Ayla, this was given to _you_."

**NEW CHAPTER**

"What do you think?" Davaria asked the other man.

Grov looked at the small blackish-blue carcass that was slung over Davaria's shoulder and shrugged. "I don't know. I can't seem to see what you are describing. What is a neck-_less_," he asked, thinking about the word and picturing Danta with no neck.

Davaria smiled. "No, it's called a _necklace_. It's jewelry . . . decoration." Grov continued to frown.

"It goes around her neck . . . sort of like the bands she wears around her arm," Davaria went on, wrapping his fingers from one hand around his opposite upper arm. "but not so tight. Women like jewelry."

Grov nodded. Davaria must be right about women liking jewelry. Ayla seemed to admire how the Others decorated things. He had often seen her trying to duplicate the designs they made, much to her frustration. It was a difficult job, putting tiny little beads and shells on clothing, but despite its difficulty, she continued to work at it.

"I still cannot picture this _necklace_," Grov finally said.

Davaria thought for a moment, then sucked in his breath. "Oh! It will be like what Tiflona wears around her neck. _That_ is a necklace. But I want to make this one special, for my sister."

Grov frowned and pictured the Oak Camp headwoman. Then, as understanding hit him, he nodded. "Yes, I can see Tiflona's necklace. Hers is made of wooden beads and a rabbit's foot, I think."

"Yes, I believe so," Davaria said with a nod.

Grov was still frowning. He still didn't understand why Davaria was going to all this trouble. "But why make one for Danta?"

The dark-haired man shrugged. "I think that I should make her a gift as well . . . to make the gift-giving at the adoption complete. Don't you?"

"I think that she will like that." The clan man grinned at the idea. "And I will enjoy watching you make it," he said, thinking that he might make one for Ayla as well, if it wasn't too difficult. He had never considered _making_ anything other than weapons and wasn't sure he'd be able to do such a thing. "What will you need to make Danta's gift?"

Davaria frowned and shifted the dead weight on his shoulder. "Well, I'll need very thin cordage. And another fox . . . at least two more . . . maybe even three. There just aren't enough teeth in one to make it the length that I want. And they are very small, but they are usually nice and white. White looks good on Danta." He smiled.

"So, it will be made out of fox teeth?" Grov asked to make sure he was clear.

Davaria nodded. "Yes, just the larger, sharp ones. I will bore holes though them so that I can string them together." He paused. "And I was thinking about putting something else at the center," he said, demonstrating by holding up his hands to his own neck and touching his breastbone. "Maybe bone . . . maybe wood. I haven't decided yet."

Grov smiled at the man's love for his sister, and thought about his own sibling; she had been gone a long time, but her absence still hurt every time he thought about it.

"I'm sure that it will be nice," Grov reassured the man. "I'm sure she will like whatever you do. But I am wondering about something."

Davaria cocked his head and smiled. "What?"

"How are you going to keep this from Danta? I'm sure she's going to ask."

Davaria's brow creased with worry. "I have been thinking about that, but I'm not sure what I should say to her. What would you tell Ayla?"

Grov's brows raised. "Well, if she was truly Clan, then she would never ask a man to tell her something that he did not offer on his own."

"But Ayla is _not_ really clan," Davaria reminded him.

Grov grinned. "No, but she thinks of herself as Clan. She probably wouldn't ask, not directly, but she would be dying to find an opening so that she could." He thought for a moment. "I would have to be careful not to bring up anything that would give her that opening."

"But I can't do that with Danta," Davaria almost whined. "She's not going to wait for an _opening_; she's going to just bombard me with questions until I can't stand it anymore."

Grov shrugged again. "Well, I can't help you th . . . " Grov began, but stopped short. "Wait, I have an idea. Just tell her you're making something for Danara. You are going to do that too, aren't you?"

Davaria smiled. "Yes, I am. That's perfect," he said, then started considering what he could make for his sister's daughter.

**~oOo~**

It was almost evening by the time the two men headed back to the beach. They came out of the trees on the plateau and started down the rocky path that led to the cave ledge, but stopped when they saw several fires burning on the beach where there had only been one at midday. They wondered what was going on.

Davaria glanced at his companion and frowned. "What do you suppose they're doing?" he asked, pointing down at the beach with his spear.

Grov shook his head. "Why don't you go put that skin away, so Danta does not see it," he suggested, indicating the fox they had killed while out. They had gutted and skinned it, discarding its innards, and removed its teeth and claws, and some bones to use for decorating. "I'll go down and see what's going on."

Davaria nodded and went into the cave to put his things away.

**~oOo~**

"Look Ayla! Here comes Grov," Danta exclaimed excitedly.

"Grov!" Ora squealed and began running toward the man of her hearth. Annaliza also got up to go to him, but she was much slower.

Ayla was bent over the main fire where she had spitted a hare for their evening meal, but looked up and smiled as he approached, Ora now in his arms.

"Good evening," she said, picking up her youngest and going to him quickly. "Are you hungry?"

The man took her into his arms and kissed her. "Actually, yes," he said, then planted a kiss on the cheek of each girl as well.

Ayla continued to smile, but pulled back slightly. "You have been gone a long time. Did you find anything good?" she prompted, nodding toward his rucksack.

He grinned at her and pulled his pack off his back. "Not much, just a few rabbits . . . but it looks like that's what you have cooking." He dropped his kills on the ground and frowned. "How do you manage to do . . . all that you do," he asked, gesturing about the beach at all her work, "_and_ find time to hunt and cook?"

"Hummm . . . I don't know. I guess that sling hunting is faster than using a spear," she said apologetically. "But you should see what _else_ we did today." She said the last part with a grin on her lips.

"Mama made _fire_," Durc put in.

Grov looked down at the boy and ruffed his hair. "Fire, huh?" The boy nodded. Grov glanced down at the small fires burning around the larger beachfire, then at Danta, who was sitting there smiling up at him as well. "I can see that you have made more fires, but what's so important about them?" he asked Ayla. "We always make fire."

"Not like we made _these_ fires," Danta interjected. "Show him, Ayla."

Ayla grabbed his arm and, pulling him down into the sand, shoved two stones into his hand. "These fires are important because we made them using these."

Grov frowned at what she put in his hands. "This is flint," he stated plainly, looking up at her in confusion.

Ayla nodded. "Yes, that one is flint, but _that_ one," she said, indicating the second stone, "is _not_ my stone retoucher. Look at it!"

Grov looked again at the stone in his hand and turned it over. It definitely wasn't her stone retoucher. "Where did you get this?"

"On the beach," she exclaimed, throwing her arm in an arc so that he'd look at the rock-strewn beach around them. "They are all over the beach."

Grov's eyes raked the beach as if he'd never seen it before, then he looked back at his mate. "I don't think I've ever considered that this stone could be useful," he said, raising his brow and examining the stone again.

"I haven't either," Ayla said. She watched as he looked the stone over. "Have you seen this stone before?"

"Um-huh," he replied with a nod. "There were many of them where I grew up, but I can't remember anyone ever using them." His eyes glazed over as he thought about his youth.

Ayla waited for a moment, not wanting to intrude on his thoughts, then continued on. "I didn't know they were so special either, but I _should have_ known; this is the same stone that told me Durc would live," she said, once again removing her amulet and removing the piece of iron pyrite her totem had given to her five years before. "See?" she said, placing it into his hand.

Grov put down the first stone Ayla had given him and peered at the object she had just handed to him. _It wasn't just one rock, but three small nodules of iron pyrite stuck together._ He turned it over and noticed that it glittered in the late afternoon sun.

"Your totem gave this to you?"

Ayla nodded. "I found it when I was hiding from the Clan . . . after Durc was born. And then, when Brun accepted my son and allowed Creb to name him, I _knew_ it was a sign. I knew that I had made the right choice to return to the Clan's cave, but I didn't know that this stone, a sign from my totem, was more important than _that_."

Grov shook his head. He knew the story about her running away after Durc was born. She had hoped to return on the boy's naming day so that Brun would be forced to accept him, but that wasn't what had happened. She had purposely returned early, which allowed the leader to save face. "I am surprised Brun did not curse you anyway."

"He was going to . . . I am sure of it. But for some reason, he didn't." She shook her head, wondering what had changed his mind, then smiled, happy that that part of her life was over.

"So . . . what's the deal with all the fires?" Davaria asked, coming up behind them.

**~oOo~**

"_Amazing_." Davaria watched as Ayla restarted the fire within the cave. It had only taken moments. "I would never have guessed that fire was inside any stone . . . especially _this_ one," he said, inspecting one of the pieces of fool's gold they had brought up to the cave.

"I would not either," Ayla replied. "It was lucky that we saw the spark."

Danta frowned. She had been thinking about Davaria's secretive behavior. "_You_ saw the spark, Ayla. I was just sitting there."

Ayla only shrugged. "I suppose I did see it first, but you helped to make the fires." Ayla smiled at her friend, then looked toward to cave opening. "I better go help Grov bring things up," she said, getting to her feet.

Davaria only had to glance at his sister to know she was going to start asking him questions as soon as Ayla was gone; he stood up quickly. "I'll come help you."

"No, that's okay, Davaria. You have already brought up too much. Grov and I can handle the rest." Ayla then left the cave.

Davaria nodded and slowly sat back down on the log he and Grov had placed near the fire. He knew that he was going to have to talk to his sister and he was worried. He had a plan, for what he would tell her, but it felt like a lie and she was pretty good at seeing through his lies.

For several moments, they sat in silence. Danta stared at him, trying to think of a way to ask about his sudden hunting trip without coming right out and asking him where he had gone, like some nosey mate that a man could not stand. And he looked into the fire to avoid his sister's eyes, repeating his story over and over in his head, and hoping that it would sound natural when it came out of his mouth.

Danta continued to watch him and finally sighed in frustration. "Okay, I'll _guess_ again." She figured she could use their guessing game; it had always worked in the past. But Davaria's head snapped up.

"What?" he said with a frown. "Guess what?"

Danta narrowed her eyes at him. "Well, you are obviously keeping something from me, so I will guess . . . like I always have," she added.

"No I'm not," he said quickly. Much too quickly. He frowned, then tried again, more slowly. "I'm not keeping anything from _you_." Then leaned forward and whispered. "I'm just thinking about what to make Danara . . . for the adoption. I wanted to give her something too."

Danta's suspicious expression melted as she leaned to hug the man. "_Really_? That is so sweet. She will like that," she said with a smile.

Davaria smiled back at her and took a deep breath. He was glad for the low light of the cave; she might have seen the deception in his eyes, had he been facing the fire, or had she truly been looking for it, but as it was, neither of them were. The discussion was over, faster than he could have imagined, but he was pleased.

**NEW CHAPTER**

The next day was filled arranging and packing, and rearranging and repacking when everything wouldn't fit after the first attempt . . . and the second, and again on the third. The group had a lot to carry with them; much more than they had come with, but now they had three horses to help them with their journey back to the summer meeting.

It had been decided that Durc would ride on Stomp, with Grov close by to help control the moody mare. She had taken well to the man, but they were not yet sure about other riders, and they didn't want to take any chances. The three girls would ride Whinney, because she was the calmest of the three horses, and because the older two had already been on her back and they felt safe on her. That left Nicuria riderless; they still didn't think he was ready to carry a rider, though that did not preclude him from carrying a load.

"Are you sure they can carry these?" Danta asked, struggling to pick up one of the heavy panniers that had been repacked for the fourth time.

"Of course," Ayla said, not even glancing at Danta, _or_ the panniers. She was still looking at her own array of objects that lay on the sleeping platform she shared with her mate and wondering what she could leave behind.

"Are you taking the furs from your bed?" Ayla asked.

"Well . . . I don't think we'll ever be back in this valley, so yes. I don't want to leave anything valuable behind."

Ayla frowned. "But I _do_ plan to come back here . . . next year, in fact."

Danta stopped trying to pick up the pannier and looked at Ayla. "You do? Why?"

"Well . . . in the vision I had, we were here now, and then again next year."

Danta looked confused. "How could you tell that it was a different time?" she asked, finally dropping the pannier and going over to sit on Ayla's bed.

Ayla sat down beside her and smiled. "Because Stomp and Whinney were _very pregnant_ in that vision. And they are only just pregnant now."

"Oh!" Danta smiled as well. "And is that why you're coming back here, so the horses can give birth in their valley?"

"Oh no," Ayla said, shaking her head. "I'm sure the horses could give birth anywhere. We will be coming back here because there will be two men here, sometime next summer, that we are supposed to meet. But that is all I know. My vision did not tell me anything else." She bit her lip as she thought about it.

"That is a long trip to make . . . to meet people you've never met before," Danta said, frowning at the thought of traveling more than one had to. "That is one of the reasons why I didn't leave the Sungaea sooner.

"Yes, it will be a long trip, but I have to go to Lion Camp again next summer, to bring Rydag more of my herbs, and I hope some from Uba too, so I will be relatively close."

"I suppose you will. But it is a long trip from your clan's cave, isn't it?"

Ayla nodded. "Yes, quite far. But, like I said, I have to come up this way anyway, so coming over here will not be too much further. And I will have the horses. I'm sure they will make the journey seem shorter."

"Humph! For someone like me, whose never liked traveling, it's much _too_ far, even with horses." The dark-haired woman looked down at her hands, then back up at Ayla. She felt like she had to explain.

"When I was young, Sumac Camp was always moving from place to place. We never had permanent dwellings, like most of the Sungaea do. I can remember just getting settled in and then my mother's mate would come and tell Davaria and Dreena to start tearing it down again. It was . . . _unsettling_, to never know where we'd be next."

"Humm, I can imagine. The Clan does not move around either. We believe that our totems want a place to live and that they will desert us if we wander homeless. I would not like moving around all the time either."

"But you are going to," Danta said nervously, "right?" She didn't like the thought of Ayla not visiting.

"Well, of course, but it is not the same as being homeless. I will always have a home with Brun's clan. My totem is happy there."

"And with Oak Camp too. Isn't your totem happy at Oak Camp?"

Ayla frowned. "I don't know, Danta. I was not there long enough to find out. But I don't think that you should worry about it, Danta. I may not remember it, but I was born at Oak Camp. My totem _has to be_ happy in the place I was born, right?"

"I hope so."

"Do the Others have totems too?" Ayla asked.

"Some people do, I think, but we don't place such importance on it like the Clan does. There was this one man I knew, that always said the spirit of the Spotted Woodpecker protected him." She smiled. "I believed him too, because those birds were always in the trees where we camped, and no one dared to harm them."

"I can understand that. That is why I was allowed to heal Shriek; the Red Tailed Hawk is Dorg's totem and we did not want to anger the spirit of the animal by ignoring his suffering and letting him die."

Danta nodded. "I think that was a smart thing to do. I would not want to ignore something like that. Is this . . . Dorg, anything _like_ the animal whose spirit protects him?"

Ayla thought for a moment. "Well, like his totem, Dorg is a good hunter. And he has very good eyesight. And . . . he has big feet."

"Big _feet_? How is that like the Red Tailed Hawk?"

Ayla laughed. "Well, for his body size, Shriek has larger feet than other types of hawks I have seen, and so does Dorg . . . have larger feet than the other men, I mean. Though, I would never tell him that," she said and laughed again.

Danta laughed with her, then glanced down at her hands. Ayla could tell that her thoughts had shifted and waited for her to continue. "I think that Dreena's totem would have been the fox," she whispered sadly. "She could be . . . quite mischievous at times. And she loved to play games. And she was so sneaky. One time, she came on me so silently that I screamed and dropped Trata's best wooden bowl." Danta's lips curved into a slight grin as she remembered the incident with pleasure, though it had not been pleasurable at the time.

"It broke and I was _so_ scared, but Dreena very crafty as well. She buried the broken pieces in Trata carrying bag and then put it at the bottom of the pile that had just been put down to unpack." Danta's grin widened and she giggled like a girl. "When Trata found her bowl later, she blamed her mate. She screamed so loudly that everyone came out to watch. She threw the pieces onto the ground and stamped her feet." Danta could almost hear and see the spectacle the woman had caused and giggled again.

"Part of me felt bad for him. Blandaria was not a _bad_ man, he was just so . . . quiet and _calm_ all the time. I wanted to say something, but Dreena wouldn't let me. She said that if I said anything we'd both get into trouble, me for breaking the bowl and not telling anyone, and her for hiding it and pretending to know nothing about it. Trata had always hated me, but I didn't want Dreena to get into trouble just because I was a klutz. And then Dreena reminded me that Blandaria could take care of himself. And she was right too; he just walked away from his screeching mate and ignored her completely. He was pretty good at ignoring things," she finished tearfully.

Ayla took up her friend's hand and smiled. She couldn't imagine the life Danta had lived. _Nothing_ could compare to the lifetime of hatred the young woman had experienced. Even Ayla's ordeals with Broud paled in comparison, in Ayla's opinion. To be hated by one's own mother, for something only the spirits could explain, was unfathomable.

"You were not the only one at fault, you know," said a voice from behind. Both women looked up to see Davaria standing in the cave opening listening to them. "If Dreena had not scared you, you wouldn't have dropped Trata's bowl."

Danta stood up quickly and wiped her tears away. Davaria hadn't been there when the incident had occurred. He had been out hunting with their oldest brother, Dukaria, and she had never confided to him that it had been _she_ that had broken the bowl. For some reason Dreena hadn't wanted her to, but now Danta was left feeling guilty about keeping it from him.

"I always _knew_ that you two had something to do with the breaking of _that bowl_. Every time Trata threw some cutting remark at Blandaria, you two managed to leave the area." He frowned. "So, what other secrets did you two have?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest and smirking at her through his frown.

Danta's eyes opened wide and she rushed at him. "We had no other secrets, Ari," she cried. "I promise we didn't. You have to believe me."

The man smiled and shook his head. "Of course I believe you Ata. I am only teasing you."

**~oOo~**

"We cannot leave any food behind," Ayla said. "It will only attract predators and some smaller animals, and that is a mess I'd rather not have to clean up next summer."

Danta nodded. "You are right. Animals will probably come and go over the year, but you don't want to arrive to animal droppings all over the cave if it can be helped."

"Are you saying that we don't have room for everything?" Grov asked.

Ayla frowned. "I am not sure yet. I guess we won't know until we actually pack up the horses." She paused. "I think they know something is up; they are acting strangely."

"I put the pannier over Nicuria's back again last night before coming inside," Grov said. "He tried to pull it off again, but I don't think he will be able to once it's filled."

"That's good," Ayla said absently. "What about the furs on our beds? I'd like to leave them for next time."

Grov shrugged. "You don't think some animal will come in and damage them, do you?"

Ayla looked at the three furs that she'd rolled up and frowned. "They _might_, but I'd really like to have them here when we get back."

"We could bury them," Davaria suggested, "under stones or in the niche."

Ayla nodded. "That might work, if the stones are heavy enough, but it will be a lot of work to bring heavy stones up to the cave."

"I will work on that while you pack the horses," Grov said. "You are much better at making things fit." He shook his head. "I am not so good at that."

Ayla grinned at him. "It's a deal."

Davaria was watching them and smiled. But one thing was bothering him; it had been his idea to bury the furs under stones and he felt bad that he had caused _more_ work. "And I will help you." Grov nodded.

"And I think we should leave firemaking materials readily accessible too, so that we do not have to gather wood when we get here."

"There is plenty of wood on the ledge, Ayla," Danta reminded her. "We could bring it in."

Ayla nodded. "Yes, and I'll leave a pile of firestones in here as well." Everyone nodded.

**~oOo~**

Ayla stood in the mouth of the cave and looked around. She couldn't think of anything else they could do to preserve it. Animals were sure to get in and make a mess, but she hoped they had taken all measures to minimize whatever damage might occur.

Slowly, she turned around and joined everyone else by the packed horses. Grov was checking Stomp's pannier and making a few last-minute adjustments when she walked up.

"What's wrong?" he asked, noticing her crinkled brow.

"I don't know. I guess I have enjoyed this time away from so many people," she answered.

The man smiled at her. "Yes, I have also enjoyed this," he said, lifting Durc up to Stomp's back.

Danta and Davaria grinned at each other. "And so have we," they said in unison. They were both nervous about going back, but knew they would eventually be happy, once they were settled at Oak Camp.

Ayla sighed and went to check Whinney. She also moved some things around, shifting a couple items to Nicuria's pannier to give the three girls a little more space on the mare's back. The panniers would hang on either side of the mare's flanks, but the girls would need room for their legs to dangle. Ayla did not want them to be uncomfortable.

"Okay, who's first?" she asked, turning to the girls and holding out her arms. Ora came up, eager to ride again. Ayla lifted her up easily, positioning her in the middle, then picked up Annaliza, settling her youngest in front. And finally, she put Danara behind. Ayla felt that having them in size order allowed all three of them the best visibility.

"Hold onto each other tight," Ayla instructed them. All three girls nodded excitedly.

Then, with one last glance up at their cave, the journeyers turned to leave, heading eastward toward the path that would lead them out of the valley and back to the Sungaean summer meeting.

And just before they were about to begin their assent, Shriek's call could be heard above them. He was on his way as well.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Once up on the steppes, the travelers started out by following the same path they had taken to the valley, but in reverse, and at a more leisurely pace. Though they all wanted to get back, all for different reasons, they figured that time was of no concern, and they still wanted to enjoy the peace that traveling alone afforded them. They had been gone for twenty-three days, nearly an entire cycle of the moon, what was another five or six days, or even nine or ten days, if that's what it took?

They hadn't gone far when Ora claimed that her bottom was sore and that she wanted to get down. Ayla readily agreed; she had noticed the soreness in her own muscles after spending so much time riding Whinney and didn't want to have to listen to the child complain, as she was sure she would. They stopped briefly so that Ayla could set her on the ground, but started walking again immediately.

Ora was obviously glad for the freedom and, without even looking around, ran slightly ahead through the waist high steppe-grass. Danta gasped as the straw blond-haired child disappeared into the sea of summer-dried grasses, but Ayla only smiled knowingly. Within moments, Ora let out a howl of fear as she realized that the grass that was waist high on her mother, was well over her own head. She was lost!

Hiding her amused smile, Ayla went to her rescue immediately and explained the importance of staying close. After that, the three-year-old nervously walked with one hand tugging on the hem of Ayla's tunic. She did not like the thought of being lost.

But that didn't last very long, the child soon asked to be put back on the mare's back, where she could see a much greater distance.

**~oOo~**

As the day progressed, each child asked to get down for small periods of time, but when Annaliza began to whine, Ayla knew it was time to stop and feed the child.

"I know that it has not been very long," she said, looking up at the sun, "but do you mind?"

Grov frowned for a moment, then smiled. There was no rush. "Of course not," he said, turning to help Durc down. Then, noticing the boy had already jumped off of the horse's back, he looked back at his mate. "She needs to eat, Ayla." Most were not hungry, but Ayla still let Annaliza nurse whenever she wanted to; she was still too young to be weaned, and Ayla was enjoying the closeness that was developing, a closeness that was somehow different than what she had with Durc.

Grov and Davaria spent a few moments flattening a space for them to rest in, while the women picked up the girls and set them on the ground to stretch their legs and walk around. Once the children had been attended to, Ayla poured a small amount of water into a bowl for the horses to share. The horses, glad for the break, drank the water, then walked off a short distance to graze during the rest.

Ayla watched Whinney as she walked off to chomp grass, somewhat worried about losing her friend so soon after she had gained her. Then, knowing she couldn't do anything about it if the mare truly wanted to go, she turned to pick up her youngest child. Annaliza was sitting on the flattened grass, amused for the moment by a string of bones that Danara was dangling in front of her.

"Are you hungry?" Ayla motioned to the one-year-old after sitting down with the girls. Annaliza nodded, immediately losing interest in the rattling bones, and crawled onto her mother's lap. For a moment, Ayla struggled with her Other's tunic, which was tighter and much more constricting than any Clan wrap, then shrugged and crossed her hands over her stomach, and pulled them up over her head to remove the garment completely. Finally, sitting completely bare from the waist up, she closed her eyes and sighed; free at last, she thought. And as she felt her milk being released by her daughter, she let herself relax.

Davaria had just come to sit down, but stopped short when he saw Grov's mate pull her tunic over her head. He was already feeling tortured by his recent attraction to the young woman, but to see her sitting there, breasts bare and nipples hard, left him more than wanting. Quickly, he turned and pretended to be looking for something in one of Nicuria's packs.

**~oOo~**

They did not stay in their clearing for long. Instead, they set off again rather quickly, wanting to find a decent place to camp for the night before it got too late. At Grov's suggestion, they changed directions, heading more northeast. He seemed to be concerned about getting the horses across Big River, which was something Ayla hadn't thought about until he mentioned it. Big River was a _very_ large river, one requiring the people to use boats to cross; Ayla wondered why she hadn't considered it an obstacle.

"How are we going to get them across?" she asked her mate over Stomp's bare back; Durc was walking for the time being. "They cannot ride in a boat."

The man shrugged. "They will have to swim," he said simply.

Ayla frowned. "But Nicuria does not _like_ to swim. What if he refuses to do it?"

"Then he will be left behind."

Ayla sucked in her breath, surprised that he could be so callous. "We cannot leave him behind, Grov," she said, looking at the young colt that was walking just in front of his mother.

Grov smiled. "We will not _leave_ him, Ayla . . . because he will not refuse to cross."

"But how can you be sure that he will not refuse?" she asked.

"Because he does not want to be left behind _more_ than he doesn't want to cross rivers. You will see."

Ayla frowned again, wishing she could be as sure and wondering why her mate was. What did he know that she didn't? she wondered. Then she sighed, knowing that she would not be able to do anything about it, should the horses refuse to make the crossing.

**~oOo~**

As afternoon turned into evening, the travelers approached another valley that contained yet another river. They knew that it was not Big River, though they were headed in that direction. This river was southwest of Big River and nowhere near as large. They could easily have forded it, had there been a need, but as it was, there was not; their journey took them eastward, not west.

"This looks like as good a place as any," Grov said, looking across the unknown river at the rolling grassy hills. "What do you think?"

"It looks good to me," Danta said, dropping her pack and smiling. "I'm tired of walking."

Davaria looked around nervously. "I think we're in Mamutoi territory," he said with a frown. He wasn't sure how much he liked being so near to those who were said to be distantly related to the Sungaea, or how much _they_ would like _him_ being there, should they run into any. Not only had he gotten involved in invading Clan camps and forcing Clan women, he had also been a part of raiding Mamutoi camps with some of the younger men. It had never been anything like their Clan raids, where women were forced. The Mamutoi camps had always been empty, as they had always taken place during summer meetings. Usually they just knocked things over, breaking whatever they could and stealing anything of value, but Davaria had always known it was wrong, and now he was frightened that they would somehow know what he had done.

The man looked around, wondering where the nearest Mamutoi camp was. It made him nervous to be in the area where he knew those people lived, though it had been quite a few years since he had taken part in the raids; raiding had been banned by the councils, but it still happened now and then, and it made people angry.

"Yes," Ayla said, not noticing his nervousness as she helped the children off the horses. "I think that you are correct. Lion Camp was headed that way, I think." She pointed north-northwest. "And Talut said that they were summering with . . . _Amber Camp_." She turned toward Grov and raised her brow. "What did he say Lion Camp's summer camp was called?"

Grov thought for a moment with a frown. "_Cattail Camp_?" he said, not completely sure.

Ayla nodded. "Yes, I think that is right?" She paused for a moment as her thoughts shifted. "I wish we could see Lion Camp again . . . before we go back to the summer meeting."

"Are you thinking about Rydag?" Grov asked.

She nodded. "I am worried about him. Next summer will not come soon enough, I'm afraid. I hope that he makes it that long," she said sadly.

"You do not know that Uba can do anything," Grov said, starting to pull their things out of Stomp's pannier so that the mare could rest for the night. "Her medicine may not be enough either."

Ayla frowned and went to stand next to her mate. "But Grov, _my_ medicine is the same as hers. It is Uba's _memories_ that I am after. Maybe she can remember something stronger than the medicine Iza taught me. Iza did not teach me everything; there was not enough time."

He stopped unpacking and nodded. "Yes, I know, Ayla. I'm just saying that it won't make Rydag better to worry about him, or to keep thinking about whether or not _Uba_ will have another remedy. You cannot spend the next year worrying about it. It is up to Ursus."

Ayla's troubled eyes searched Grov's, then she sighed. "You are right . . . of course," she finally said before reaching up and touching the stubble on the man's face. "You are also very _scratchy_."

The man rubbed his chin and grinned at her. "I will shave again in the morning . . . if you would like me to."

Ayla leaned to brush her cheek against the grain of his growing beard, then kissed him. "I would like it . . . but only if you really want to do it."

**~oOo~**

After the evening fire was burning, the men set up the tents while Ayla and Danta finished unpacking Whinney and Nicuria, so that they could join Stomp in the grass. It was a tedious job, emptying packs that they had so carefully packed that morning, and would have to pack again every day that they traveled, but it needed to be done so that the horses could rest.

"I wish we didn't have to do this," Danta said, frowning at the array of objects on her side of Whinney. Ayla was on the mare's other side, emptying out the opposite pannier.

"Well, there is too much in here for even Grov to lift it off of her, so I think we don't have a choice," Ayla said with a smile. "And we can't leave them _on_ her. This is just the price we pay for traveling with so many things."

"At least we _have_ the horses to help us," Davaria interjected. "We could never have brought back all of _this_ without them."

Danta nodded. "You are right. The horses sure are a help. And this isn't _that_ difficult," she said with a smile. "I am very grateful for what you have done for us, Ayla."

Ayla blushed. "I have done nothing that you do not deserve, Danta." Ayla quickly went back to emptying the panniers; she was still uncomfortable with compliments.

"And think of it this way," Davaria said to change the subject, "once we're at Oak Camp, we'll never have to carry such a load again."

Danta smiled and put her arms around her brother. "Yes, you are right, brother . . . _again_. And once we're there, I _never_ want to go anywhere, _ever_ again."

"Except for summer meetings, right?" he asked. He didn't like Sumac Camp and was happy about the adoption, but he didn't know anyone at Oak Camp very well and it worried him to have no contact with people he _did_ know, not that he thought anyone from their home camp would be all that welcoming after the adoption.

Danta could see his concern. She knew he was still worried about being isolated from their people. "Yes, Davaria, I will still go to summer meetings," she said as she leaned the pannier up against their tent and refilled it to keep their items safe. "I just mean that I never want to make a long journey again."

"I never even dreamed of making such journeys," Ayla commented as she slapped Whinney's rear. The horse nickered and moved to join the others. "But I'm glad that I have. I am glad that I have been able to meet Vincenzia's people and to have learned about where I came from."

**~oOo~**

The women had fixed a light meal and most ate in silence, though the children chatted excitedly; they didn't seem tired from the day of traveling, which was quite understandable since they had not done much walking. However, after their meal, and much to Ora's displeasure, the children were put to bed so that the adults could relax and talk.

For a while, the silence continued. Each person was thinking about his or her own concerns. Ayla, her thoughts still on Rydag, was wishing they could take a detour to go see the boy. She worried that he would not make it another year, and was sad that there was nothing more she could do for the boy without first talking with Uba. But it didn't matter, even if she had something to help him, they didn't know where Lion Camp was. They only knew that Amber Camp was somewhere north of where they were now, but the land was vast; they would never find them without precise directions.

Grov was thinking about the great distances they had traveled over the summer. He had only traveled so far one other time during his life, but that had been as a small child, which he barely remembered. For a brief moment, he thought about his mother again. She had journeyed a long way, carrying him carefully cradled at her breast and hoping to find happiness at the end of their path. But it was not to be; she had never been happy, as far as he could remember.

Davaria's mind jumped around a bit. First he thought about his Sumac friends; he wondered if they were still going to cause trouble when they returned. Most likely, he thought sadly. Then he considered his mother and frowned. He had always disliked her for the way she treated Danta, but knowing that she was now lost to him as well hurt him deeply. She was, after all, his _mother_, the woman who gave him life. Next, his mind jumped to how happy Danta and Danara were going to be with Oak Camp. Oak Camp was full of good people, he said to himself. And he still couldn't believe they were going to take him as well. Danta and Danara deserved to be adopted, but he wasn't so sure about himself. For a moment he wondered if Ivanolia had made any disparaging comments about him, or if the man was truly happy to have him. He _had_ seemed welcoming when we were at Oak Tent, the man mused, feeling self conscious about his place. What _was_ his place? he wondered. Then suddenly he smiled, realizing that it didn't matter anymore, Oak Camp was accepting him. Ivanolia must not have made moves to prevent the adoption, or it would not be happening. Davaria could not help but think that Ivanolia was a different man, now that he was mated again and his life was on the right path. It made Davaria wonder how much being adopted would change him, and his life.

Danta's brain was filled with dread about the upcoming confrontation at the summer meeting. She had tried hard not to think about Zadneetsia and what the man had done to her, but now that they were actually moving back toward the meeting, dark thoughts began to cloud her being. She wondered if she would be able to make her accusations. Knowing that she would not be believed would make it more difficult. She didn't even want to face Sumac Camp so that she could be adopted, let alone raise a claim against Zadneetsia. It was all so complicated.

**~oOo~**

The night ended quietly, none of them deciding to start a conversation. Each realized that they were more tired than they thought. Danta excused herself first, hoping that sleep would keep her from thinking about Zadneetsia. Davaria watched his sister go, then turned back to stare into the fire.

Ayla sat there silently, looking at the closed flap of Danta's tent and wondering what her friend was thinking. She could see that the woman was troubled and figured she knew the cause. She wanted to help, but Danta didn't seem to want help. Ayla's thoughts were so inward that she did not see Grov get up and walk away.

Grov was done for the night as well, but first he headed away from their camp to relieve himself. He hated having to go out at night to do that, especially when he was snuggled up to Ayla in their warm furs.

"Are you coming?" he asked Ayla, after he had returned to the fire.

Ayla looked up at him. "Humm?" she said questioningly. Then realizing what he had said, she looked down at her almost empty cup and smiled. "Oh yes, I will be right there." She watched as he silently entered their tent, then she gulped down the remainder of her tea and looked at Davaria.

"Are you going to go to sleep soon?" she asked him, as she stood up to go.

He stared at the fire for a moment longer, then looked up at her and nodded. "Soon," he said, continuing to nod. "I will bank the fire," he offered.

Ayla smiled down at the man. "Well, good night then," she said, and left to join her mate.

Davaria watched Ayla go. He couldn't help but watch the natural sway of her hips as she walked away from him. She is mesmerizing, he thought, once again feeling a tightening in his manhood. He willed it to go away, to no avail.

"Oh Sumata," he moaned quietly, head in his hands, "please stop punishing me for what I did to those women. This is not the same," he whispered. He wanted Ayla so badly and wondered if it was because of her beauty. He had seen many beautiful women during his lifetime. What made Ayla so different? Then he thought about what Danta had said about the _other women_, and he frowned. Do I feel this way because I have never truly lain with a woman? he silently questioned. He thought about his sister's words and knew she was right; those women did _not_ count. But where did that leave him now? He sighed and tried to think about sleeping.

Then, when he heard the unmistakable sounds of Ayla taking off her clothes and getting under the furs with her mate, he groaned quietly and decided to walk it off. Quietly, he circled the perimeter of their camp several times, making certain to keep out of earshot of Ayla's tent. Then, returning to their fire, he set it so that it would burn hot and long. And finally, with once last glance toward Ayla's tent, he turned and entered his own.

Davaria sent one glance over at Danta. Then, closing his eyes to sleep, he thanked the Mother that his sister was already asleep. He knew she would have found reason to question him if she hadn't been. She always did. She always seemed to know when he was troubled, and he didn't feel like talking.

**NEW CHAPTER***

But Danta _wasn't_ sleeping. Nor was she of a mind to be thinking about Davaria's problems. Instead, she was lying on her side, her back to her brother's sleeping place, desperately trying to regulate her breathing so that he wouldn't know she was awake and filled with dread.

_Relax_, she told herself silently, but calming herself was easier said than done. She had spent most of the day worrying and each step that brought them closer to the summer meeting, and Zadneetsia, caused her to reconsider her decision to go back. In mere days she would have to stand up against the camp of her birth, and the foul man who had violated her body, so that she could get away from them. Just thinking about it made her sick. It was too much to take. Yet, here she was, on her way back.

_What am I doing?_ she asked herself as she bit back her sobs. She was trying so hard not to cry, but eventually she couldn't take it any longer. Without a single sound, Danta's eyes welled and her tears fell, but she didn't even seem to notice. They soaked through the sleeve of her sleeping tunic, wetting the skin of the arm she had tucked under her head and seeping into the furs that lay beneath her. Davaria chose that moment to let out a sigh, causing Danta to hold her breath.

_Sleep Ari_, she pleaded silently, as she strained to hear the signs that told her he was no longer conscious. It did not take long; he was snoring beside her and she was able to relax . . . somewhat.

_He must have been tired_, she thought as she wiped away her tears and rolled to her back. She watched the outside firelight dance across their leather tent and tried to smile. _Davaria never had trouble sleeping, so why would tonight be any different?_ she mused as she glanced over at him. She could just make out his profile in the darkness and was glad that at least _he_ was at peace. That was good to see. She sighed and closed her eyes.

Then suddenly, her mind returning to the summer meeting, she wondered how _peaceful_ Davaria would be when he found out what Zadneetsia had done to her. She shuddered at the thought and decided that she didn't want Davaria to ever find out. _But how can I possibly hide it? How can I stand up to Sumac Camp, where Zadneetsia is sure to be, and not let it show?_ "How can I face _that man_?" she whispered, letting her tears fall again, then biting her lip to prevent the sob that threatened to tear out of her.

_How can I possibly return to my people?_ She didn't think she could do it, even though she had already agreed to. She wondered if Davaria would still be willing to follow her out into the unknown, to make a journey, to search for a new people, now that he had a place to go. She knew she was being unfair, that he would be so disappointed if she changed her mind. They had worked so hard to prepare fine gifts for Oak Camp and Davaria seemed so happy, but she was still afraid to face Sumac Camp. Afraid of their ridicule and afraid of their hate.

But, she was also afraid of being alone. In her heart, she didn't think he would allow her to leave on her own. He _would_ go with her . . . if she asked him to. Danta smiled. She loved her brother so much and did not want to cause him unhappiness. Davaria was all she and Danara had left; they had no one else to turn to. Danta could not ask him to leave and she could not leave without him. She was so scared . . . and so ashamed, but she knew she _had_ to go back. Going back was their best chance to survive.

**~oOo~**

"Hey, what do you say to spending a day _here_?" Danta put out, in what she hoped sounded nonchalant, as everyone ate their morning meal. Davaria choked down the bite of food he had been about to swallow and blinked back the tears the effort caused. Everyone stared at him for a moment while he composed himself, then they all looked at Danta, clearly surprised by her suggestion. They hadn't discussed stopping anywhere on the way back, not even when or where their nightly camps would be. It was just assumed that they'd make camp and break camp as they felt like it, but without any extended layovers. Hadn't they _just_ left the valley with the intention of going back to the summer meeting to be adopted?

Danta could see confusion in their eyes as they stared at her. When no one said anything she went on. "I mean, we're not in any hurry, are we?" she asked, trying to hide her nervousness. The other three adults shook their heads, but all looked suspicious. She had to force herself to relax. She didn't want them to see just how upset she was about returning to the summer meeting. "So, what's another day?"

Ayla and Davaria glanced at Grov, expecting to him to decide, and Grov knew it was up to him, though he never spared them a glance. He kept his eyes on Danta, silently contemplating what she wanted. And then he shrugged. "I suppose it would not hurt." He looked at Ayla and Davaria then. "What do you two think?"

"I do not mind," Ayla replied immediately. "We are in no hurry."

Grov knew that she did not care either way; he could see it in her eyes. But when he turned his questioning eyes on Davaria, he got a completely different feeling. Grov could tell that the other man was looking forward to returning, even though things probably wouldn't go smoothly, and _he_ didn't like the delay. But Davaria also had another look about him. It was as if the man had just realized how desperate his sister had been to leave, and as if he suddenly remembered she had some kind of secret about…something.

"Davaria?" Grov prompted when the man didn't give his opinion aloud.

Davaria's forehead was deeply creased as he stared at his sister. He knew she did not want to go back, that despite Oak Camp's offer, she was dreading their return. And though she had not said one thing to indicate she had changed her mind, she was almost ready to bolt. He knew this beyond a shadow of a doubt, but he didn't know how to call her on it. And he did not want to give her any opportunities to turn tail and run, because he knew life was going to get better, once they settled in with Oak Camp. He just _knew_ it.

"Ah…staying here _a day_ is fine with me," he finally said.

Danta sighed. Another day, she thought with relief. It was putting off the inevitable, but another day _away_ was still another day she didn't have to face _him_. "Great!" she exclaimed. A little _too_ enthusiastically she knew, and she knew they knew it too. Everyone stared at her. "Umm, let's go swimming then," she suggested. Then, standing up, she strode away from the others.

Davaria watched her walk away, for just a moment. Then he too stood. "I think that…I need to talk to my sister," he said, without even looking down at the other two as he started away.

Grov and Ayla could only watch him go, then exchanged a worried look.

**~oOo~**

"Danta?" Davaria said, coming up behind her.

"Hummm?" she answered without turning to face him. When she had walked off, she had only gotten as far as some of the large rocks that littered the riverbank before tears spilled down her cheeks.

"What's…going on?"

Blinking hard and brushing at her tears, she kept her eyes on the river. "What makes you think something's going on? I just…wanted to stay here another day, that's all."

"Oh _come on_, Danta!" he exclaimed as he grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around. "That's not _all_ and…." He paused. _Tears?_ He knew she was upset, but she looked terrified. "What's going on, Ata? Please don't make me guess," he begged. "You know you can tell me anything."

Danta sighed and let her tears fall again. A ragged sob tore from her throat as she fell into her brother's arms. He held her silently, letting her get it out. And then, when her sobs subsided, he turned her chin up so that he could look her in the eyes. She tried to look away, but there was something about his gaze that forced her to look at him.

"Okay now," he said, brushing the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs. "Tell me. What can I do?"

Danta sucked in her breath. "There is nothing…nothing you can do, Ari." More tears slipped down her cheeks. "This is…just something _I_ have to deal with."

"What is?" he asked. "I'm sure I can help. What can I do?"

"Nothing!" she exclaimed, turning her back on him.

Davaria frowned at her back. Why is she being so stubborn? he wondered. What could be so bad? "Danta," he began again, "You _have to_ tell me what's wrong."

"No! I don't!" she burst out, suddenly facing him again. "This is…_my_ problem."

Still frowning, Davaria grabbed her by her shoulders again and stared at her in frustration. "No Danta, if this _problem_, whatever it is, brings you to tears, then it's mine too. Do you really think we can go back to the summer meeting before we talk about this?" He paused, realizing that he'd just given her that opportunity to change her mind about returning for the adoption. He watched her for a second, and when she opened her mouth to reply, he went on. "Don't answer that! We _are_ going back. You know that it's for the best…for all of us." And then, hoping to appeal to her guilt, he continued again. "You have to think of Danara. She needs a decent home. She…."

"Ari!" she said quickly, sounding stronger than she felt. It stopped him from saying anything more. "I'm not going to change my mind about returning. I agreed to go back…and we're going. But that doesn't mean everything is settled…in my mind." More tears fell. "You have _no idea_ how painful going back is going to be. Facing Sumac Camp is only part of it." She turned away and began pacing. "There is just so much more to this than you know."

"Then tell me, Ata," he begged. "I can only help if you tell me."

"But there's nothing you can do, Ari." She stopped pacing and glanced at him. "You just can't help with this."

"Why?"

Danta wrapped her arms around her own waist and sighed heavily. "Because your _help_ is likely to get you in trouble, and I can't bear the thought of more trouble for you."

Davaria stared at her helplessly. Trouble? Hadn't Ayla said something like that, before they'd arrived in the valley? He tried to recall her words exactly. _Someone hurt Danta too._ He frowned again as anger began to take over.

"Who hurt you, Ata?" She looked away again. "Danta! You have to tell me." Her eyes filled again and she dropped her face into her hands. "Now damn it!" He was nearly shouting. "Who was it?"

Danta looked up at him, then over his shoulder. His eyes followed her gaze; Grov and Ayla were standing a short distance from them, with concerned looks on their faces. His raised voice had obviously drawn them closer. Davaria glanced back at Danta, then at Ayla again. And then it hit him.

"Zadneetsia!" He watched as tears once again poured from her eyes. "It was Zadneetsia?" he growled. Her eyes filled again. "What did he…?" He stopped, his eyes widening in realization. The tears fell and then she collapsed to the ground.

"I'll _kill_ him!" he said through clenched teeth as he kicked violently, spraying sand away from the crumpled figure at his feet. Then, reaching down, he picked up a rock and threw it with all his might. It landed in the river. Only then did he kneel down beside her. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" he asked. Danta looked up at him. He was shaking and his face was red with fury.

"I couldn't, Ari," she whined. "This is _why_ I didn't tell you before. I did not want to risk more trouble."

"_Trouble_?" he exclaimed furiously. "Oh Mother! You have not _seen_ trouble yet. When I get my hands on him…I-I'm going to strangle him, Ata," he said, standing up and holding his hands out as if he were doing just what he said.

Danta frowned and got up. Placing her hands on her brother's cheeks, she shook her head. "No, Ari. You can't do that. That would solve nothing. It wouldn't right what he did to me and it would turn you into something that you are not." He tried to look away from her, but she held him fast. "Listen to me…you _must_ let this go, just as I've got to."

"WHAT! How can you say that? He _forced_ you," he said through gritted teeth. "He deserves to…to suffer…and to die."

"And do you deserve to die as well?" she asked, "For what you did to those Clan women."

Davaria gasped. "Maybe," he said honestly. "Maybe I do."

She shook her head. "No, Ari. What you did was wrong…you know that now, but you don't deserve death. You are obviously a changed man."

"You only say that because you're my sister…you _have to_ forgive me."

"Well, _I'm_ not your sister," Ayla said as she slowly approached the pair on the beach. "And I believe you are a good man, Davaria." Davaria looked at the woman, Grov was walking with her, nodding his head.

"We would know if you had not changed," Grov added. "You could not hide that from us. Your sister is right…you did wrong, but you are nothing like Zadneetsia."

Davaria blinked, then looked back at Danta. "All right…you forgive me, but that doesn't change the fact that _Zadneetsia_ hasn't changed…he will never change."

Danta took a deep breath; it was almost a sob. "I have to agree with you there, Ari," she said tearfully. "But you cannot lower yourself to his level. I will not let you. And I _will not_ go back if you don't promise to let me handle this the way I think it should be handled." She paused. "Promise me that you won't lay a hand on him…that you'll stay away from him and that you won't say a word about what he did to me." Davaria folded his arms over his chest and looked away. "Promise me!" she demanded.

He finally looked at her. "I promise."

**~oOo~**

When the sun came up the next morning everyone rose and bathed in the river, then packed up and left, following the river at a leisurely pace for a short distance, then turning east so that they were heading toward Big River and their destination. The children sat astride the horses again and were enjoying not having to walk the distance, but they were not oblivious to the tension around them. The previous day had been hard on everyone.

After Davaria had made his promise, he had refused to join in with the group, choosing instead to sit and sulk on the sidelines. He didn't understand how they could forgive him for what he had done, when he could not forgive himself. He was racked with guilt that pained him every time he thought about it, and he hoped the Mother never took the pain away; he deserved every bit of it. It was a good reminder to never cross that line again. He just wished that Zadneetsia would suffer as he was. Part of him knew it was wrong to wish such pain on someone else, but he didn't care. As far as he was concerned, Zadneetsia _should be_ suffering for what he did. And despite his promise to Danta, he had no intention of _letting it go_.

As they traveled, mostly in silence, the group scanned the countryside looking for the best possible path, a path on which they could travel with ease that was also the most direct. Since their departure from their first campsite, they had been crossing the lowland grasses that covered the valley where Big River flowed. It was a vast valley, extending as far as the eye could see and providing all that was necessary to sustain life. There were plenty of dips and hollows, which made perfect watering holes for the horses, and the many small streams that raked their way through the earth made it possible for the travelers to have a continuous supply of fresh water. This water both quenched the thirst of the travelers and allowed the growth of the large variety of flora that colored the area to draw every imaginable creature. Among them, a small herd of bison, grazing in the distance, birds fluttering from tree to tree, twittering happily, ground squirrels scampering around, disappearing into holes just as the travelers neared, and even a few carnivores, lazing in the sun, waiting for a meal to wander too close.

They had left early, wanting to make headway while the weather was still pleasantly cool. But now, at midday, with the bright sun shining directly overhead, they were hot and sweaty, and wanting a break. Stopping, however, was not what they did. Instead, they pushed on, hoping to find the shade of a tree in which to rest their weary bodies.

But that was not to be, for a while at least, because there were no trees in sight, only waist-high bushes and large and small outcroppings of rocks dotting the area ahead of them, neither of which offering any relief to the travelers. But they continued to keep their eyes on the land, looking for just the right place.

Far to the north, and much closer south of them, the rolling hills met an azure blue sky filled with billowing white clouds, giving perspective to the seemingly endless river valley. If one didn't know better, it would seem as if they had a long way to go, but it was only a short way to Big River and the summer meeting beyond that. They drew comfort in that, though their hearts were heavy.

Things should have been good. They had acquired what they had gone after and were returning with far more than they had anticipated, but no one seemed very happy; they knew what they faced once they joined the rest of their people.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"The hunters are returning!" a boy shouted excitedly. "The hunters are back!" He ran through the busy space, poking his head into the various communal tents as he went to pass on the news.

Janara watched as the boy came into view. She had not been allowed to go on the hunt. After the trouble she had caused on the last one, the man of her hearth had forbidden further summer hunts, even after their headman had lifted her restriction to their tentfire. It had embarrassed her greatly, but she knew she had it coming. It was all she could do to even sit outside.

"Janara!" The boy stopped in front of her, taking large gulps of air. "They're back!"

She smiled at him and handed him her cup of water. "So I've heard. Where is my brother?" she asked.

"Jondaria walks in front…_again_." The boy rolled his eyes.

Janara laughed. "He is a good hunter. Just like you will be one day, Benaria," she said encouragingly.

Benaria swallowed the rest of his cousin's water, then handed her the cup and ran off to continue spreading his message around the meeting.

**~oOo~**

Coming out of Oak Tent just as the boy went by, Ivanolia glanced over at the young woman sitting at Spruce Tent's fire and waved. Their shared restriction had helped them to become friends, though at first, Ivanolia had had no interest. "They're back?" he called out.

Getting up, Janara nodded and started toward the man. He and his mate were among the few that seemed to have forgiven her transgressions. "Yes. Benaria says my brother leads them."

Ivanolia grinned. "Are you surprised?"

Shaking her head, she returned his smile. "No. It's just that he saves that honor for no one."

"Well, if it can't be _us_, it might as well be him, huh?" Ivanolia remarked, elbowing the blushing young woman. He had gotten over the embarrassment of being restricted from the hunt, but she obviously hadn't. "I think I'll go on out. I'm sure they could use a hand bringing things in." He paused. "Want to join me?"

Janara thought about it for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I should probably stay here. Jeeteria left no doubt that he didn't want me anywhere near the hunters." She blushed again, and looked away as her eyes filled with tears.

Ivanolia sighed. "They will forget, you know." She nodded, but wouldn't look at him. "Just give them time," he said, reaching out and forcing her to look at him. "Okay?" She nodded again and he narrowed his eyes, hoping to see that she was indeed all right.

"I will be fine," she said to reassure him. "_Really_." She wiped her tears away.

He smiled. "Then I'm going to go. Would you mind telling someone from Oak Tent where I went? Danie's sleeping and I don't want to wake her."

"No, of course not," she replied. "And thank you, Ivanolia."

He grinned. "What are friends for?" he asked, then turned and jogged off.

**~oOo~**

"It was a fantastic hunt!" Tiflona exclaimed as they sat around their evening fire. "I never thought we'd find a herd of mammoth so close, but it was as if they were drawn to us."

"I heard that a group of Mamutoi joined in on the hunt," Serana said as she rocked her granddaughter in her arms. "Is that true?"

Vincenzia nodded. "Yes, Amber Camp is hosting this year. They have chosen the large river valley just northeast of their territory and they were out on their summer hunt. We joined forces and were extremely successful."

"I was a bit surprised to run into them," Vilognia interjected. "I didn't think they'd be so far east when Amber Camp is positioned where the Desna River runs into Big River. But then Darvie explained that the Mamutoi don't, _as a rule, meet at a home camp._"

"They don't? Why is that?" Zarina asked.

"Well, to preserve the territory for those that have to live there all the time." It was Travie that answered.

Darvie nodded. "We _usually_ choose _some location that_ is _out on the steppes or in some large river valley that_ can _accommodate such concentrations of people_. This helps to prevent resources from being overtaxed."

"That is smart," Tiflona said, "Though I haven't seen this to be a problem, have you?" She looked around at the other members of Oak Tent.

"No, but I have heard of this. Especially for camps that share territory with others," Gredenzia put in. "Where we live, we are lucky; there is no camp that is too close."

"That _is_ lucky!" said Travie. She sighed. "Now that I'm getting older, the thought of going hungry is more frightening. I would not want to have to worry about lack of food, among other things."

Vincenzia smiled. "Well, don't fret. There are plenty of hunters in Oak Camp to feed you."

"Yes, mother," Darvie said, agreeing with her mate. "And you are not really _that_ old."

"I suppose not. Too old to hunt, though," she said.

Ivanolia frowned. Was his mate's mother worried about not having enough food this winter? he wondered. Was that _his_ fault? "I know that my actions have prevented Oak Camp from their share of this hunt, but I promise to keep our stores full, Travie," he said, continuing to frown.

She waved her hand to dismiss his concern. "I know you will. This old woman is just remembering a time when she was more able to contribute. Don't you trouble yourself."

"And we will have two new hunters upon Grov and Ayla's return," Fraylora added. She had already taken Davaria and Danta, and little Danara, into her heart. Her anger at their mother's coldness and hatred had developed into quite an overwhelming need to welcome them wholeheartedly. They needed a mother and she would be just that. And agreeing with his mate, Gredenzia had gone straight to Tägnolia and Tiflona and asked if Bison Hearth could speak for them at the adoption. It had already been agreed that the three new members would become sons and daughters of the Bison Hearth, even though they would be given their own hearth to live in and name.

"Yes, we will have plenty of food," Gredenzia said, squeezing his mate's hand lovingly.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that," came a voice from the shadows. Everyone turned and stared.

Tiflona scowled as several members from Sumac Camp came into view, but she did not get up. "Is there something we can do for you, Ivarsia?" She squinted to see who else was there. "Iyena?"

"Why yes, that you can," the Sumac headwoman replied. "I think there is a matter of payment owed to Sumac Camp. We would like to have that now."

Tiflona frowned, then rose. Tägnolia and several others stood with her. "You know quite well that the distributions have not been handed out yet." She folded her arms over her chest and glared that their intruders. "We cannot give you what we do not have yet."

"So, you have not changed your minds, then?" Ivarsia asked.

"Of course not!" Fraylora snapped. "Oak Camp go back on an agreement."

"And we might just wait until Davaria and Danta return," Tägnolia put in. "Why should we turn over so much until we are certain we are getting what we're bargaining for?"

Ivarsia threw back his head and laughed. "Why indeed? You just might change your mind."

"No, _we won't_," Tiflona said. "Like Fraylora said, that is not the way of Oak Camp. You will get what we agreed upon. But not until _we_ get it. You will have to wait, just like everyone else."

Ivarsia and Iyena, and the others with them, watched as the members of Oak Camp turned their backs and moved to sit down again. It was obvious they had been dismissed. Flushing angrily, they left quickly.

**NEW CHAPTER **(They finally return...)

"That _camp_ is unbelievable!" Fraylora said angrily through clenched teeth as she tossed chopped vegetables into the pot of bison stew she and the other women had cooking for that night's meal. "How long have the hunters been back?" she asked with an almost violent stab of her bone fork into the air. Then she answered her own question. "Mere _moments_! The nerve of _those_…those," she sputtered.

"_Now, Fray_," Gredenzia interrupted before she could say something she might regret. "Don't get yourself all worked up. We'll get them their meat as soon as it comes."

"…_animals_!" Fraylora stopped and scowled, causing Gredenzia to frown; he wasn't used to this side of his mate; a reserved woman by nature, usually quiet and melancholy, though always friendly.

"I don't care one bit about the damned meat!" she cursed. Her mate's eyes widened. Fraylora blushed and looked into the pot of cooking stew. "What I mean is…how can they only be concerned about the meat when they are losing three decent people." She turned tearful eyes on her mate. "I don't understand."

Gredenzia sighed and put his arms around his mate to calm her. "Soon you won't have to worry about them anymore," he whispered. "Soon they will be yours."

Everyone knew that Oak Camp was adopting the brother and sister, but that they were to become a daughter and son of Bison Hearth. But for Fraylora it almost seemed too good to be true. _She_ couldn't help but think it would be ripped from her before she had a chance to realize it. They wouldn't be a replacement for the daughter she had lost eight years before...not really, but they might fill the void that seemed to grow with each passing year.

"They will be _ours_," she corrected.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

The sun was low in the sky behind them as the travelers reached Big River. They turned then, following the river's southeast flow as Grov searched for a decent place to stop for the night. After rejecting several spots, the man finally called a halt.

"We will stay here," he declared, then allowed his pack to drop to the ground. Everyone else followed his lead, though no one else said anything. Ayla and Danta quickly lifted the three girls off Whinney's back, while Durc dropped to the ground, easily sliding off Stomp on his own. And Davaria immediately began emptying Nicuria's panniers.

Grov watched them for a few moments, then turned to survey the spot he had chosen. It would suffice. It was devoid of any kind of natural shelter, but at least they'd have water.

With a glance over his shoulder to see how much time they had left before the sun disappeared behind the western mountains, Grov decided he was satisfied with his choice. He figured they had more than enough time to set up camp and fix a meal…and even take a swim to clean the travel grime from their bodies. His eyes then went to each person in the group again. Everyone looked travel-weary, but he knew that it was more than just the constant movement that exhausted them; each one of them was so emotionally spent that they could barely stand up.

Davaria had remained distant throughout the day, choosing to follow far enough behind the group that it had been impossible to converse with him for the entire day. And when they had stopped for their noon meal, he hadn't said one word, not even to Danta. Instead, he took his share of the meal and went off to sit alone. Grov debated going after him, but decided against it; the man clearly needed time to himself. He didn't miss though, the frown on Danta's face as she watched her brother walk away from them, nor did he miss the single tear that slipped down her cheek. She was going through a lot right now too, and _she'd_ probably like to have her brother's shoulder to cry on. Unfortunately _he_ seemed to be battling his own storm. Anger? Hatred? Guilt? All of the above? Grov wasn't sure. He wanted to help, but he didn't know what he could do.

With a sigh, he looked at his mate. He knew Ayla worried about getting the horses across Big River. It worried him as well, but what bothered him most was that he had no suggestions to make it easier. He could think of no way to get them across other than to have them swim and Ayla didn't like that idea. He knew she feared they'd just simply refuse to cross. And what could they do if _that_ happened? He felt helpless.

After unloading Stomp's pannier, Grov moved to set up their tents. Everyone had fallen into a routine and this was his part. Davaria's job was Nicuria who, being the only riderless horse, carried the bulk of everything else. Though young, the frisky colt appeared to be handling it well, and Davaria seemed to be taking the task quite seriously. Danta and Ayla took care of Whinney, started the fire and then the meal, while it was Durc's responsibility to mind the girls. It was amazing how quickly things could be done with everyone working together.

"Do you want the fire here, or there?" Grov heard Danta ask Ayla. He watched as his mate stopped unloading Whinney, then silently considered the question.

"Put it there, so we can look out over the water," she answered.

After Whinney's packs were empty, and the tents were up, Grov helped Ayla carry their furs inside.

"I would like to take a few moments to clean up, before we cook."

Grov nodded. "I knew that you would," he said with a smile. He glanced again at the sky. "Take your time…you have plenty."

She smiled, then herded the children with her. Soon everyone followed.

**~oOo~**

"That was a great meal, Ayla," Danta said after setting her plate down. Then, looking at her brother, whom hadn't said a word all evening, she went on. "Don't you think so, Ari?"

Davaria mumbled something semi-complimentary about the meal, but didn't bother to look up at his sister, or the others sitting around the fire. Everyone was watching _him_ though. Danta fought hard not to cry…or scream. She even felt the urge to slap him, but fought it. Why was _he_ pouting? _He_ wasn't the one that had had to endure Zadneetsia's forced penetration.

Ayla must have sensed where her mind had gone, because suddenly the blonde woman had moved to sit next to her and was holding her hand. Danta returned the gentle squeeze and tried to smile.

"I still don't know how you get those fish to just let you lift them out of the river. Every time I try to do it, they all swim off."

"I don't know how she does it either," Grov commented. "How anyone can stand so still for so long is completely beyond me."

Ayla frowned. "It's not that hard. I am just patient. And determined…I just didn't feel like another meal of deer or rabbit." She made a face. "I thought fish would be a good change, especially when I saw so many of them in those shallow pools."

Danta nodded her agreement. "It is good. Thank you. It's so nice to have choices. With you around we always seem to have fresh meat," Danta said. "If we had to eat traveling food each night, I think I'd be sick." At Sumac Camp they hardly had any food at all, let alone variety. She glanced at her brother, hoping he'd add to the conversation. He was still staring at his plate, pushing the food around, but not eating it.

Davaria glanced up at his sister, then at the other two. "I think I'll turn in," he said as he stood up and started away.

Danta frowned. "But you haven't eaten."

Davaria looked down at his plate of uneaten food, then extended it to his sister. "Here, take it, I'm not hungry."

She watched him walk away, then sighed and plunked herself down next to Ayla again.

"Just give him some time, Danta," the other woman said.

**~oOo~**

The next morning, they were up early and traveling as soon as all had eaten and everything was packed. Now that a routine had been set, the speed at which everyone came together was amazing. They were quickly on their way.

_Today_, as well as the following day, they would follow the course of Big River. Though it twisted and turned through the landscape, it flowed in a generally southeastern direction. At first, it seemed nice to have fresh water so near, but after a day of walking next to it, and having to deal with the sun glaring off the water, everyone was feeling weary again. Ever watchful, Grov called an early halt. He had hoped to reach the crossing sometime early the next afternoon but, after seeing his companions' reddening faces, he reminded himself that there was no need to rush their return.

As it turned out, they arrived at Maple Camp's dock in the early evening on the following day.

**~oOo~**

"You are worried."

Ayla looked at her mate and nodded. "I do not see how we will get them across. After all we have gone through to get them, we might lose them in the crossing."

"Horses _can_ swim, Ayla," he reminded her.

"Yes, I know. It's just that…what if they do not _want_ to swim across?"

Grov glanced out over the river, his frown of concern matching that of his mate. "We _have to_ cross it, Ayla," he said, slipping his arm around her waist and pulling her up against him. "We cannot return to the summer meeting without doing so."

She nodded again. "I know. I am just...frightened."

**~oOo~**

In the morning, instead of packing up the horses, the travelers filled up one of the waiting boats, and the women waited while the men crossed, unpacked and returned for more. On the second crossing, along with another load, Danta went, taking Durc and Ora with her, while the other two children waited with Ayla. And the third trip brought Danara and Annaliza over, as well as the last of their bundles. All that was left on the opposite bank now was a nervous Ayla and the horses. Grov and Davaria quickly crossed back over to assist her.

"Okay…ready?" Grov asked her.

Ayla nodded, but checked the horses again before reluctantly walking out onto the dock and climbing into the boat. She'd slipped a halter over each of the horses' heads, then tied their leads to one end of the boat, giving them each a different length of rope so that they wouldn't get in one another's way. But she was still worried. The river _looked_ calm, but _was it_? So many things could go wrong.

Grov waited for her to settle herself at the end closest to where the horses were tied, then he and Davaria found their seats and pushed off from the dock while Ayla called out to the horses and gently pulled on their leads, hoping to encourage the animals to follow them. Apparently no longer afraid of rivers, Nicuria followed easily enough, stepping from the sandy beach and into the water, the other two horses following a bit more slowly. Nicuria was knee-deep, the boat quite a distance into the river, when Stomp and Whinney entered side by side. But, both mares locked up their legs as soon as their hooves touched the water, bringing the boat to an abrupt halt. Only holding on loosely, the sudden jerk of the craft caused the slack to slip from Ayla's hand, sending her from the bench she sat upon to her knees in the bottom of the boat. In the center, Grov faired no better, having been thrown backward off the bench, he now lay on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Davaria, however, having just propped his feet on the bow of the boat, was the only lucky one. Still sitting upright, he reached to assist Grov.

Scrambling back to their seats, Grov and Ayla struggled to deal with controlling their crossing. Grov accepted a pair of paddles from Davaria; both men were ready to use them once Ayla got the horses settled. But, the swift current took hold of the small craft, yanking against the horses' leads before they were fully ready to enter the water. Whinney pulled hard, rearing back as the river tried to pull the boat away from shore, and Stomp, with a valient attempt to resist, pawed the water, soaking Whinney. But neither could fight the power of the current, or Nicuria when he suddenly plunged in, dragging both mares with him. The sudden movement now tossed Davaria to the boat's floor, and by the time he righted himself, all three horses were swimming and the boat was moving swiftly across the river. But not without a hitch.

With fear in his eyes, Nicuria was straining beside the boat, which was being pulled both forward by the current and backward by Stomp and Whinney, whom seemed intent on returning to the bank they had just left. And then Nicuria managed to pull ahead of the boat, swinging the stern out so that the bow was now facing downstream, instead of toward their destination. Stomp chose that moment to reverse direction, swimming first upstream and then toward the bank where Danta stood watching in horror. But that did not happen without effect either. The force of Nicuria and Stomp pulling one way was too much for Whinney, who was still fighting against them, whinnying in panic and swallowing mouthfuls of water as she tried desperately to swim away. It was then that Ayla realized she'd have to cut them free. Quickly taking her knife from its sheath, she stood up and started hacking at Whinney's tie.

"Ayla, NO!" she heard Grov shout, but it was too late. The sudden release of the mare's resistance sent the stern of the craft out from under her, pitching her head first into the river. Coming up almost instantly, the first thing she saw was Whinney, swimming away from her, but not that far away. Ayla managed to grab hold of the rope she had cut. Quickly wrapping it around her wrist, she let out a whistle as she swam, reaching out toward Whinney with strong strokes. The horse pricked up her ears and turned toward the sound. When she whistled again, Whinney altered direction and tried to swim to her. When she finally reached the wet and shaggy animal, she grabbed her about the neck and pulled herself to her back, letting out a cry of relief as she collapsed, and allowing the current take them. It was only then that she glanced back to see where she was in relation to the boat. They were no longer in sight.

**~oOo~**

Horror stricken, Grov stared after his mate. When she'd plunged over the edge, he'd nearly jumped in after her. Only Davaria's grip on the back of his tunic had stopped him.

"NO! She's a strong swimmer!" the man shouted. "We have to get across first, then we'll go look for her."

Grov frowned, but nodded. He'd seen her pull herself onto the horse before she'd gone around a bend in the river, and it was enough to set his mind back to their crossing. Picking up his paddles again, he plunked them into the water to start rowing again, only to find that they hit bottom. Surprised, he looked up. Nicuria and Stomp had dragged them clear across the river. The next thing he knew, the boat scraped bottom and Danta was at their side, tears in her eyes as she held onto the side of the boat. Davaria jumped out then and beached the craft.

"What _happened_? Danta shrieked as the men continued to pull the boat up the bank.

"Only Ursus knows," Grov said, throwing up his hands in frustration. "I guess the horses were more afraid than we thought."

Crying now, Danta said, "What are we going to do?"

Grov took a deep breath, then put an arm around the tearful woman. "Relax Danta...I will find her. I will take Stomp and go look for her." He looked at Davaria then. "And you and Danta should take the children and go for help. It shouldn't take long for you to get back to the summer meeting. And with any luck, I will already have found Ayla."

Danta nodded as the man spoke to them, but Davaria frowned. "What about all our things?"

"Oh, who cares!" Danta sobbed, grabbing his hand. "Let's go!"

Grov quickly helped them put the three girls on Nicuria's back, desperately hoping the horse wouldn't balk. He'd only been carrying their belongings because Ayla thought he wasn't ready to carry people, but, after all that he had been doing, the girls' weight didn't seem to bother him. _And_, he seemed to know that they needed him.

Handing the colt's lead to Davaria, Grov then took hold of Stomps stiff, stand-up mane and swung himself to her back. It was the first time he had gotten on her without assistance and, once upon her, was surprised she had not moved away, dumping him on the ground as she had every other time before.

"I am going now," he told them, then galloped off.

After finding a suitable place to cross the river _he_ was near; he'd had to go a considerable distance upstream to find such a place, Grov nudged Stomp to full speed. They first traveled toward Big River, but upon reaching it, he steered his mare to follow the course of the waterway, slowing down somewhat so that he could keep his eyes trained on the land, on both sides of the river, and any clues that might lead him to Ayla. Wracked with worry, he berated himself for not jumping in after her. He told himself he was a fool for not doing so, but deep down, he knew Davaria had been right. Ayla _was_ a strong swimmer. And there was no sense in both of them being lost.

**~oOo~**

By the time Ayla and Whinney reached the shore, Ayla was shivering violently. Though it was summer, the cold glacial river never seemed to warm and she was feeling its effects. Relieved to still be on Whinney's back, she let the mare pick her way up the bank as she lay slumped, teeth chattering, exhausted from their ordeal.

She didn't know how long she lay that way, but soon the hot summer sun seeped through her wet clothing, warming her back and bringing her out of her stupor. Sitting up slowly, she pushed the now drying strands of hair off her face, then lifted her leg to dismount. Landing on feet that were none too steady, she braced herself against her friend to keep from falling. Whinney nickered softly and leaned into the woman, taking comfort as much as giving it.

"I'm so sorry, Whinney," Ayla said, wrapping her arms around her mare's neck. "That was stupid!" Tears of shock soaked her cheeks as she cried her relief to be standing, uninjured, on dry ground again. But then she felt a pain in her hand and glanced down at it. It was stiff and cold, the rope she had grabbed onto to bring her to her horse while swimming was not tangled around her wrist, cutting of her circulation. Taking a deep breath, Ayla worked to remove the rope, then flexed her fingers to get the blood moving again. Only after the color had returned did she glance around, concerned about what side of the river she was on. Had she and Whinney made it across? she thought, looking one way. Or were they on the side they had started on? She frowned and looked the other way.

But then suddenly she smiled. _Of course_ they'd made it to the other side. If they hadn't, the river would be flowing the other way.

"Okay Whinney, let's get moving," she said as she jumped up onto the mares back.

Heading upstream, she followed Big River until she came to a fork. Frowning, Ayla knew she'd have to cross the tributary. But though it was much smaller than the one they had just crossed, it appeared to be turbulent and she knew she'd get swept back into Big River if she tried, and that was the last thing that she wanted. No, this was not a river that could be waded, even on horseback. Deciding to look for a better place to cross, she turned and headed upstream, hoping she didn't have to go far. She was lucky; a suitable place appeared just around a bend.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"I think we should circle around the outside of the meeting area," Davaria suggested once the encampment came into view off in the distance.

Danta nodded. They'd hurried away from the spot they had separated from Grov and were walking as fast as they possibly could with four small children in tow. The girls still sat on Nucuria's back, the colt's lead held firmly in Danta's hand as they went, but Durc was having to jog to keep up with their pace. A few times during the trek, Davaria had picked up the boy to give him a rest, and now they were coming up on the meeting. But the sun was now directly overhead; it had taken a lot longer to reach the summer meeting than they had anticipated.

"I agree...no need to cause a scene."

Davaria nodded. Though he was pleased their short journey had come to an end, and that he and his sister had found a new home, he was suddenly feeling anxious about the upcoming confrontation with their home camp.

"I hope no one will see us," Danta said absently as they trudged through the surrounding brush. They'd purposely kept their distance, so as not to draw too much attention before arriving at Oak Tent, but it clearly was not enough.

"Too late for _that_, Ata."

Glancing up, Danta gasped when she saw several pairs of eyes staring at them..._more than several_, really...people were gathering everywhere, just to see their arrival and gawk at what they had brought with them. And Nicuria, who also saw all the watching humans, was nervously sidestepping and swishing his tail. Quickly, Danta pulled the girls off the colt.

"I'll go get help."

Danta nodded, then said, "Wait! Maybe you should take the children with you, Ari. I'm afraid Nicuria's going to step on one of them." She moved away from the frisky colt's side just as he reared up, then gasped when Durc stepped closer, grabbed the horse's lead and reached up to calm him. There was a collective _ahhh_ from the crowd as the colt instantly settled down and allowed the young clan boy's touch.

"What in the Mother's name is _this_?"

Danta and Davaria swung around to see Tiflona, hands on hips, staring at them, along with nearly every other Oak Camp member, and several others that were not from Oak Camp.

"I-I... That is..._we_...," Davaria began an nervously, pointing to himself and then his sister. But then he stopped, at a loss for words.

"Ayla did tell you she was bringing back horses...d-didn't she?" Danta asked, suddenly feeling extremely nervous and, knowing everyone would be expecting explanations, she couldn't help but feel completely unsure of herself and the situation. Hoping it would aid in her composure, she quickly scooped up Ayla's two youngest, then attempted to maneuver her own daughter away from the excitable colt.

Tiflona wait while the younger woman made her adjustments, then nodded. "Yes, some of us knew," she replied, then, as she looked around, she frowned. "But _where is_ Ayla?" she asked. "And Grov?"

Danta broke down then, bursting into tears as she tried to tell them what had happened. But as incoherent as her ramblings were, everyone just stared at her in confusion. Not one word had been understood.

"Davaria," Vincenzia finally said as he stepped through the crowd of onlookers to stand beside the brother and sister. "Maybe you could translate all of that for us." He gently squeezed Danta's arm and smiled reasuringly. She tried to smile back, but was only able to produce a grimace and more tears.

Davaria nodded. "The short of it is that Ayla fell into the river while we were crossing and Grov has gone to search for her."

Vincenzia looked alarmed. "_What_! How did this happen?"

"It was the horses...they were pulling in all directions. We..."

"Horses?" interupted Travie, suddenly hearing the plural. "As in, more than _this one_?" She pointed at Nicuria.

Both Danta and Davaria nodded. "But she was okay...the last time we saw her. She was sitting on Whinney's back, floating downriv..."

"What's a whinney?" someone asked.

Danta sighed, frustrated by all the questions, though she had known that they would come. "Whinney is...one of the other horses." Everyone nodded comprehension.

"_One_ of them?" Vincenzia said with a frown. Danta opened her mouth to explain, but he held up his hand and looked at Davaria again. "And Grov?" he asked instead.

"Grov was going to jump into the river to go after her, but...well...he didn't. We didn't think it was safe." Davaria didn't want to tell them that it was _him_ that had stopped the man. What if they got angry with him and decided not to adopt them? He couldn't stand it if he'd messed up Danta and Danara's chance at happiness.

Vincenzia nodded. "No...I suppose there was no sense in endangering himself." He paused. "I'd like to put a search party together, to go after them."

People were nodding and several were voicing his or her concerns. And then Tagnolia took charge.

"You will have to come with us, Davaria," he said. "That will seriously narrow down our search."

Davaria nodded, then glanced at his sister; she was a wreck. "I think you should stay here with the children, Ata."

"Of course she's staying here!" Travie snapped. She didn't mean to sound abrupt, but she was becoming annoyed with the conversation; Ayla and Grov were out there somewhere and Oak Camp needed to sit down and discuss what they were going to do. Who would go...what they'd take...and so on. "She's in no condition to go trapsing all over the countryside looking for anyone." The older woman hooked an arm around the distraught one and began leading her away. "And let's take this discussion inside?" She didn't like that everyone was still standing around staring at them, and listening to everything that was said. Especially since no one appeared willing to assist them.

Everyone seemed to nod his or her agreement, but then another person voiced concern. "What about that...that horse," Zarina asked.

Travie and Danta halted and Danta joined her brother once again. Both looked at the animal with uncertainty. "I don't think he'll go anywhere," Davaria said with a shrug.

But Danta frowned...then hiccupped. She was still crying. "But will he be safe wandering around?" She looked around at all the watching people, some of whom didn't look too pleased to have the large equine so near. She was sure that some were eyeing the animal and thinking that he would make a nice meal...or three. She knew Sumac Camp would only see food if they came across an animal who was as unafraid and curious as Nicuria. And others just looked scared of him. She couldn't really blame them for that. After all, Nicuria _had_ kicked rather violently in his initial fear of them. And when he stood up on his back legs, he _was_ an imposing figure. Even she had been frightened. "Maybe he shouldn't...be left alone," she finished lamely. "I could stay here." She hiccupped again.

"Nonsense!" Travie burst, taking Danta's arm again.

The assembled group stopped then to consider the situation more fully.

"You could tie him to the back of Oak Tent," Jondaria suggested. He'd been visiting with some of the younger members of Oak Tent when the travelers had returned and had come over with everyone else to see what was happening. "To one of the stakes holding it down."

Gredenzia nodded. "That might work. What do you think, Danta?"

Danta continued to frown. "I don't know," she sniffled. She knew the horse wouldn't like being confined, but what else could they do.

"And we could spread the word that he's not to be touched in any way," said Darvie as she came up to stand beside her mate.

Vincenzia nodded. "Yes...that would be good."

"Or hunted," Travie added with a pointed look at those standing around watching.

"_Hunted_?" Danta exclaimed worriedly. She'd been thinking it, but hearing it out loud made it seem possible.

"Don't be frightened for him, Danta," Travie said. "No one in his or her right mind would mess with anything that has the protection of those who serve the Mother." She sent a look at Gredenzia, who quickly nodded.

"Right! Consider it done. I'll just go make it official," he said, then hurried off.

"See...he will be fine."

"Now, can we get inside so we can decide how we are going to find my daughter?" Vincenzia asked impatiently. Everyone nodded and started for their tent entrance, and no one mentioned his strange wording. He had, after all, been refering to her as the daughter of his heart.

"And _why_ is everyone still _staring_?" Travie asked the area at large. With only a few mutterings, most of those standing around shuffled off.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"Oh, thank you, Whinney!" Ayla exclaimed as she, still on her mare, stepped from the bank of the tributary and onto dry land. Whinney nickered pleasantly, as if answering her and Ayla quickly slid from the mare's back to make sure she was ready to travel again. Whinney's underbelly had barely touched the water and only Ayla's feet had gotten wet; the crossing had been easy..._more than easy_, when compared to their last crossing. With a smile, Ayla pulled herself onto Whinney's back again, then urged her into a gallop.

But it didn't last long. Soon most of the day was gone, and with it their energy.

"Time to stop, Whinney. I am too tired to go on, so you must be exhausted since you've done all the work."

The horse whinnied her response and it sounded to Ayla as if her mount was agreeing with her. Ayla smiled as she lifted a leg and landed lightly beside the animal. She scratched Whinney lovingly, then left her to graze while she began collecting wood to build a fire. But when she sat down to actually _start_ her fire, she realized she'd lost the stone she had tucked in one of her pouches; she'd have to build it the old-fashioned way. With a sigh, she went to work.

Once the blaze was going, Ayla's mind turned to food; she hadn't eaten since morning and she was hunger. Thankful that she hadn't lost her sling, she pulled it out and scanned the area around her. Lucky for her, at just that moment, a hare darted out from a nearby bush. She had it spitted, roasted and ready in record time and was just settling down to actually eat it when she heard a loud shriek from above.

"Shriek!" she called out excitedly. In her struggle with the horses and the disasterous rivercrossing, causing an unwanted side trip downriver, and then her rush to get herself back to the summer meeting, she hadn't thought about her avian friend even once. But now that she was resting and he'd appeared out of nowhere, she felt bad that she had forgotten him.

"Oh Shriek, how could I have forgotten you?" she asked, holding out her covered arm to catch the hawk, then offering him some food. Shriek squawked loudly in her face, then took the bit of meat. Smiling, Ayla watched as he ate, then offered him some more...and then some more until he was full and lifted off again. She watched him find a place in a nearby tree, then bent to stoke her fire. She was more than a little tired and wanted nothing more than to curl up and go to sleep, but she sat staring into the flames. So intent on them she was that she didn't hear anything else.

"I just knew I'd find you safe and sound."

Ayla's head snapped up and she stared, her eyes filling with tears. "Grov!" It only came out as a whisper. She tried to stand, to go to him, but he was kneeling at her side, arms wrapped around her before she could move.

"But I was so worried," he said. "If anything would have happened to you...I... I do not think I could stand it."

Ayla lay her head on Grov's shoulder and clung to him. "I am okay..._tired_, but okay."

**NEW CHAPTER**

"Just right through here," Travie instructed, as if Oak Camp's soon-to-be new members hadn't ever set foot inside their summer meeting tent before. The older woman stopped as soon as they come into the younger people's sleeping area. "Here are your sleeping places."

Danta stared, as did Davaria, at the space that had once belonged to Tinozia, but had clearly been changed to accommodate them. Instead of one larger bed, which Tinozia sometimes shared with Fürlasa, there were now two narrow ones, set up side-by-side for the adoptees.

Davaria shook his head. "W-we can't sleep _here_."

Travie frowned. "But why not?"

"Because this…this is…Tinozia's place," Danta stammered, looking around with wide eyes at all the people staring at her.

The headwoman smiled. "No, this is _your_ space now. My son is busy with his Shomata, and when the meeting ends, he will not be returning to Oak Camp, until his training is complete." Tiflona then took Danta's small pack from her shoulder and dropped it on the woman's new sleeping platform. "Sit! Relax! You have had a hard day."

Danta did as she was instructed, her eyes full of tears; she could not deny that the day had been difficult and she _was_ exhausted, but Oak Camp's generosity was what caused her strong emotion. The fact that they would make unexpected changes to their summer tent, to welcome them, was more than she had expected. She'd have been grateful just to have a corner to curl up in. But _this_…this meant so much more.

"Thank you," she whispered, her tears spilling down her cheeks.

Davaria set his pack down, but did not sit. Though the day had been rough on all of them, he knew he still had to go back out there to help search for Grov and Ayla. He looked at the assembled group, who were all finding places to sit down to discuss the situation. Vincenzia sat on Grov and Ayla's sleeping platform, one small version of Ayla on his lap, the other on Darvie's, who sat right beside him.

"Okay, who is coming with me?" he asked.

"I will go," Danie said.

Immediately, Ivanolia shook his head. "No! Ayla said you shouldn't travel more than necessary. But _I_ will go."

Vincenzia smiled. "Thank you, Ivanolia."

Danie frowned. "I'm pregnant, Ivan. I am not an invalid."

He frowned. "I know that, but…."

"We are wasting time," Travie interrupted. "You will stay here, Danie."

Danie opened her mouth to protest, but snapped it shut when she saw her mother's resolve.

"And I will go, brother," Vilognia offered. He looked then at their headman and headwoman. "I do believe that it's best if you two stay here…just in case you are needed."

They both nodded. "Under the circumstances, I would have to agree," Tiflona said. "Should there be some sort of challenge…." Her voice trailed off. She was comforted when her mate spoke up next.

"And I will stay as well…_someone_ has to do the cooking."

Everyone grinned.

"Well, that's four of us...that's probably enough," Vincenzia said with a nod as he stood up. It wasn't necessary to go overboard with searchers when he was confident that Ayla was already with Grov. "We should get out there though."

"Hold on. I would like go as well," Darvie said, standing and squeezing her mate's hand. "But..."

"But what?"

"I know it's summer and the days are longer, but it's nearly dark...we'll have to wait until morning." Seeing Vincenzia's worried frown, she went on quickly. "I am certain that Grov has already found her."

Sighing, he nodded. "Yes, I'm sure that is so. I'm just worried."

Darvie smiled. "We all are. But let us all retire early, then start out fresh in the morning. We cannot do anything tonight."

Vincenzia nodded. "You are right, my mate. But we will leave early."

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

Grov watched Ayla go to the river to wash. The fact that she'd have any interest in water after practically drowning in it that day amazed him. But she'd insisted on washing her face and hands after eating. He resisted the urge to follow her there, deciding that his time could be better spent putting up a tent for them to sleep in. When she returned, she looked ready to collapse, making him both glad that he'd stayed behind to set their tent _and_ guilty for not going with her to help.

"Here, let me help you," he said, reaching out to her as she knelt to crawl inside their small tent.

Grateful that he was there, Ayla allowed him to assist. Her limbs felt as heavy as tree trunks, and her head lolled like a boulder teetering on a hill top as she finally lay down upon the furs he's laid out for her.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked. He slipped off her shoes, then removed her leggings.

She tried to shake her head, but didn't seem to be able to move. That trip to the river seemed to have done her in. "No, I am fine," she whispered. "I just need sleep...and you. Will you lie down next to me?"

Grov nodded, then realized her eyes were already closed and slid into the furs with her. "I will always lie with you," he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her. He held her tight, so very thankful that she was alright. He had been so worried, but it seemed that it was all for nothing. She was safe in his arms now.

"Everyone else made it?" she asked.

He smiled. She was always thinking about others. "Yes. Davaria and Danta took the children back to the summer meeting. They will bring help."

"Ummm. What about Nicuria?"

"He is fine too. He was carrying the girls the last time I saw him. I think he is gentler than we thought. He seemed to know we needed his help."

"Hummm...that is..._good_," she yawned.

Grov lifted a hand and gently brushed her hair off her face, then pressed his lips to her forehead. "Go to sleep," he whispered.

She nodded, then finally slept.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

Danta frowned as she watched the searchers preparing to leave. The sun hadn't even peeked over the eastern mountains, but those going were ready to go.

"Wait!" she exclaimed as she watched her brother turn away. "What about our stuff?" They'd discussed going out to look for Grov and Ayla, but neither she nor Davaria had mentioned all the things they'd abandoned after crossing the river.

Everyone frowned. "What stuff?" a few asked in unison.

"Our things...we have many gifts...for the adoption," Danta said. "We left them at the river."

"Without having all three horses to carry everything, we had no choice but to leave everything behind," Davaria explained.

There were nods of understanding.

"I completely forgot about them, Danta, but we'll have to get our stuff after we find Grov and Ayla. Everything should be alright for a little while," Davaria said, trying to assure her. "Don't you think?"

She frowned. "I suppose so." She hadn't been worried about leaving everything when they were in a rush to get back to the summer meeting, but now that they were back, and people were going out to look for Grov and Ayla, she worried that all their work would be lost.

"We could help with that," Donzolnia said. He was standing with his brother. "Mostly, we're just sitting around. We'll bring your things back." Brulenzia was nodding.

"And me," Jondaria added. "I'll go with them."

Danta smiled and relaxed some, then nodded. And so did Davaria. "Yes, that's perfect," Davaria said. "And we can take Nicuria with us. He can carry what the men cannot."

And so it was decided.

**~oOo~**

"We should cross at the first place possible," Davaria said as they made their trek south toward Big River. "Then follow on the other side and turn southeast when we reach Big River. That's what Grov would have done, I think."

Vincenzia nodded. "Sounds good." He paused. "But I think you should go with the others now."

Davaria frowned.

"From what you said, there's a lot to bring back, and you don't really know where they are any more than we do now."

"That's true."

"Plus, if the horse is needed to bring things back, then you should be with him. None of us knows how to control an animal, or load these..._pannier_ things."

Davaria nodded. "All right. That's a good idea. We did have three horses carrying everything. And not even Grov could lift one of them when it was fully loaded."

"Hummm...maybe Ivanolia and I should go with them as well," Vilognia said.

"I think you should. I'm sure Darvie and I can track them alone."

"But what if Ayla's hurt?" Darvie asked with concern. "You may need more help."

"Then we should have brought a healer," Vincenzia said with a shrug. "I'm sure she's fine and that this is only a formality."

"All right...then it's just you and me."

Vincenzia smiled at his mate, then looked at everyone else. "Ready?"

Everyone nodded.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

Grov became aware that it was day when the rising sun shone through the open flat of their tent. With a frown he remembered that he'd left it open because the night had been warm, but now he wished he'd closed it. Carefully, so as not to wake Ayla, he pulled back the fur covering them, then sat up and scooted toward the light.

Outside, the morning air was crisp. He went directly to relieve himself. The man stared at his stream, then at the thin wisp of steam hissing up as his internally warmed liquid hit the frigid tundra. It maybe summer, but the ground never seemed to warm this far north.

As he tucked himself back into his leggings, he shivered. The morning was cold. Again he was thankful he was wearing the clothing of the Others.

Back at their fire, Grov realized that Ayla had a decent-sized pile of wood. _Does she ever neglect anything?_ he asked himself with a shake of his head as he tossed a few pieces into the smoldering ashes. He smiled as he squatted down and held his hands up to the burgeoning flames. He held them there until they warmed, then headed back to his warm furs, and his warmer mate.

Ayla didn't stir when he crept back into their bed, and she hardly moved as he snuggled up to the warmth of her body. The only sign of life he received was the slightest turn of her head and the almost inaudible moan that escaped her lips when his hand cupped a breast. For a few moments he fondled her, wishing she wake. He even managed to elicit another moan, but her eyes remained closed and she didn't make any move to touch him back. Knowing she must be exhausted, he rolled to his back and closed his eyes. Soon he was sleeping again too.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"How far could they have gone?" Darvie asked as she trekked along beside her mate.

Vincenzia shrugged. "That depends on how swift the river was flowing and how quickly Ayla's horse was able to swim across. I don't know this river very well, Darvie. We are in Mamutoi territory, do you know?"

She shook her head. "Only Lion Camp is near here...and I did not grow up at Lion Camp, you know that. How fast can a horse swim?" she asked him.

"Well I certainly don't know anything about _that_," he said with a grin.

Darvie frowned. "Did you hear Davaria say that Ayla rode the horse called Whinney."

Vincenzia nodded. "And that Grov rides the one called Stomp. Yes, I heard him."

"Do you believe it?"

Vincenzia laughed. "Do you think Oak Camp's new member is lying?"

She frowned again. "I suppose not. But it does sound..._oh, I don't know_."

"...farfetched?" he finished for her. She nodded and he reached out and took her hand. "Well, I suppose we'll see for ourselves soon enough, huh?"

"I hope so." She quickened her pace. She was having to take three steps for his two because of her distraction. He noticed the change and slowed immediately.

"What if we can't find them?" Darvie asked after a moment of silence.

"We will."

"But what if we don't?"

"We will."

"All right...what if we do...what if we do and she's...she's...?" She couldn't finish her thought. It was too dreadful to even speak.

Vincenzia stopped. "What if she's _what_, Darvie?" She shrugged, but he understood what she was asking. "Why are you so worried?"

She shrugged. "I don't know...I guess I'm just scared."

Vincenzia looked round then, then finding a large rock, pulled his mate over to it and sat her down, then knelt down in front of her. "You heard Davaria. Ayla's a strong swimmer. And she'd managed to get on that horse's back before disappearing. And Grov's gone to find her. I'm sure she's fine."

"But what if...what if...?" Tears filled her eyes.

Vincenzia frowned. His woman wasn't usually afraid of things. There had to be something else happening. "Darvie, you have to tell me why you're so upset. What's going on?"

She blinked and looked away. "I...I don't want to talk about it." She stood abruptly and started walking again.

Vincenzia stared after her for several moments, then had to run to catch up. When he did, he calmly took her arm and stopped her. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked.

"To find Ayla," she snapped.

He smiled. "Not going _that way_ you're not. Unless you know something I don't."

She looked around and frowned. In her upset she'd started back the way they'd come.

When she looked back at him, he sat her down again. "Please tell me what's upset you so."

Her eyes filled again and her face contorted with pain. "I had a brother once," she whispered. "He drowned. I was the one who found him."

Vincenzia sighed and pulled her into his arms. Now he understood. The possibility of Ayla drowning, of her being dead when they found her, was all too familiar. "I didn't know. Why haven't you ever told me about this brother?"

"Because...it was my fault," she sobbed. "I was supposed to be watching him, but I was more interested in the boys that were swimming downstream." She looked up at him, her eyes pleading for forgiveness. "It was my fault. I let my brother die."

"What did Travie say? She clearly doesn't blame you."

Darvie hiccupped. "No, she doesn't blame me," she agreed with a shake of her head. "She said it was _her_ fault...that _she_ should have been watching him, because he never sat still. She always said that one had to have eyes in the back of his head to be able to keep him in line. But I...I know the truth. It _was_ my fault...she just didn't want to say so."

Vincenzia shook his head. "Oh Darvie, have you ever known your mother to keep silent about something?"

She frowned. "No," she whispered, but silent tears continued to fall.

"It wasn't your fault." He held her face between his hands. "It was a terrible, _terrible_ accident, but it could have happened at any time, when anyone was watching him. You mustn't keep blaming yourself." He wiped her tears with his thumbs, then released her face. Her head dropped to his chest and he continued to hold her while she cried. When her tears finally ceased, and she was sitting of her own accord again, Vincenzia smiled at her.

"Why did you volunteer to come along, Darvie. You could have stayed at the summer meeting."

She sighed. "I wanted to be there for you...just in case." She wiped at her wet face. "I didn't meant to...to do this." She gestured at her tear-stained face. "I'm so sorry. Here I am crying over my own problems while _your daughter_ is missing."

Vincenzia chuckled. "My tough girl," he said, kissing the end of her nose lovingly.

She tried to smile. "We should go. Ayla's still out there somewhere."

He nodded. "But we'll talk about this again later...if you want to," he added.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"What in the Mother's name are _in_ these things?" Ivanolia asked after making an attempt to pick up one of the panniers.

Davaria smiled. "I told you they were heavy. Not even Grov could lift them."

"I thought you were exaggerating."

"Nope." Davaria opened the first pannier and started pulling out wrapped packages while everyone stood there staring at the growing heap. When he had most of them piled on the ground, he draped the much-lightened pannier over Nicuria's back. The horse side-stepped and, his ears twitching, blew out through his nose, but accepted the extra weight without further complaint. Davaria then reloaded it, trying his best to arrange everything so he took up the least amount of space as possible. He must have done a decent job, because there was a little space left when he'd finished. That made him happy; he'd now be able to add a few items from the other panniers.

"We'll have to carry the rest of this," he told everyone after dumping the rest on the ground. "I think we can do it," he said with a frown at what was left. "What do you think?"

"I think so," Vilognia agreed with a nod. He'd set down his rucksack and had knelt to fill it.

"Careful...that one's fragile," Davaria said nervously, reaching out and taking it from the man. "Danta will kill me if it gets broken."

"What is it?" all five of the men asked at the same time.

Davaria frowned. "It's...it's something Danta made," he replied, setting it with the items he would carry himself.

Ivanolia's brow knotted. "How about this one?" he asked as he lifted a long, skinny package.

"That one's for Ayla."

"Can I see it?"

"_No_."

Ivanolia huffed. "Why not? If it's Ayla's, then she's already seen it."

"How do you figure?" Davaria asked.

"Because she was with you," reasoned Ivanolia.

Davaria sighed. "Well, she has not seen it finished," he said, then gently took it out of Ivanolia's hands and put it with his pack. "And besides, there is more than just Ayla's inside."

"Did you make one of..._whatever this is_...for me too?" Ivanolia asked hopefully. "Is that why I can't look inside?"

Both Donzolnia and Brulenzia were grinning, their gazes going from one man to the other.

Davaria rubbed his brow and groaned. "No Ivan, there's nothing in that one for you," he said in frustration.

"How about _this_?" Ivanolia asked, holding up yet another one of the mysterious packages. "What's in here?"

Davaria gave him an exasperated look. "Another gift, Ivan...I can't tell you what it is!" he snapped.

Jondaria chuckled and Ivanolia opened his mouth to comment, but Vilognia stepped in. "Okay Ivan, that's enough. Can't you tell when you're not going to win?"

Ivanolia blushed, but Davaria flashed the older man a look of gratitude, then resumed packing.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

When Grov woke again, it wasn't much later. By the look of the sun's position, he hadn't been sleeping for very long. Turning his head, he looked at his sleeping mate. She was on her back now, but was still sleeping soundly. She'd gotten into the habit of sleeping late in the valley, but this was really quite unusual for her. He wasn't used to her being asleep when he woke up. It made him wonder if the dunking she'd received had made her sick. The river _was_ rather cold. Propping himself up on his elbow, he gingerly placed his hand on her forehead. He wasn't sure what he was feeling for, but he'd seen her do it often enough. With a frown, he pulled his hand away. _She feels fine to me_, he thought.

Grov continued to stare at her, and found himself pulling back the furs to look at more of her. But looking wasn't enough, he wanted to touch her. And he did, tentatively at first, then with more fervor. When he nuzzled her neck, she moaned, but he was disappointed when she still did not move. Groaning, he fell away from her and closed his eyes.

"Is that it? You're giving up already?"

His eyes flew open. "You're _awake_!" he exclaimed popping up to his elbow again.

She giggled.

"And you let me continue on?"

She smiled. "I thought you were having fun."

"I was," he said with a grin as he covered her body with his. "But I like it better when you respond."

"Well then," she responded, "do you want to try again?"

He practically growled as he leaned down and captured her lips with his.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"Look!" Darvie exclaimed. "Smoke."

Vincenzia glanced at her and smiled. "It's them...it's got to be. What did I tell you?"

She nodded. "Let's go!"

They hurried along, noticing the two horses off to the side grazing as they approached. Both horses stopped briefly to watch them, but quickly went back to their own business when they saw that the two-legged beings had no intention of bothering them.

Vincenzia and Darvie entered the small, one-tent camp slowly and glanced around. Grov and Ayla weren't there, but all their things were.

"Maybe they went hunting," Darvie suggested. But then she frowned when she heard the unmistakable sounds of the young couple sharing pleasures inside the tent. She rolled her eyes and pointed at the tent. "And here we were _worrying_."

Vincenzia grinned, held a quieting finger to his lips, then sat down by the fire. "How about some tea."

Darvie nodded, moved a pot of water over the fire, then started rummaging through the pack she knew held Ayla's herbs. "Unbelievable!" she said with a grin.

Vincenzia smirked. "Do you blame them...after nearly losing each other?"

Darvie shook her head. "Not at all."

**~oOo~**

"We were starting to think you two were _never_ going to come up for air," Vincenzia remarked when Grov and Ayla finally made an appearance. He pointed up at the sun and grinned.

Both Grov and Ayla glanced up, noticed how much time had passed by the position of the sun in the sky, then blushed crimson.

"Tea?" Darvie offered, holding out a cup to each of them.

**NEW CHAPTER**

"I don't know," Darvie said with a petrified frown as she backed slowly away from Grov and the nearly white horse called Stomp. "People weren't meant to ride, I think."

"Oh don't be silly, Darvie," Vincenzia said. He was sitting behind Ayla on Whinney and grinning. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

She felt ready to bolt. "I think I s-should use my own t-two legs. T-that is why the Mother g-gave them to m-me," she stammered.

Vincenzia frowned. "But it will take so much longer to get back to the summer meeting if we walk, and everyone's anxious to know Ayla's alright. You _must_ ride."

"It really is safe, Darvie," Ayla tried to assure her. "I would not suggest riding if it weren't."

Darvie frowned. She _really_ didn't want to sit on the animal, much less _ride_ it back to the meeting.

"Here, let me help you." Grov offered as he grabbed her about the waist and practically tossed her up onto the mare's back. She let out a scream of fright and clenched fistfuls of Stomp's stiff, stand-up mane. The mare flicked her ears, snorted and pawed the ground, causing Darvie to squeeze her eyes closed. What she couldn't see, must not be there.

"Loosen your legs, Darvie," Grov said after swinging up behind her. He'd curled an arm around her middle and gave her thigh a pat. "Or Stomp's going to think you want to run."

"Run?" she said with alarm. That was the _last_ thing she wanted. She yanked her hands out of the mare's mane and groped for the man's arm. He winced slightly as her nails dug into his flesh, but he did not pull back.

He nodded. She couldn't see him, but she felt his response. "She's almost as new to carrying a rider as you are to being one. She can sense that you are upset. You must calm down."

"But how do I do that?" she gasped. It was as if he was asking her to fly like a bird.

"You have to breathe, Darvie." Grov squeezed her around the middle, forcing her to exhale, then he smiled and stoked her thigh. "Just relax, so she can." He felt her take a deep breath, then loosen the tension in her legs slightly.

"That's it," he encouraged, rubbing her leg in a soothing manner. "Now let go of my arm...it'd be better if you hold onto her mane. I'll guide her, you can just sit here." When she made no move to remove her hands, Grov reached with his free hand to assist her. She resisted for a moment, then allowed him to pull her hands from his arm.

"Are you alright?" he asked after a few moments.

She wasn't sure that she was, but she nodded anyway. "Alright, let's take a few steps." He gave Stomp a nudge and the horse started forward. Darvie immediately stiffened, the tightening of her thighs telling Stomp to move faster. She let out a squeal as the sudden burst of speed overtook them, but Grov quickly took control and had the animal stilled.

"You can do this, Darvie. I know it's scary the first time, but you'll be fine...I promise."

Darvie opened her eyes; she'd squeezed them closed without knowing it. Her mate was sitting behind Ayla and smiling at her. If he promised, then it must be so. She made every effort to calm herself, and was surprised that her attempt was successful. She managed a smile.

"That's it. Let Grov take control," Vincenzia encouraged. "He knows what he's doing."

Darvie nodded, then happened to glance down at Grov's arm. It was covered in angry-looking gouges. She frowned, knowing that she'd done it.

"Your arm...it's bleeding!" she exclaimed.

Grov shook his head. "It will be fine. Ready?"

Still staring at the rivulets of blood on his arm, she nodded, and he signaled the horse to start moving. Ayla and Vincenzia on Whinney started out at the same time. They were on their way back - finally!

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"I still don't know why I can't at least see _some_ of what we're carrying back," Ivanolia said with a pout as he trudged up the well-wore trail.

"Because that would spoil the celebration, Ivan," Vilognia said. They'd been talking of little else on their trip back to the summer meeting.

"The _celebration_!" the man nearly shouted. "You mean, I have to wait until we return to Oak Camp?"

Vilognia nodded. "You know that's the way it's done. Danta and Davaria will be _adopted_ at the summer meeting, but we will not actually celebrate until after we get home."

"Sounds like you have a long wait ahead of you, friend," Jonadaria snipped with a grin.

Ivanolia tossed the man a dirty look, then shook his head. "I do not see why we can't have it at the summer meeting," he insisted.

"You brought gifts with you for the exchange then?" Donzolnia asked, knowing full well that the man had not.

Ivanolia frowned. "Well no, but..."

"Just be patient, Ivan," Vilognia lectured. He wasn't sure he liked _this_ Ivanolia any better than _practical-joke-playing_ Ivanolia. "The summer meeting will be over soon enough and then you'll be confined for the winter. Enjoy this time out and about."

Ivanolia scowled. "I'm _trying_.

"Are you and Danie still thinking about wintering with the Clan?" Vilognia asked to change the subject.

Ivanolia shrugged. "At least _some_ if it. I've got to do something to make amends," he said with a blush. "I'm not sure if it's possible, but I have to try."

Vilognia nodded. "That's understandable." He smiled, proud of his mate's son for wanting to make up for his wrongdoings, and pleased that _he'd_ managed to distract the young man from talking about the adoption gifts.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"Oh Mother!" exclaimed Travie as she walked through Oak Tent. "Someone needs to go fetch some water...we've run out _again_.

"I'll do it mother," Danie said.

Travie frowned. "You should not carry heavy waterbags.

"I will go," Danta offered. She was holding Laurana's sleeping daughter, but had been about to put the baby in her sleeping place.

Travie nodded. "Oh, thank you...but do not go alone. Take a man with you."

"Mother, there isn't one available," Danie put in. "They're all gone at the moment."

Travie looked around and frowned. Indeed they were. "Then go in a group. Danie and Jendoza can go with you." She started to walk away, then turned back and shook her finger at her daughter. "But no lifting!"

Danie rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. "I wouldn't dream of it mother."

As the three young women walked out, they picked up Laurana, Tabita and Fürlasa as well.

**~oOo~**

Dakara was sitting by the river staring off at nothing. She'd been there for most of the morning. She was sure her mother was worried, but she'd had to get away for awhile. Sitting next to the river, listening to the sound of it flowing, had a calming effect, causing her to lose track of the time; she'd even fallen asleep for a time. She didn't really know _how_ long she'd been there, but when she heard the sound of people approaching, their talking and laughing startling her, she scrambled to her feet and hid in the bushes.

_"We are so glad you and Davaria are going to be adopted."_

Dakara peeked out. She didn't recognize the speaker, but she did know of Danta. _Everyone_ knew about what she'd said to the councils. Some were cursing her for it, but Dakara thought she was a hero.

_"Oh yes. It will be so nice to have another woman close to our age."_

"And...your brother...he

is _cute."_

The women giggled.

_"Do you really think so, Tabita?" Danta asked._

"Sure he is. Even Fürlasa thinks so and

she _claims she's going to mate my brother."_

Dakara saw Danta smile and another girl blush. She figured she was the one called Fürlasa.

_"Well, he_ is _available. Either one of you could have him."_

Danta grinned as she squatted to dunk her waterbag in the river. After filling it, she tied the top, then handed it to someone else. She repeated the process until all her empty bags were full.

_"To be honest, we're just grateful that Oak Camp has made such an offer," Danta said with a sincere smile. "We were stunned that you'd take...well, us."_

"Why wouldn't we take you? You have much to offer."

All six young women nodded their agreement.

_"And what is_ that _exactly?"_

Dakara started at the derisive voice she heard, and peered through the bushes. It was Zadneetsia, but she would have known that voice anywhere. It was the one she heard in her nightmares. She had to force herself to watch as the group of women turned to look at him. He was leering at them.

_"What are you doing here, Zadneetsia?" Danta said with a scowl. "Everyone knows you've been restricted to Sumac Camp's tent and tentfire."_

Dakara cringed when she saw the man's face redden with fury. Involuntarily, she pulled back further into the bushes as he approached the women. She had to force herself to look again. Danta and her friends looked fearful, but stood their ground.

_"You're very quick to forget where you come from, Danta," the man sneered._

He'd come right up into Danta's face, but she still didn't back down. Dakara shivered.

_"I have not forgotten," Danta replied. "There is little about Sumac Camp I will ever forget. But I am moving on."_

"And maybe you should do the same," one of the other women suggested.

"I'll go when I'm ready," he said.

Dakara watched as he eyed the women, particularly the pretty one with stunningly beautiful, thigh-length blonde hair. Dakara had seen her around. She'd just been mated and had a new baby girl. She wasn't much older than was Dakara. She watched the woman shudder with revulsion at the man's perusal, and she wanted to run forward and warn them that the man was bad news. But she didn't; everyone already knew that he was and she didn't want to chance being seen.

_"Oak Camp sure has some pretty good-looking women," he said._

She saw his eyes sweep over the rest of the women, his lascivious gaze coming to rest on the one with short, almost black hair. She'd heard her speak; she was the foreign one.

_"I'd_ love _to stick my manhood..."_

The air whooshed out of his lungs as Danta slugged him.

_"Don't you talk like that to me," the dark-haired woman snarled._

Dakara could see her clenched teeth as she rushed forward. She was stopped by two of the others. Zadneetsia only laughed and rubbed his red jaw.

Dakara'd seen enough. Scooting silently away, she ran back to camp.

**~oOo~**

"That man is despicable!" Danie said once they'd left the river and were on their way back to camp.

"I can't believe what he just said to you," Laurana said with a shake of her head.

"Well _I_ cannot believe what he did to Ayla," Danie spouted angrily.

Tabita rolled her eyes. "And to think they only _restricted_ him to camp."

"As if _that_ worked," Fürlasa added. "I can't believe he's still traipsing around without someone at least accompanying him."

"Well, we should get back and tell someone," Jendoza suggested. "There could be other unsuspecting women out and about who he might hurt."

"Do you think he'd really do it again? Hurt someone, I mean," Danta asked. She'd hoped, despite what he'd done to her, that his close call with Ayla would keep him from hurting any more women.

"Well, of course he will if he gets the chance, Danta," Jendoza replied. "Men as bad as _that one_ don't just change. It'd be nice if the councils had more evidence against him, or more witnesses. Not that I want there to be other victims. But, if there _were_, it might be more convincing."

Danta frowned, but nodded. "I understand what you mean, Jendoza." Danta wished she knew how to tell the councils what that man had done to her. But, would they even believe her? she wondered. He'd claim she'd invited his attentions. Sighing, she followed the other women back to camp.

**~oOo~**

"Oh, _look who's returned._"

Danta glanced up at the assembled group as they approached Oak Tent.

"Ivarsia. Iyena," she greeted, ignoring the others.

"Tagnolia and Tiflona are not here at the moment," Jendoza said curtly. "You'll have to come back later." She took Danta's arm and guided her toward the tent.

"Where is _your brother_, Danta?" Iyena asked with a sneer before the women could get away.

Danta stopped. "He is not here either. But he should be back soon." She wondered if they were going to try to convince him to remain with Sumac Camp. "I will tell him you stopped by." She turned again to go. This time she hurried into the tent so that she would not have to speak to them further.

**~oOo~**

"The nerve of them!" Travie said as she emptied the waterbags into a large water-tight basket. "They just came to spy. They've already been told they won't get their meat until the adoption."

Fraylora shook her head. "They didn't come here to check on the meat again. They just want to make trouble."

Danta frowned. "I'm afraid they're quite good at that."

Fraylora's arm slipped around the younger woman's waist. "Well, don't you worry, Oak Camp won't stand for any trouble. Things will get straightened out and everything will settle down. You'll see."

Danta smiled. She'd been told that Gredenzia and Fraylora would be speaking for them at the ceremony. That, in a sense, they would be becoming a son and daughter of the Bison Hearth, though they would not live within it. That would give their status quite a boost.

"Thank you, Fraylora. We are very grateful."

Fraylora smiled. "Do not thank us, Danta. You will be an asset to Oak Camp. And I will be proud to call you Daughter." Fraylora gave her a gentle squeeze.

Danta smiled at her, but she couldn't help the tears caused by the woman's kind words and her loving gesture of friendship.

**~oOo~**

"_They're back_!" Danara came in screaming and flopped down on her mother's bed.

Danta looked up at her daughter with a worried frown, then glanced around the tent to see if anyone was watching. She'd never heard her daughter be so loud and she didn't want people to think they were as out of control as the rest of Sumac Camp.

"Keep your voice down," she whispered.

"Sorry Mama," the child said with a blush.

Danta sighed and sat down beside her daughter. "That's all right, I just don't want anyone to be sorry about taking us in. Do you understand?"

Danara nodded.

Danta smiled. "Now...who's back?"

"Davaria and the other men," she answered. "They're back with all of our things."

Danta smiled, though she was disappointed. She wanted Ayla to be back. She was more than worried about her friend.

"Ayla's fine, Mama. I know she is."

"Of course she is," she said, putting on a happy face for her daughter. "Now, let's get out there to help." She stood up and held out her hand. Danara took it and they walked out.

**~oOo~**

Ivanolia trudged grumpily through Oak Tent's entrance and stopped abruptly in its center space. "Where do you want all this…_this stuff_? he asked.

Danta looked around and could see no other place but her bed. "On my bed, I guess."

Ivanolia scowled and started setting things down carefully. He seemed angry about something and she wondered if he was mad at her because he'd had go out and fetch her things. She watched for a moment, then reached to help him. Then Donzolnia and Brulenzia came in similarly loaded. And then the rest of the men came in. Soon her bed was piled high with wrapped packages. She frowned. She'd have to reorganize before she could go to bed that night.

"There, that's the last of it," Davaria said with a grin as he leaned the wrapped spears against one of the tent's support poles, then stretched out on his empty bed, arms behind his head, his eyes closed. "I'm so tired...I think I could sleep for the rest of the summer meeting."

"Humph!" Danta crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at him. "I'm happy to hear that _you've_ got nothing to do."

Davaria opened his eyes and looked up at her. "Well, I went out to get all _this stuff_...yer gonna have ta find a place to put it all." He closed his eyes again. She was silent. After a few moments he opened one eye slightly to see what she was doing. She was just standing there gaping at him.

"I'm just jokin', Ata," he said with a grin as he reached up and snagged her around the waist and pulled her down onto his bed. She fell beside him and laughed when he tickled her.

"That's good, Ari, because I was thinking those spears needed sharpening...and I was _also_ thinking that your _backside_ would be the best place to test the points." She smirked, then shrieked when he started tickling her again.

"Wow, I didn't know you two were so fun," Ivanolia said. "Can I play too?"

Danta and Davaria stopped laughing and sat up quickly. "I'm sorry," Danta apologized. "I didn't mean to be so loud." Hadn't she just told her daughter to keep it down? And now she was getting carried away herself.

Ivanolia shook his head. "Yeah, you oughta stop that," he said with a disgusted frown. "Just keep the noise _down_, would you? I mean..._really_."

Danta looked stricken. "I...I...I'm sorry." She jumped to her feet and started sifting through the packages.

"Ivan, you're terrible!" Danie snapped with a shake of her head. Then to Danta, she said, "don't you listen to him. He's trouble in the worst way. Just you wait until it's winter and he's bored. We all pay for it then. And he really _thinks_ he's funny too...the only problem is that _he's_ the only one who thinks it. Just asked Laurana and Brulenzia...they'll tell you."

"Hey!" Ivanolia was suddenly standing. "Last winter was not entirely _my_ fault, you know," Ivanolia quipped. "Brulenzia contributed just as much."

Danie looked at Danta and shook her head again. "My mate started it. I'm told he _always_ starts it. Just you be careful. Ouch!" she yelped. He'd smacked her bottom playfully, then pulled her into his arms.

"It's good to see you have your sense of humor back, my mate," Ivanolia said.

"Humph! I wasn't aware that I'd lost it," she said.

He kissed her soundly, then looked back at Danta. "I'll stop pestering you if I can a peek at one of those," he said pointing at the huge mound of packages.

Danta shook her head. "I'm sorry, Ivanolia, but you'll have to wait...just like everyone else."

He let out a long, overly-exaggerated sigh. "You and your brother are just no fun!"

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"If we run, we can get there before dark," Ayla said. "What do you say?"

Grov and Vincenzia nodded. "Sounds good." But Darvie frowned and shook her head.

"My rear end hurts. The last thing I want to do is go bouncing around on this thing." She shifted uncomfortably and silently wished she'd remained in camp. Especially now that she knew Ayla was just fine.

"Oh come on, Darvie. Do you really want to spend a night out here when we could crawl into our own furs if we just hurry up a little."

She frowned. She wanted nothing more than to do just what he'd said...crawl into her bed. "_Oh, all right_! But after today, don't ask me to get up on this thing."

"Fair enough," Vencenzia replied. "I think I could manage to do that."

"Good!"

**~oOo~**

The sun had just set when the summer meeting came into view, its torch lights glowing in the growing darkness. Ayla followed Grov around the outer area of their encampment and stopped just behind Oak Tent. Glancing around with a frown, Ayla wondered where Nicuria was, then breathed her relief when she heard him blow gently in the darkness. When he finally came to into view, she smiled. Lifting her leg over the mare, she jumped down and went to him.

"There you are, boy," she said as she scratched his neck. He nickered, then pushed his nose into her hand in search of a treat. She laughed. "Sorry Nic, I have nothing for you right now." She held out her hands for him to sniff, then turned back to the others.

Vincenzia had dismounted, followed quickly by Grov, who was now lifting Darvie from Stomp's back and putting her on her feet. She looked relieved to be standing on her own two legs again.

"See, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

Darvie grimaced as she rubbed her butt and groaned. "Speak for yourself. I told you riding wasn't meant for humans. And I'm starving," she complained.

Vincenzia grinned and put an arm around his mate's shoulder. "Well, let's get inside then. Maybe there'll still be some food left," he said hopefully. "I'm pretty hungry myself."

"What about the horses?" Ayla asked with a worried frown. Nicuria seemed to be just wandering around by himself. But, was that safe?

Grov shrugged. "What do you want to do with them? They're not used to being tied up; I don't think they'd like being confined very much."

Ayla shook her head. "I suppose not."

"Nicuria's been fine out here, Ayla." Ayla turned to see Travie coming toward them. "We've been checking on him every so often, just to be sure. He doesn't wander too far." Darvie's mother smiled and looked at the other two horses. "They're certainly impressive," she said with a gesture at the mares. "I never would have thought a horse good for anything, but food."

"They are good for riding too," Vincenzia put in.

"Speak for yourself!" Darvie said as she stretched out the kinks in her back and neck. "I don't care if I never ride one again."

Travie's eyes widened. "You _rode_ one?"

Darvie massaged her sore backside and nodded. "_All the way_. All I want now is some food and my bed."

Travie smiled. "Well _that_ you can have. Come on in."

With a glance at her horses, who'd moved off a bit, Ayla followed the others inside.

**NEW CHAPTER**

"Look who I found," Travie announced before they'd even stepped all the way into the tent. They were immediately surrounded by a throng of people, adults and children alike, everyone talking at once and wanting to know all about everything. Once again, Ayla was shocked by the sheer noise level these people were able produce with just their voices. Her nerves tensed, she had to remind herself that they were friends and family. Despite this fact, she moved closer to Grov, drawing strength from the man who loved and protected her.

"We're so glad you're back," Vilognia said as he pulled Darvie's pack from her shoulder, then took his brother's. Someone else took Grov and Ayla's packs as well, Ayla wasn't sure who; it all happened so quickly.

"Yes, even _I_ was starting to worry," Serana said with a smile. Several nodded and made comments about the woman's worry. That was telling, in and of itself, as Serana never seemed to worry about anything.

"I am sorry...we did not mean to worry you," Ayla said.

Everyone laughed and Tagnolia shook his head. "Leave it to you to worry about our worry, Ayla."

Everyone laughed some more. Ayla tried to smile.

"Do you really have two _more_ horses out there," Morina and Torina asked in unison. The girls had pushed their way to the front of the crowd and were now standing just in front of those returning, one of Ayla's daughters on each girl's hip.

Ayla nodded and flashed a genuine smile as she took one of her sleepy, blonde daughters.

"Can we see them?" Vegodia asked hopefully, all his age-mates looking at them expectantly.

Ayla smiled at the boy who was her cousin, but didn't have a chance to answer him.

"_Boys_, not tonight!" Travie scolded. "It's late and they've been traveling for days."

The children all groaned and even the adults looked disappointed, some even made verbal protests as Travie attempted to shoo everyone away.

For a woman not born to Oak Camp, or even to the Sungaea, she sure had a dominating presence among them, Ayla observed. No one seemed to complain about it though.

"Oh Mother! They're _only_ a couple of horses," Travie said with an impatient frown as she looked at the assembled group refusing to leave. "Nicuria's been here all day; you've been standing around gawking at him since sunup."

"But Mother, no one's seen living horses up so close before," Danie said. "They're so fascinating."

"Humph!" Darvie crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. "Try sitting on one all day...they're not so _fascinating_ to me."

"Did you _really_ get to sit on them?" Crisana asked her mother.

Darvie nodded. "I _really_ did. Then she shook her head. "But it wasn't all that great."

Vincenzia laughed. "Only because you were too tense to enjoy it."

Darvie sighed. "That may be true, but...I...I guess I was scared," she admitted.

Vincenzia laughed again and pulled his mate into his arms. "_I_, on the other hand enjoyed the scenery very much. Riding, instead of walking, allowed my eyes to see other things," he said to his younger mate with a grin, letting her, and all around, know what he had on his mind during the day, and now.

Travie scowled. "All right now…let's give them time to relax. Go on..."

And reluctantly, everyone dispersed.

**~oOo~**

Ayla sighed as she watched Vincenzia and Darvie head down the tent corridor toward their own sleeping place. They were the last to leave, taking Durc with them to settle in bed with Brenevia. Ayla smiled at how close the boys had become in such a short time.

"Here, let me take the girls to bed," Jendoza offered, her arms extended to take Annaliza from Ayla. Ayla smiled, kissed her daughter's head and signaled that she'd see her in the morning. Jendoza took up Ora's hand as well and walked away.

Ayla sat heavily on her bed, then lay back, her eyes closed. But she didn't stay there long. Forcing herself to get up again, she began pulling things from her pack.

Grov watched her for a moment, then took her shoulders. "We can do that tomorrow, Ayla," he said, guiding her to her side of the bed, then helping her to undress before easing her down into the furs.

Ayla let him take care of her. "You are right, of course. I am very tired. You must be too."

Grov nodded. "Yes...I am just going to find you something to eat."

Ayla smiled. "In bed?"

He grinned. "Just keep the crumbs on your side."

**~oOo~**

Ayla lay groggily in her furs. They'd come in late, assured everyone that they were fine, had something light to eat, then promptly fell asleep. She was glad to be back with Oak Camp; the journey, especially the river crossing, had been exhausting. But now she wondered how late it was. With a yawn, she opened her eyes. Grov had drawn their privacy curtain closed so there was nothing to see. Turning her head, she saw that her mate still lay beside her, seemingly still sound asleep. With a smile, she snuggled into him, her smile broadening when her mate's arm came around her unconsciously. Not long after, she felt a gentle tug on the furs.

"Mama," came a tiny whispering voice.

Ayla rolled over and extended her arms. Her two little girls slid in beside her, causing her to have to move over closer to Grov.

"What's going on?" he asked, coming awake suddenly.

"We have visitors," she informed him.

"Missed you," Ora told them. Annaliza sat up and nodded, her two middle fingers buried deep in her mouth as she crawled up and over to lie between them. Durc followed shortly, climbing in on Grov's side. Feeling that all was right with their world, all three children were quickly sleeping again.

"You'd think we were gone for days," whispered Grov.

Ayla smiled. "They were just worried...like everybody else. I should get up."

Grov sighed, not wanting to move.

"You stay," she said, reading his sigh well. "I will make tea and check on the horses, then come back."

He nodded and closed his eyes. He could hear her push the curtain aside and get up, but nothing after that; he was sleeping again.

**~oOo~**

Leaving her sleeping tunic on, Ayla quickly pulled on her leggings and shoes, then walked silently from the tent. Over Oak Tent's outside fire, she set water to boil for tea. Not expecting it to take very long, she turned and quickly circled the tent, heading for the place she'd left the horses the night before. Stomp, standing the nearest, brought her head up as Ayla came into view, but she didn't move to come to her. Whinney and Nicuria, however, came over immediately, looking for treats as always.

"Hi Whinney," Ayla said, scratching her mare's neck and then patting Nicuria. "How are you this morning?" She laughed when the two nudged her hands. "I did not bring food. You will have to wait, just like everyone else." Both horses nickered and pranced around.

"They are frisky," came a voice.

Ayla turned to see Janara. "Good morning."

Janara smiled. "They're _amazing_. I've been standing out here watching them since sunrise."

Ayla smiled, thinking that she thought they were amazing too. "Do you want to touch them?" Ayla asked. The young woman was clearly interested.

Janara smiled. "Could I?"

Ayla nodded. "Of course. Stomp, over there, is Grov's mare, and Nicuria is her son. And this is Whinney. She is mine." Ayla took Janara's hand then and placed it on Whinney's neck. "She likes to be scratched here...and here."

As Janara scratched, the mare pushed into her and made noises that told them she was enjoying the attention.

"Where did you find them, Ayla? They are wonderful!"

Ayla had to think for a moment. "In a valley..._west of here_." She nodded as if confirming it in her own mind. All the traveling she had been doing lately was almost more than she could fathom.

Janara frowned. "Far?"

Ayla shrugged. "A few day's journey. Why?"

Janara smiled. "I want one."

Ayla nodded, knowing and understanding the desire. "Maybe someone can take you."

Janara shook her head. "I don't see _that_ happening...Jeeteria is still very angry with me about...what I did on the hunt."

Ayla nodded again. "It will pass."

Janara shook her head. "Why are you so different, Ayla? Why aren't _you_ angry with me? If anyone has the right to be angry, it's you...you and Grov."

Ayla frowned. She didn't know the answer to the woman's questions. All she knew was that she wasn't angry. "I don't know, Janara. I guess I understand that people makes mistakes. I have made a few of them myself." She shrugged. "And you seem sorry to me, so I feel that I can trust you. Is that foolish of me?"

Janara shrugged. "_I_ don't think so, but I know that I'm sorry. How do _you_ know it though?"

"I don't really know," Ayla said with a frown. "It is just in the way you move, I suppose."

Janara forced a smile. "Well, thank you. It's more than the man of my hearth is willing to give me, and it means a lot to me."

Ayla smiled. "You are welcome, Janara." She paused to pat Stomp, who'd finally come over for attention. "But I best get back. I have water over the fire. You are welcome to stay with the horses if you like. They like it when people rub them and talk to them. Just be careful. They are gentle, but skittish. And they can be dangerous if they are frightened."

"I'll remember that. Thanks again."

Ayla nodded and walked away.

**~oOo~**

When Ayla returned to Oak Tent's fire, her water was bubbling vigorously. After pouring some into two cups, Ayla sat there for several moments while she waited for the tea to steep, then she hurried inside to her mate. Pulling back their curtain, Ayla sat down on the bed platform.

"Are you awake?"

Grov managed to free himself from the sleeping bodies around him, then reached a hand to accept his cup of tea. "Oooh, this is good," he said after taking a generous sip.

Ayla smiled; she had put in just the herbs that he liked. "What would you like to eat this morning?" she asked him.

"Whatever everyone else is having...you don't have to make anything special."

"I know, but I like to make what you like."

Grov smiled at her. "Well, enjoy this time of relaxation, Ayla. Things aren't always so carefree."

She laughed. "No, I suppose they are not, but it is more difficult here as well." She had switched to gestures so anyone stirring around them would not understand.

He nodded _his_ understanding though; life with the Clan _was_ a simpler life. He gestured his agreement, then went on verbally. "But...nobody else is up yet...you should come back to bed."

Ayla grinned and seemed just about to climb in when they heard voices outside.

_"Didn't I tell you to stay away from Oak Camp? You've caused enough trouble already!"_

"I'm just looking at the horses, Jeeteria.

Ayla frowned, recognizing Janara's voice. "I think I better go out there."

Grov nodded. "I will come with you." He quickly threw on his leggings and followed Ayla outside. By this time, the man had pulled the young woman away from the horses and was guiding her back toward their tent space.

"But Ayla said it was all right. She said I could visit them."

"Well, I don't much care _what_ that woman said. You are the daughter of my mate and you'll do as _I_ say." Jeeteria stopped in his tracks when he came face-to-face with Grov and Ayla as they came around the corner toward the voices. He puffed loudly in exasperation.

"What do you want?" he demanded. He was still upset that he'd suffered embarrassment and considered it the flathead's fault for just being there.

"I, ahhh...heard voices outside and wanted to see what was happening," Ayla said honestly.

"Well, you need not concern yourself." Jeeteria eyed the flathead couple. Even he could not miss how handsome they both were, the man with his tall, dark, almost brooding, good looks, and the woman blonde and beautiful, her blue eyes full of determination. He suddenly found himself scrutinizing them more closely, then making excuses. "Janara has been warned to leave you two alone, yet I keep finding her away from Spruce Tent." He shook his head. "I am sorry."

Ayla saw his change in demeanor immediately and was relieved. "That is all right," she said, giving the man her most winning smile. "Janara has been...no trouble."

Jeeteria scoffed.

"Please," Ayla said, reaching out and taking the man's arm. "Would you like some tea? I have just made some fresh." Leading him over to their tentfire, Ayla gestured for the Spruce man to sit down. Without thinking, he did, and accepted a cup from the woman. She glanced then at Grov and Janara, who stood there staring at her.

"Oh! this is very good!"

Ayla smiled. "Thank you...it is Grov's favorite." She gave her mate a quick look. He had managed to mask his surprise at her sudden invitation for the man to sit, and had lowed himself into a sitting position. Janara still stood behind him, looking as if she was ready to bolt. She almost jumped out of her skin when she felt someone grasp her upper arms from behind.

"Good morning!"

Ayla looked to see Ivanolia and several others coming outside. Soon the area was filled with Oak Tent members.

"Ayla, do you have anymore of the Clan's stomach-relaxing tea?" Danie asked as she followed her mate to a bench and plopped down, a sour look on her pretty face.

Ayla frowned. "Of course, but are you feeling lousy again?"

Danie shrugged. "Not so bad." She glanced at the man sitting beside Ayla and, in typical Mamutoi fashion, introduced herself. "We have not met. I am Danie of the Arctic Fox Hearth of Oak Camp of the Sungaea, mated to Ivanolia and blessed by the Great Mother of all." She smiled as she patted her belly. "Formerly of the Mamutoi, as if you could not guess after listening to this ridiculous accent I have."

Jeeteria couldn't help but grin at the young foreign woman and clasped her outstretched arm in greeting. "Jeeteria, of Spruce Camp," he said simply. "Your Sungaea doesn't sound so bad to me."

"Humph! No, my Sungaea is much improved; it is how I sound that bothers me."

Ivanolia laughed. "I only have trouble with it when it somehow reverts back to Mamutoi and I'm left trying to translate what she's saying." He felt a sound slap to his rear.

She grinned. "Well don't make me mad and I won't make you translate," she said in her native language.

Ivanolia smiled and sat down beside his mate. He still didn't know much Mamutoi, but he got the gist of what she was saying. Soon, everyone was talking at once, joining whichever conversation seemed most interesting.

"It really is all right, Jeeteria," Ayla said quietly. She had been watching him drink his tea while he observed Oak Tent's morning activities.

"Huh?"

"Janara coming over here to visit...the horses or us. We do not mind."

The man frowned. Everything in him told him to gather up his mate's daughter and retreat. But there was something about this woman that made him want to stay, that calmed him, that told him there was no danger. He glanced up at the woman's mate. He was talking with some of the young people, and Janara happened to be standing there as well. She looked nervous, somewhat out of place. And then her brother appeared and she relaxed some, enough to actually speak to Ayla's mate.

Jeeteria continued to frown as he watched the daughter and son of his hearth interacting so freely with the Clan man. Jondaria had obviously become friends with Grov. He didn't know _friendship_ with a such a man was possible.

"Ayla!" Danta exclaimed as she came running out of Oak Tent. When Ayla stood, the Sumac woman threw her arms around her. "I was so worried."

"Calm down, Ata! Were you not here when they arrived last night?"

Danta glanced at her brother and blushed. "Of course I was _here_, Ari," she said to him. "But I didn't have a chance to talk to her last night. You know that." She was pouting.

Davaria rolled his eyes, but hugged his sister lovingly.

"How _touching_," came a voice full of sarcasm. "The all-new Danta and Davaria."

The entire group froze and turned all at once to face those intruding.

"What do you want, Ivarsia?" Davaria asked, moving to stand protectively in front of his sister. He had no intention of ever letting their soon-to-be former camp hurt his sister again. He did not even want her to hear their hateful words. "Iyena? We don't have time for this right now."

"Hummm. I can see that. All of you _so busy_...just sitting around your tentfire."

Davaria frowned, as if their cooking pots were any less black. "Make your point. As I said, we don't have time for you anymore," Davaria said, making _his_ with finality.

"Well, as much as _we'd_ like to stand here talking," Iyena scoffed. "We did not come here to be bothered with _you_. If you'd just go get your leaders, we can be done here."

"What is it that you want, Ivars...Iyena?"

Everyone looked to the tent entrance to see Tagnolia and Tiflona coming out. Unbeknownst to most standing there gaping, _someone_ had run inside to fetch the headman and headwoman.

Ivarsia laughed. "I think you know what we want. We have, once and for all, come for what is due to us."

Tagnolia sighed, completely exasperated. "Do you not understand the meaning of _we don't have it yet_? We told you we'd turn it over as soon as Davaria and Danta had returned, but we can't do that until we have first received it ourselves."

Iyena crossed her arms over her chest and huffed angrily. "You mean you intend to keep this bargain?" she asked disbelievingly. She had been completely prepared to accept Oak Camp's change of mind...had fully expected them to break the deal when they saw what they were really getting. She'd even concocted a suitable penalty for the exchange that would not happen, and a much more severe punishment for Davaria and Danta, for causing Sumac Camp such embarrassment. Now she was furious she wouldn't get to force them all to pay.

"As we told you before, Iyena," Tiflona said. "Oak Camp does not back out of a promise. We have agreed to take Davaria, Danta and Danara into Oak Camp, and we are going to do that. And you will get what's coming to you, you need not worry. The pittance you ask for, is nothing to what we are getting."

"Maybe we should have asked for more then," Ivarsia snapped.

"Maybe," Tagnolia said with a shrug. "We would not have objected. But, seeing as the amount has already been agreed upon, you will get what you asked for..._when_ we have received it...and not a bit more. It is my understanding that there is to be a distribution meeting this afternoon. We will meet with you afterwards."

"Well then, until payment is made, _these three_ will have to remain with us." As Ivarsia spoke, Iyena reached out and grasped hold of Danara's arm while several Sumac men grabbed both Davaria and Danta. Danara cried out in fear as she was lifted up, but Danta clawed her way out of the hands restraining her to reach her daughter, leaving several long, bloody scratches on the man attempting to hold her back. She was not about to go anywhere with these people without a fight, let alone allow them take her daughter. Davaria, however, found himself shoved to the ground. But it was all over before it could go any further; all of Oak Tent, and several others who were standing around, quickly neutralized the attempted assault.

"_This_, has gone far enough! What is wrong with you people?" Travie shrieked. "Why would you want to force those who do not want to stay with you, _to stay with you_? And what has happened to the well-known and long-lived stricture against violence?" The older woman knelt beside the fallen man, dabbed at his bloody lip with a small piece of leather, then glared up at those who did not belong there.

"You should mind your own business, old woman!" Ivarsia declared. "Or you might find yourself in a spot of trouble yourself!"

Travie's eyes widened as she moved to her feet. "Are _you_ threatening me, _young man_?" she demanded condescendingly; he was not much younger than she. Pulling herself to her full height, which was moderately more than average, she advanced on him. With hands on hips, and absolutely no sign of fear of him showing in her features or stance, she continued on. "Because, if you are, then you'll have more to contend with than just one _old woman_. I suggest that, if you know what's good for you, you'll leave here _this instant_! before you are sorry you messed with Oak Camp."

Everyone could see fury wash over Ivarsia as he tried to stare Travie down. But his effort to beat her was lost and he quickly backed away. "This is not over!" he ground out as they left.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Danta stood holding her daughter, both with tears in their eyes, until she felt someone's comforting hands on her shoulders. She focused then on Danie, who gently pulled her into her arms.

"Davaria!" she exclaimed, abruptly pulling from Danie and quickly going to her brother who still lay on the ground. "Did they hurt you, Ari?"

Davaria shook his head and struggled to his feet. "It's nothing." Absently, he wiped at the blood still dripping from his lip, the blood within his body boiling.

"_Nothing_? You are bleeding."

Davaria took a deep breath and scowled at his sister. "And you still wish to do nothing about..." He paused at her look of horror. "...about what has been done to you?" he finished, not giving enough information for anyone to be the wiser.

"I do not."

"But..."

"No!" She held up a finger and shook it. "I told you. I will handle this as I see fit." He opened his mouth to object again, but she shook her head. "You promised, Ari," she reminded him.

Davaria stared at her for a moment, then stormed into the tent. Danta watched him, then headed around the tent to the horses.

**~oOo~**

Everyone watched in confusion as the brother and sister argued. No one knew what they were discussing, but clearly _something_ was going on. After Davaria was gone, however, everybody drifted away to start the day, leaving most of the young people by the tentfire.

"What was _that_ all about?" Danie asked the area at large.

Ayla frowned. "I could not say."

"Did something happen while you were away?" Danie persisted.

Ayla shook her head. "No." _It is what happened before we left_, she thought.

"Well maybe you could go talk to her...find out what is wrong. She seems very upset."

"Danie, I said that I _could not_ say, not that I do not know what has happened." A few brows raised expectantly. Ayla shook her head. "It is not my place to tell you, but I _will_ go find Danta." Several nodded understand, and watched as Ayla walked away.

**~oOo~**

Ayla's intent was to find and talk to Danta, but when she saw her new friend standing with and petting the horses, she just backed off and watched her. She could tell Danta was troubled, that her thoughts were conflicted. On one hand, Danta wanted Zadneetsia exposed and punished. That was what Ayla had wanted after the sorry excuse for a man had attacked _her_. But Ayla also knew that the sheer humiliation of the confrontation would be nearly unbearable. She remembered how utterly helpless it had made herself feel. And what would it accomplish? There had been no serious punishment in her own case. Ayla frowned. _But this is different, isn't it_? she asked herself. Zadneetsia had failed in his attack on _her_, he had _succeeded_ in forcing Danta. That _had to_ mean something, didn't it?

Ayla's frown eased slightly as she watched Danta feed each of the horses some small red apples. She smiled. Her friend had a rear look of peace on her face as she watched the horses' antics. Whinney was sniffing for more and Nicuria was nosing insistently at the bag she was holding. Even Stomp was doing her part to cheer the woman up. Really, they just wanted the fruit the woman was holding back, but they had Danta laughing and that was good, laughter was _always_ good.

Quietly, Ayla sneaked away.

**~oOo~**

"I still think Danta should stay behind," Davaria insisted. He looked from Tagnolia to Tiflona, who both stood there looking confused.

"What are you talking about, Davaria? This is a formal adoption. She _has to_ be there," the headwoman said.

"I-I can't..." Davaria shook his head, not knowing how to respond.

"What aren't you telling us?" Tagnolia asked.

Davaria looked from the woman to the man and frowned. He'd promised not to say anything about what had happened to his sister, but it was getting complicated. How could he not tell them? He glanced over at Danta, who stood there silently, twisting her hands and biting her lip nervously. Both Tiflona and Tagnolia's eyes followed his.

"Danta," Tagnolia said as he approached her. "Can _you_ tell us what Davaria seems unable to?"

Danta frowned, knowing that her secret would soon have to be told. "I would...rather not say."

The headmand frowned, as did everyone else who was standing there, but Tiflona looked more than irritated. She didn't understand why the two people they were sticking their necks out for were keeping secrets from them, but as far as she was concerned, it was unacceptable. Looking around at the assembled group, then back at the brother and sister, she shook her head.

"I think that we really have to talk...before any adoption can be made," Tiflona said seriously. She glanced at her brother, who nodded, then back at Danta and Davaria, who had moved closer and was now holding his sister's hand.

"Let's go inside, where we can have some privacy," the headwoman went on. She didn't like to have _secret_ meetings, especially since it was a _secret_ that was causing her to need one, but at this point she saw no other way.

Danta nodded and started away, holding tight to Davaria's hand. They were followed by the two leaders. But just before entering Oak Tent, Tiflona was stopped by Danie, who spoke quietly, almost whispering. Tiflona frowned at the younger Oak woman of foreign birth, glancing over her shoulder several times as she spoke, every time, her eyes going to Grov and Ayla. Then with a nod, Tiflona sighed.

"Grov. Ayla. Danie tells me you both have knowledge about what's happening here."

The young couple nodded.

Tiflona sighed again and rubbed her face. "Then, I think we'll need the two of you to come inside with us." With that, she turned and left. Grov and Ayla could do nothing but follow.

**~oOo~**

"All right, Danta," Tiflona said when she got to where their adoptees were sitting, nervously waiting for the headwoman to come in and tell them she'd changed her mind about the adoption. "What in the Mother's name is this all about? We don't take kindly to secrets."

Danta's troubled eyes filled with tears. She wanted to get up and run away, to get as far away from Oak Camp, and the Sungaea, and _people_ in general, but she knew that option was gone; she couldn't run away again. And she wouldn't.

"I...," she began, then choked on her tears. She felt Davaria's arms circle her and let herself fall into them, knowing that he would protect her.

"_Shhhh_," he soothed, rubbing her back as she sobbed into his chest. "They'll understand...but you have to tell them."

She hiccupped. "I-I c-can't, Ari. I c-can't." She continued to sob, clinging to him desperately. "B-but...you can," she cried, pushing away from him and looking up into his eyes.

He frowned, but nodded. He could do that for his sister. After wiping his sister's tears away, he slowly looked up at Tagnolia and Tiflona, who both stood there patiently, waiting for the brother and sister to speak to them again.

"My sister is afraid to face Sumac Camp."

Tiflona frowned. "But _why_? There is nothing they can do to stop the adoption. You have agreed to it and we have agreed to pay what they have asked for. End of subject. Going over there is just a formality."

Davaria nodded. "Yes, we know that, but you don't understand. This is not _just a formality_ to Danta. Going _there_...facing Sumac Camp...is much more than a formality to my sister."

Davaria frowned up at their expectant looks, then scratched the growing stubble on this chin. "There is another reason for Danta to stay away from the camp of our birth," he said cryptically. How could he make them understand without just blurting it out? "Or rather, a _person_ that she does not want to face." He glanced at Ayla, looking for assistance. Tagnolia and Tiflona looked at the woman too.

"Ayla?" they questioned in unison.

Ayla sighed. "It is...Zadneetsia," she said. "What he tried to do to me…," she began, a pained look in her eyes. She had to swallow a few times before she could continue. "Well, let me just say that he had...more success with Danta."

Realization quickly washed over the two leaders. Both dropped onto the bench across from Danta and Davaria.

"Why have you not said anything, Danta?" asked Tiflona.

Danta face contorted painfully. "And what would you have done?"

"There are accusations to make." Tiflona was on her feet again. "We must take this to the Councils immediately. We must put a stop to this."

Danta nodded. "Yes...I agree. But accusing Zadneetsia and getting people to believe me are two entirely different things. You saw what they did to Ayla when she came forward." Danta shook her head. "I don't want to go through that. I just don't want to ever see him again."

Tiflona looked ready to pull her own hair out. "But we have to do _something_. That man can't be allowed to continue on like this. He needs to be punished!"

"Yes, he does. But what can we really do, Tiflona," Danta said, tears filling her eyes, then making tracks down her face.

"There _must be_ something we can do."

Danta pursed her lips. "Like restricting him to Sumac Tent?"

Tiflona frowned.

"_Yes_, exactly!" Tagnolia agreed. "It's a start."

Danta laughed. "That will not work. You can't stop him from leaving Sumac's tentspace."

"Of course we can. We've already done that."

Danta smiled. "No, you have not."

"_What_? What are you talking about, Danta?"

She sighed. "Yesterday...when I went to the river with the other women to get water...Zadneetsia was there."

Tiflona frowned. "He was at the river?"

Danta nodded.

"Why haven't you and the others informed us?" Tiflona exclaimed, at the same time that Davaria just to his feet and exploded with, "What! I'm going to kill him!"

Danta looked nervously from the headwoman to her brother. "I...we were going to, but then Davaria and the other came back with all of our things." She shrugged. "I guess we just got distracted."

"_Distracted_?" Davaria bellowed. "What in the Mother's name is wrong with you, Danta?"

"Please Davaria, please understand," she almost whined. "I told you that I want to handle this on my own."

"Handle this!" he burst out. "How can I be expected to let you _handle_ this, when you just _do not_?"

Danta sighed. "Ari _please_...you promised."

Davaria opened his mouth to scold her...to complain...to protest...to find _some way_ to get _his_ way, but it was useless; the pleading look in her eyes stopped him from saying another word. He didn't like it, but he _had_ promised to let her handle it. Feeling helpless, he dropped onto the bench beside her.

"Danta," Tagnolia started. "What is it that you want to do about this?"

The young woman frowned. "I...I do not want to do _anything_ about this. All I want is to be adopted by Oak Camp, to make my home with you there and to forget we were ever part of Sumac Camp. And I want to forget what that man did to me," she said sadly. "I cannot do that if I have to stand in front of everyone and accuse him of this."

Both leaders looked pained. "Then that is what you will have, Danta," Tagnolia said, throwing a look at Davaria. "And nothing _will be_ done about this, if that is what you truly want."

Tiflona looked shocked. It took several moments for the headwoman to compose herself. When she did she gave her support. "Yes...if that is your wish, then we shall say nothing." The head woman paused. "Are you _sure_ this is what you want?" She had to ask again.

Danta could see that everyone watching her wanted her to make an accusation, wanted her to tell all what Zadneetsia had done to her...but...she was not ready. "Yes, I am sure. I just want to be adopted. I want Oak Camp to accept us, and I want to move away from those who have hurt me."

Tiflona and Tagnolia eyed her, then both nodded. "If that is your wish, then that is what will happen."

Danta sighed her relief, and smiled. Davaria didn't look so happy.

**~oOo~**

It had been agreed that Danta would remain behind for the _adoption_ process. But since this was completely out of the ordinary, a runner had been sent to the councils with a request for help with the matter. Three Sisters had come by Oak Tent to verify that the young Sumac woman did indeed want to be adopted by Oak Camp. Then, when they were satisfied that she did, they left with the rest of Oak Tent, intent on representing the woman who did not want to be present.

Oak Camp now sat silently in the waiting area of the Council of Sisters. The time for Davaria, Danta and Danara's adoption, however, had already come and gone. There seemed to be some sort of delay, but no one seemed to know what it was, or at least no one was willing to tell them what was happening. All they knew was _something_ was going on. That much was clear due to the angry voices coming from within, voices that could be heard, but not understood.

And then the sounds came closer.

"This is ridiculous!" a man hollered, pushing aside the thick hide curtain that divided the tent up into sections. "That girl is crazy!"

All of Oak Camp stared as Zadneetsia came through the open curtain, waving his fist at those following him. Ivarsia was holding the man back, doing his best to restrain his nephew, and Iyena was making every attempt to calm the ugly situation.

"Don't you think this has gone too far?" the headwoman asked the head sister.

Breidara shook her head. "Unfortunately, I do, but I can't ignore something of this magnitude, Iyena."

"You!" Iyena screeched, turning on a young girl and woman who had come through the curtain as well. The girl looked terrified, the woman furious. "How _dare you_ use the current situation to make false accusations!"

The girl started to cry, but she did not say anything.

"My daughter would not make up something like this, Iyena. If she says that it happened, then it did."

Iyena scowled. "We all know your girl has been after my sister's son since last summer when she sneaked into his bed before she'd even had her first rites, Hetara. How are we supposed to believe anything she says?"

Hetara frowned. "Neither she nor I deny that she wanted him. It is common knowledge that my daughter has had a crush on that...that piece of dirt, for a long time. Only the Mother knows why! But the point here is that she _wanted_ him, as in _used to_. That does _not_ give him the right to force himself upon her. She is still a woman, a very young one, who deserves the right to say who takes her body and who does not."

"She's a liar!" Zadneetsia snapped, struggling against his mother's brother.

Iyena turned back to the head sister and shook her head. "This girl is just embarrassed that he did not want her and is trying to punish him for rejecting her."

"I am not lying," the girl whispered, her huge, fear-filled eyes on Zadneetsia. "I swear that I am not," she said more firmly. "That man _forced_ me." She glanced then at those sitting there silently watching them and blushed, but then decided to use it to her advantage. "Just as he tried to do to her." She pointed at Ayla.

"I've had just about enough of this!" Iyena said through gritted teeth. She too looked at Oak Camp, all assembled for the _adoption_. Just the thought made her furious. If looks could kill, all of those watching the scene would have dropped dead. "She is clearly using what he was accused of doing earlier to hurt him now."

"Iyena, the Councils determined that Zadneetsia was guilty of the crimes of which he was recently accused," Breidara said gently. "That gives him much less credibility now."

Iyena scowled. "Well, just because Zadneetsia was not believed, that a _foreigner_ was believed instead, does not mean that he was actually guilty...just as he is not guilty now. It is that jealous, spiteful little girl who lies!" she sneered.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I don't think I have the stomach for this _adoption_," she went on sarcastically. "If you need us, you know where we are." With that she turned, took her nephew's arm, and left the Sister's tent.

"You can expect to get a summons, Iyena," Breidara called out after them.

Iyena didn't respond, but Ivarsia, who was following his sister, stopped at the tent's opening and spoke to the head sister. "Don't bother, Breidara. Let us just end this now. Sumac Camp releases those three parasites. Oak Camp can have them. We don't want to _ever_ see them again!"

With that, he too left.

**~oOo~**

"What do you mean, Danta isn't coming?" Breidara asked with exasperation.

"Just what we have said, _she will not be attending this meeting_, but she does want to be adopted. We have brought some to speak on her behalf."

Breidara glanced at the three headwomen that had come to speak for the absent woman, then waived her hand to dismiss them. "It will not be necessary," she said with an exhausted sigh. "I am closing the matter. From here on out, Davaria, Danta and Danara are a part of Oak Camp. Is this satisfactory to you?" she asked, a hopeful look in her eyes.

Tagnolia and Tiflona looked at Davaria. The man had looked nearly ready to jump forward and strangle Zadneetsia, but had shown considerable restraint. It has helped to have some of the younger men of Oak Camp standing by in support, but ultimately the man had _chosen_ to keep his silence, and that was good; they could respect him for that. And now, he was smiling.

"Davaria?"

He nodded, his silly grin seemingly stuck on his face.

"Well then, Davaria, formerly of Sumac Camp, Oak Camp welcomes you," Tagnolia said, reaching out and clasping the younger man's arm affectionately.

"We hope that both you and your sister find happiness and peace among us," Tiflona added, giving the man a welcoming hug.

"And me too?" Danara asked, coming up silently and tugging on the headwoman's sleeve.

Tiflona immediately knelt down to be on the child's level and flashed her most happy smile. "_Especially_ you, Danara," she said to reassure the slight little girl who had already grown some during her time away from the camp of her birth. "We welcome you, and your mother and her brother, and we want all of you to be at peace with us."

Danara grinned, then went to Davaria. "Are we 'dopted now?" she asked him.

He nodded. "We are."

"Then let's go home."

Davaria tried to blink back his tears of joy, but finally gave up. It was impossible. Instead, he smiled through them and, picking up his sister's daughter, walked out of the Sister's tent with the rest of his people.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Jendoza cocked her head and frowned at the young woman. She, along with several others, had been trying to help Danta get ready for the celebration, but the woman's dress was _less than_ acceptable.

"No, no...this just isn't going to work," she finally said with a shake of her head.

Danta looked down at what she was wearing and frowned. "But this is all I have, Jendoza. This and the dress I was wearing yesterday."

Jendoza scowled. "Oh no, you can't wear _that one_ either. No...you'll have to wear something else." She paused as she continued to eye Oak Camp's new member. "Something like..._that_!"

Danta frowned, but she turned in the direction that Jendoza was pointing. For a moment, she saw only the other women standing there scrutinizing her and she wanted to run, she wanted to run away and hide under a rock. But then she realized they were holding something up...a dress...a _beautifully_ decorated dress. Her eyes filled with tears.

"Is t-that...for _me_?" she asked. She bit her lip to prevent the sob she felt coming.

All the women giggled and nodded.

"It is...beautiful," she said, stepping forward and tentatively touching it. It was by far the softest thing she had ever felt and she knew that Ayla had had something to do with that, though she wondered when, since she had been with the woman for many days and had not seen her working on such a project.

Danta smiled as she inspected the garment. The leather had been made light, probably to show off her darker coloring, and it was a short dress, just above the knees and could double as a long tunic to be worn with leggings later in the year. She was already mentally making plans to make herself a pair. In fact, they had made her leggings as well, but weren't giving them to her yet, because they just wanted her to have a nice dress to wear that night, and because she was so fun to give things to. Later, that gift would come as well.

"I have never had anything so beautiful," she said, fingering the short fringe that circled the hem of the dress and then the beading that covered the bodice. "I don't know what to say. This is too much."

All the women smiled at her. "You say thank you and put it on," Travie instructed.

Danta smiled and hugged the dress to her. "I love it. Thank you. I will wear it with pride. Will someone help me?"

"Gladly!" All the women came forward at once, stripped her naked, then dressed her in the new dress.

"You will need these too, Mama," Danara said.

Danta glanced down to see her daughter holding out a pair of new shoes for her and noticed the child was bedecked with all new clothing as well.

"Fraylora wanted me to give them to you."

Danta's eyes went to the woman, but she could hardly see her through her tears. "Thank you," she mouthed, too stunned to actually speak.

"Think nothing of it, Daughter."

"What do you think, Mama?" Danara asked, twirling around to show off her new dress. "It looks almost like yours."

Danta pushed at her tears, then grinned and knelt down beside her daughter. "It is a beautiful dress. I love it!"

"Me too." Danara spun around again, then pranced off to be with her friends.

"Come now, this is supposed to be a happy occasion," Fraylora said, though she too had tears in her eyes. "Let us all stop jabbering so our newest member can finish getting ready."

Several of the women nodded, moving off to finish themselves so that Danta could compose herself. For several moments all Danta could do was hold her new footwear and stare at them. But then she sat down to put them on. Kicking off her old, tattered shoes, she quickly slipped her feet into the new ones. They were a perfect fit. Someone had clearly taken the time to find out what size she wore, which was more than she did for herself most of the time. Usually, she only got the leavings of others and had to just make do with whatever she found. She glanced down at her old ones. She'd had to mend them several times lately. They were over-worn...falling apart actually, and filthy, so much so that she couldn't even tell what color they used to be. The new ones were light in color and decorated with the same beads that covered the dress. She knew the beads to be from Jendoza's collection, the ones she only offered to Oak Camp. Just that knowledge gave her her first feeling of connection to her new camp.

Had everyone conspired to bring her here? she wondered, thinking about all that had been done for her since she had met Ayla at the leather-working area that day. It was almost as if someone had known from the beginning that she was destined to find a new place to be. Smiling, she reached down and tied her shoes.

**~oOo~**

"Want some help with your hair?"

Danta looked up to see Danie sitting on her bed platform watching her and blushed. "I can never seem to keep it under control," she said, pushing at the few hairs that didn't want to lay flat.

Danie grinned and pulled at the hair at her nape. "Why do you think I keep mine so short? Sometimes I think my mate would like me to grow it out, but..." She shrugged. "I guess I like it this way."

Danta glanced over at Ivanolia, who sat on the center circular bench with the others. He was laughing at something her brother had said to the group. It was good to see that Davaria was fitting in, that he would have a place with Oak Camp just as she would. She knew that he had been worried about that, and that he'd sacrificed his security, false as it may be, when he'd agreed to the adoption for her sake. She was so happy that he was making friends, that he was finding new security with their new people. And he too had been dressed finely and looked every bit the part as she.

"But _men_, what do they really know of women's hair, huh?"

Danta smiled, her eyes going back to the other woman's mate. She couldn't help but remember her first rites with the man. He had been so gentle with her, and nice too, even afterward, when he didn't have to be. She remembered that he'd said her hair was pretty, that most women kept it longer, but that he liked hers short. That was part of the reason _why_ she'd always trimmed it...because his compliments were among the few she'd ever received in her lifetime. She looked then at Danie again.

"Oh, I don't know, Danie. He must like your hair just the way it is, otherwise he would have mated someone else. And not that _hair_ is really all that important, but he seems to have enough of it for the both of you."

Danie giggled. "That's for sure. I am thinking he plans to grow it as long as Brulenzia's."

Danta's gaze went to the stunningly handsome man who was standing within the throng of young people, and she laughed at Danie's comment. Brulenzia's long, dark brown hair was nearly down to his waist now. "Or perhaps Laurana's," she quipped.

Both women looked across the tent at Brulenzia's mate, Ivanolia's sister. She had just fed her new baby and put the infant to sleep and was now tying her thigh-length blonde hair into a thick knot at mid-back to keep it out of her face during the evening. They burst out laughing. It was easy to imagine Ivanolia with hair as long as his sister's.

"I suppose hair length is not important," Danie said, running her fingers through her short curls.

Danta shrugged. "I guess not."

Danie smiled, then reached out to smooth down one of Danta's wayward curls. "You know, I think we have the same name...I think my name would be Danta in Sungaean." She frowned, then shrugged. "Or close anyway, your name would be Dantie in Mamutoi."

Danta smiled. "Hummm...I never thought about it."

"Neither have I really," Danie said. "It just came to me. I've been thinking about names a lot lately."

Danta watched the other woman pat her belly and smiled. "That's a fun thing to do when you're expecting. I remember when I was carrying Danara...it was just about all I thought about."

"And _now_? What do you think about now?"

Danta shrugged. "Just being happy."

"Well, I think you've taken the first step."

"So do I."

**~oOo~**

"Come, come," Tagnolia called out. "Everyone gather 'round. We have a lot to drink to. Where's Serana and her blackberry wine?" he asked, not seeing the woman in the immediate vicinity.

The woman, only hidden by the throng of people, was walking around pouring the newest batch of her brew. She only rolled her eyes at the man's obvious impatience, but his mate shook her head and scolded him. "Patience, Tag. We can only pour so fast."

He smiled at the woman and watched as she went around filling cups. She stopped next to him last and emptied her container into his vessel. "Satisfied?"

"You always satisfy, Zarina," the headman said as he pulled her to him for a kiss.

She kissed him back, but blushed and straightened up when several hooted and howled at them. "The toast, Tag," she reminded him.

He laughed. "Does she _not_ always satisfy?" he asked, his eyes going to Wäglodia. The red-haired headwoman's mate only grinned. He would not enter into the banter.

"All right, Tagnolia. That's enough!" Tiflona said with a grin of her own. "You've had enough fun trying to embarrass your mate."

Tagnolia looked affronted by her accusation. He looked ready to continue his teasing, then smiled and raised his cup.

"All right, all right! My sister is right..._as usual_," he conceded, then raised his cup and waited for everyone to do the same. "First...Grov and Ayla...we want to welcome you back to camp. Since you have returned to us, Ayla, we have grown quite accustomed to you and yours. So much so that even your short absence weighed heavily upon us." He paused for a moment, smiling at the young woman while the small crowd cheered their agreement, then he looked at Ayla's mate.

"And Grov...you fit in with Oak Camp so well, it seems as if you have always been one of us. We want you to know that you will always be welcome."

Grov smiled and nodded. "Thank you."

"And those horses you two have brought back with you...they are a testament to the success of your journey. Everyone's been _really_ interested in them. I, for one, would like to experience a ride."

Ayla grinned. "That can be arranged."

"Hah!" Darvie interrupted. "Be prepared for your backside to hurt for days."

Everyone laughed.

"Well, it does," she exclaimed, rubbing her behind and grimacing. "I don't think it will ever be the same."

Vincenzia grinned, then grabbed her. "Maybe someone needs to lay you down and massage it for you."

Darvie raised a brow. "Hummm, _maybe_. Anyone interested?" she asked the group at large. Vincenzia frowned.

Everyone laughed again. No one expected Darvie to seek her pleasures elsewhere, but Vincenzia was clearly rattled.

"All right…_next_," Tagnolia interrupted. "I would like to drink to our three newest members, Davaria, Danta and Danara. After all, they are the reason we have gathered on this night." He grinned and raised his cup to them. "We are all happy to have you...all three of you. Welcome!"

There were several shouts of agreement and nods from those less verbal, but unused to such positive attention, both Davaria and Danta turned bright red, which caused a round of ribbing from many of the young people.

"Oh, come on, Davaria," Ivanolia teased. "You're not getting shy on us now, are you?"

"See?" Danie said with a knowing nod. "I told you about him. He is starting in already. It is only a teasing tone now, but _later_..." She shook her head. "Later he will be brutal."

Laurana scowled, memories of her brother's antics during the previous winter flooding back. "Arrgh!"

Several laughed, but Ivanolia smiled and looped an arm over his sister's shoulder. "But _you_, sister dear, won't have to deal with me this winter. We will be with Grov and Ayla."

Laurana rolled her eyes. "Oh, _lucky them_."

Everyone laughed yet again.

**~oOo~**

By the end of the evening, several other camps had put in an appearance at Oak Tent's joyous gathering. Many from Willow, Hill and Spruce Camp were there, and so was Zackodia, Gredenzia's burly brother from Pine Camp, who had shown up with his mate, Bidena, to add support and share in the celebration, as had many from both Beech Camp and Birch Camp, including Dimia, who had carried in a very pregnant Seriana, much to her mother's worry.

"Seriana should be fine, Belana," Ayla had tried to reassure as the older woman fussed over her daughter. "I will stay close by, just in case. I promise."

Belana had seemed satisfied after that and had left the gathering. She was still a little uneasy about having her daughter so near to the _flatheads_, but her hurt over the things that had been said about her son during the recent council meetings had numbed her outright hatred of the strange people living on the peninsula. Ayla, a stranger, had helped her daughter, while her _friends_ called her son a liar. It was hard to ignore that fact. And she could not longer deny that Ayla was helpful where medicine was concerned; the young woman's instructions and teas had kept her young, pregnant daughter from miscarrying and perhaps dying.

"I am so sorry about my mother, Ayla," said Seriana when it was time to go. The young woman shook her head. "She can be difficult sometimes."

"That is all right, Seriana. Your mother just loves you. I wish that I had a mother."

Seriana laughed. "You would not like to have one like mine. She is always fussing."

"That is only because she cares," Dimia said. "And because you will be leaving her after the summer meeting."

Seriana looked up at her mate; they had had a private ceremony just as Ayla had suggested. She had been sad about having to miss the large, public celebration, but it had been more special the way it had been done. And besides, the actual mating didn't matter...only the man did. She smiled at him.

"You are right, of course, Dima," she said with a nod, then looked back at Ayla. "I will miss her, but I will also be relieved to be away from her control."

Ayla nodded. "That is understandable. You are going to Birch Camp after the meeting?"

"Oh yes, didn't you know?"

"No. Is it far?"

"Farther than Beech Camp, yes, but it won't be so bad."

Ayla frowned. "Does Birch Camp have a good healer? Just in case the baby decides to come early."

Both Seriana and Dimia nodded. "Yes Ayla," the man said. "Tegaria's mate is our healer and she is very skilled. She has even been checking in on Seriana while you've been away."

Ayla smiled. "And you are no longer experiencing any bleeding or pain?"

Seriana shook her head. "None at all. I feel almost normal."

"Almost?" Ayla questioned.

With a smile Seriana nodded. "Just..._full_ is the only way I can describe it."

Ayla frowned, but nodded. There was nothing else she could do. "All right then, but you will keep drinking my tea?"

"Definitely. I wouldn't dream of _not_ drinking it. It has saved me. I am sure of that."

**~oOo~**

Ayla smiled as she watched her friends leave. She had to admit that Seriana looked better than she had the last time she had seen her. She had more color and moved as though there was no pain, and Ayla was glad for it.

When they were gone she turned back to observe those she was born to. Tagnolia had fallen deep into a discussion with his two brothers; his older brother Tegaria shaking his head at the two younger siblings. The three sisters, Tarana, Tiflona and Temina, however had cornered an unexpecting group of women for a discussion of their own. Ayla didn't miss the fact that Zarina and Wäglodia had, once again, hooked up while their mates were busy with other matters.

Ayla looked then for her mate. Grov was standing with Jondaria and they were talking, she had no doubt in her mind, about hunting. A grin flashed across his face when his eyes met hers, a slight signal between them the only sign that she had been right. They did indeed talk of hunting, Ayla thought as she smiled, her gaze going to others.

Davaria seemed to be doing his best to avoid the young women who had suddenly developed an interest in him; not all of them were from Oak Tent. The dark-eyed Janara was working her guiles once again, much to the annoyance of her mother's mate, but Davaria was too nervous about what people would think to participate in any pleasurable activities.

Ayla then searched for the woman around her age, the women everyone called age-mates. Laurana had disappeared and Jendoza was saying goodnight, though their mates were still happily drinking wine and talking. Danie too had gone, as had Danta. Ayla was the last young Oak Tent adult woman present at the gathering. She headed for her mate. She had to wait for an opening.

"I am tired. I think I will go to bed," she finally signed once it became clear that she may never be able to get a word in. Grov gave a short, clipped nod, but did not answer verbally. Smiling, then nodding at Jondaria, Ayla started away.

"Ayla!" a voiced called out as she neared the tent. She turned around to see Davaria rushing toward her, a frantic look on his face.

"Yes Davaria?"

"Are you leaving?"

She nodded. "It is late. I have had too much to drink, and I am tired." She swayed slightly. With a frown, the new Oak man righted her.

"Could you stand just a few more minutes?" he asked, his eyes pleading with her.

Ayla was about to question why, but noticed Janara sitting by the fire, drink in hand, clearly waiting for his return. "_That one_ is persistent, but I think she's learned her lesson."

"_Lesson_?" He had no knowledge of the trouble she had caused on the hunt.

Ayla shook her head, dismissing his question. "Just tell her you aren't interested, Davaria."

He frowned. "But, I..." His words trailed off.

She grinned. "But you _are_ interested, aren't you?"

He blushed, then nodded. He hadn't noticed her in the past because his camp rarely socialized with camps outside their normal circle, but she'd made herself quite visible on this night. "But...well...the man of her hearth is..._hovering_. He does not like me, I think."

Ayla laughed slightly. "I do not think Jeeteria likes anyone."

Davaria looked deflated. "What should I do?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Did you forget that I am newer around here than you are?"

"I suppose I did."

"I'm a Clan woman, Davaria. I am the wrong person to ask," Ayla said with a shake of her head.

Davaria frowned.

Ayla sighed. "Well, what would you do at Sumac Camp?"

The man grimaced. "She would not be sitting with me at all if I still lived there, so I would do nothing."

"Hummm...I don't see how I can help you, Davaria. What do you want me to do?"

He quickly grabbed her hand. "Come, have a drink with us, don't leave me alone with her. I'm too nervous." He blushed again at the admission. "I'm not ready for this."

Ayla sighed again, but, tired as she was, she couldn't tell him no. "All right. One drink."

He grinned.

**~oOo~**

Janara tried to watch Davaria as he talked to Ayla, without making it _look_ as if she was watching the man, and the woman he was talking to. She had wondered at his abrupt departure, and almost thought she had been abandoned by another man for the tall, beautiful, blonde woman. But when he started back, she smiled to herself...until she realized the woman accompanied him, and that Davaria was holding her hand. Biting her lip to hide her disappointment, she gave them her best smile as the two sat down.

"Hallo Janara," Ayla said.

"Ayla," was all Janara could manage, her eyes trained on their entwined hands.

"Ayla was just leaving," Davaria said, not noticing the woman's jealous look. "But I thought she'd like to have a drink with us." He squeezed Ayla's hand and smiled.

Janara nodded, then turned and reached for the skin of wine that was leaning nearby. They'd polished off quite a bit, but there was still plenty.

Ayla took her hand out of Davaria's to hold out her cup, but also because the other woman's posture was one of jealousy and hurt, which Davaria seemed unable to see. "Thank you, but just a little. I have already had too much."

Janara smiled and nodded, then her smile widened when Ayla's mate and the other young men came over and sat down.

"I thought you were going to bed," Grov said.

"I was, but Davaria asked me to have a drink with him." She shrugged. "So here I am," she said as she sipped her wine.

"Would you like some more, Grov?" Janara asked wearily. She was trying to be polite without being overbearing.

He looked at her and shook his head. "No, I've had more than enough." His tone was also polite, but she realized he no longer seemed to hold any animosity toward her. "I just wanted to collect my mate and take her to our furs." He now only had eyes for Ayla.

Ayla smiled, then handed her cup to Davaria and stood up. "Good night all."

Davaria frowned for a moment, but tried to relax. With several others still sitting there, he would not be alone with Janara; he managed to relax.

"Good night," he called out as he watched the couple leave.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Waking up entwined in her mate's arms, Ayla smiled and snuggled closer. As she lay there she thought about the horses. She wanted to take them for a run today, but knew that she would have company; nearly everyone had asked for a ride, even people from other camps who had not spoken to her before - ones who had once seemed reluctant to offer friendship, now seemed open to the possibility.

"You are not thinking of getting up yet, are you?" Grov asked.

Ayla glanced up at him. He hadn't opened his eyes, but he had a knowing smile. "I was considering it. I want to take the horses out."

Grov opened his eyes then and sighed. "You will have many offers of help today, I think."

Ayla grinned. "I have already had many such offers and I have not even gotten out of the furs yet."

"Yes, I noticed how many took the time to speak with you last night. Will you give them all a ride?"

She shrugged. "That will be up to Whinney and Stomp and Nicuria. I cannot promise rides unless they allow it."

Grov smiled. "No, I don't suppose that you can." He sighed again. "So, you _are_ getting up?"

She nodded. "Yes." She leaned then and kissed him, then rolled out of the bed. "I will bring you some tea."

Grov squeezed her hand and considered pulling her back into the bed with him, but knew that she wanted to get up and start moving. Instead he stretched out and, clasping his hands behind his head, gave her a nod. She turned then and left; she had waited for his approval, though it had not been necessary. He smiled as he watched her go, then he closed his eyes again.

When next he opened them, a steaming cup of tea sat beside him.

**~oOo~**

Ayla had looked down on him for a few moments. Clearly he slept. Not wanting to wake him, she'd left the cup for him to find. She could only hope he woke in time to drink it hot. Then she left to check on the horses. She found that they were not so lonely.

"Do you _really_ think Ayla would let me have a ride?" Ayla heard as she came around Oak Tent. She stopped immediately when she saw Janika standing with both hands clutching excitedly at the front of Davaria's shirt.

Davaria blushed and nodded dumbly. "I-I think s-so," he stammered. Janika jumped up and down, squealed, then threw her arms around the man and kissed him. For a moment it was clear that he was shocked motionless, then he brought his arms up and, wrapping them around her, held her against him, kissing her back with equal passion.

Ayla frowned, now wishing she had just stayed in bed with her mate. Slowly, she began to back away. But her movement seemed to come at the same time the couple broke off their kiss; they noticed her immediately.

"Ayla!" they said in unison, dropping their grasp on one another and taking a few steps back.

"I was just visiting the horses," Davaria said at the same time that Janika said, "I brought apples." The woman glanced around them for the basket she had set down. Then realizing Nicuria had his nose in it, she gasped.

Ayla grinned. "He is like that. He takes what is not his."

Davaria's eyes widened, but then he realized her words were directed at the young horse and were not about him. For a moment he thought she meant to imply that he was stealing kisses from Janika. He relaxed slightly as the watched the two women. Ayla had come forward and was pushing Nicuria's nose out of the basket and Janika reached to pick it up.

"Bad Nic!" Janika scolded playfully, wagging her free finger in the horse's face. But Nicuria only thought she wanted to play and tried to nibble the offending digit. She gasped when his lips closed over her finger, thinking he intended to bite it off. But then she giggled, he was only giving her kisses.

"What a sweetie he is. Can I ride him, Ayla? _Please_?" she begged.

Ayla smiled and shrugged. "I suppose so." She glanced at Davaria. He was standing there silently, a look of love shining in his eyes. "Maybe Davaria can give you a ride. I was just going to take Whinney out."

"Oh could you, Davaria?" Janika asked.

Davaria glanced at Ayla, then back at the dark-haired woman who stood there waiting for an answer. "Sure I could," he finally told her. Her grin was almost more than he could bear.

**~oOo~**

"That was fantastic!" Tagnolia said excitedly once his feet were firmly planted on the ground again. He'd just had the ride of his life, Ayla having taken him running across Maple Camp's valley on the horse she called Whinney. "Thank you, Ayla!"

Ayla smiled. "Do not thank _me_."

Tagnolia turned then to scratch the mare's neck and received a nicker of pleasure. "This beast is wonderful."

"All right, who will be next," Grov asked. To give Whinney a rest, he would take the next rider on Stomp.

Several hands rose into the air. So many, in fact, that he wondered how they'd be able to give all those there a ride. Frowning, he couldn't decide who to choose. Then the decision was taken from him.

"Here, catch," Tagnolia shouted as he tossed something up into the air into the crowd. It was caught by Vegodia.

"There!" Tagnolia said. "You have your next rider, and I'm off to the Counsel meeting."

Vegodia grinned and came forward as the crowd groaned with disappointment. They _all_ wanted to be next. But all had to wait patiently while Vegodia went out, then grapple for the chance to be the next one.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

On Nicuria, Davaria and Janika rode south, heading toward Big River. He hadn't planned on going so far, all the way to the large river he had twice crossed while journeying, but when the woman had asked to go there, saying she didn't remember ever seeing it before, he'd readily agreed.

As they rode, he could not think of anything except for the young woman jostling in front of him, her backside firmly pressed against his front. And again, he felt himself hardening; it made him wonder if just any woman would do, or if he really liked this one. After all, he'd had the same reaction to Ayla when she sat in front of him. But as he glanced down at Janika over her shoulder and saw that her nearly black hair was pushed to the side so that her jaw and slender neck was visible, he felt an overwhelming urge to kiss her. It was an urge he dared not give in to, but it was strong. It was true that he'd already kissed her once that day, but only after she'd initiated it and he would not make the first move. What if she did not welcome his advance? he wondered, feeling his face heat with embarrassment just thinking about it. No, he could not kiss her.

But even as he told himself no, his body reacted to hers. Frowning, he tried to think about something else..._anything else_, but he didn't seem capable. His body was controlling his mind, just as it had when Ayla sat in front of him. But this felt different from what he'd felt for Ayla, he decided.

Then, feeling Janika's hair softly brushing against his bare arm, causing his loins to ache, he knew that, soon, they'd have to stop; he couldn't take much more of this or he'd just _have to_ kiss her.

And then, the river coming into view ahead of them, he pushed Nicuria into a run. Speeding up to the water's edge, Davaria stopped the horse just in time, then slid to the ground.

"We should give Nicuria a rest," he said, extending his hands to help the young woman down.

Breathless, Janika smiled and let him help her off the horse. "That was wonderful!" she exclaimed as she grasped onto his shoulders.

His hands still about her waist, he smiled down at her, then nervously let them drop to his sides.

Reaching out, she touched his hand, then slipped hers into it. "It's beautiful here," she said, her eyes swinging to the river.

Davaria nodded his agreement and squeezed her hand.

"I don't remember the last time the Sungaea summered on the other side, do you?" she asked, looking at him again.

Davaria shrugged. "Sumac Camp doesn't always go to summer meetings. I don't remember either." He didn't mention that, for the most part, he'd nearly always been intoxicated while summering anywhere and so had trouble remembering much of anything. _That_ was definitely better left unsaid, he thought as he loosened his grip on her hand, giving her every opportunity to let go and move away from him. When she didn't, he said, "Would you like to sit down?"

Janika grinned and nodded, then let him pull her over to a spot just slightly raised so they could better look at the river.

"We crossed just there," he informed her when they'd made themselves comfortable. "At least, that's where we went across when we left."

She frowned in confusion making further explanation necessary.

"On the way back, with the horses, we weren't able to make it to Maple Camp's dock."

She nodded. She's heard the story of their crossing. "Was it scary?"

He laughed. "It was _terrifying_! I thought we'd lost Ayla. Thank the Mother she's such a strong woman."

Janika frowned. "You like her...don't you?" she asked guardedly.

Davaria shrugged. "Well, of course! What's not to like?"

Janika continued to frown. Staring down at her hands, she wished she could be more like the beautiful blond woman whom almost everyone seemed to like so much. Instead, _she_ seemed only to be a nuisance.

"Of course," Davaria went on, glancing at her sideways, "I like _you_ a lot too." He'd noticed her despondent look and realized the problem; she liked _him_. He was thrilled.

Janika looked up sharply. "You _do_?" she asked, a look of surprise brightening her dark eyes.

He nodded.

She grinned. "But I thought it was just me. When you ran off to get Ayla last night..." She shook her head. "I thought you were telling me you weren't interested." No one _ever_ seemed interested in her; it seemed she was _always_ having to entice them.

He shook his head. "No, I was just nervous," he admitted, then sighed. "I have not ever _really_ had a woman." He cringed at the admission. "I mean...I've _been with_ women," he tried to explain. "But I've never had a woman of my own." He frowned. Everything he said sounded awful. "I mean..."

She reached out and put a finger to his lips. "You do not have to explain, Davaria." She shook her head. "It is not like I would know the difference." She blushed then. She'd always made people think she was experienced, but if truth be told, she only had the night of her first rites to brag about. And that wasn't much. No, all the times she'd lured men into the furs with hot kisses, she'd always kicked them out before the act could be completed, causing them to never speak to her again.

But not this time, she told herself. With Davaria, it would be different.

Davaria reached up then and took her hand, the pad of his thumb rubbing her palm. "May I kiss you, Janika?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Nervously, she nodded, then melted into his arms as he brought his lips to hers.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"I think the horses need a rest," Ayla said after a glance up at the sun. Its position was high in the sky and glaring down upon them.

There were groans of disappointment all around, but the people immediately started moving off.

"That was fantastic, Ayla," Jondaria said. He'd had the last ride on Whinney and was thoroughly excited.

Ayla smiled as she reached up to rub her horse. "Do not thank _me_," she said, "It is Whinney who deserves the gratitude."

"Of course," the man said. Then, reaching out and running a hand down Whinney's whithers, Jondaria exuberantly said, "Thank you, Whinney!"

Ayla grinned, her eyes connecting with the man's for a brief moment before Grov appeared at her side. And then Zarina was there as well.

"Do you think we have time to have an afternoon meal?" the headman's mate asked.

Ayla's eyes grew wide. "That is not up to me, Zarina. If you say it is time to eat, then we eat."

Zarina grinned. "You are much too easy, Ayla. But, all right!" Then to the people still standing around she said, "Who wants to eat?"

"I do," the group chorused in unison.

"Fine then...let's eat! There is fresh bison stew waiting back at our cooking fire."

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

Hovering over the woman, sweat trickling down his brow, Davaria looked at the woman lying below him. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing heavily, but the look on her face was one of pure pleasure.

"That was..._amazing_," she whispered, finally opening her eyes and looking up into his.

He grinned. He thought it had been pretty amazing too.

"Not that _I_ would really know, but..._amazing_," she repeated, her dark eyes rolling back into her head, then sparkling up at him.

Davaria laughed. "Where have you been all my life, Janika?" he asked. "You fit me perfectly." He paused and, reaching for something, produced a few wild flowers for her. "Mate me."

She blinked at the flora offered to her, then frowned. "_Really_?"

He nodded. "I have not ever felt like this before," he said, plucking one and pushing it into her hair behind her ear.

"But...you don't really know me, Davaria," she said, struggling to pull herself out from under him. Once sitting beside him, she reached for her tunic and said, "I...I'm a pain, ask anyone...ask _Jdeteria_." On her feet, she went on. "The man of my hearth will tell you that I'm not worth the fuss." She gestured at the flowers he was once again holding out to her.

"To me you are, and if he thinks you are not, then he is not worthy of _you_."

Janika continued to frown. She did not understand his devotion when he'd only just met her. She could only attribute it to his lowly beginnings. He was a good man, but he didn't know what he was talking about. "Davaria...you've just been adopted by Oak Camp...there will be many who see your worth...after a time," she added. "You don't want to be strapped with someone like _me_. She wanted to give him all chances to retract his offer, though she'd already fallen for him.

"Someone like you?" He stood up now. "I don't know what you mean by that. What is wrong with you? You're smart and beautiful, and I like you."

She frowned. "And I like _you_, Davaria, but..."

"But what, Janika? If we both like one another, what's the problem?

She bit her lip. Was it so easy? she wondered.

"Look, do you want to mate me or not? Because, if you do not...I understand. It makes me sad but, if that's what you want...or don't want, then I can live with that. But if you're just saying all this to make me _think_ I don't really want you, then...well...you're making a mistake, because I think I love you."

Still frowning, she said, "You _think_?"

Davaria shook his head. "Bad choice of words...I _know_ I do. I have not ever felt like this before, Janika. The thought of not having you beside me actually hurts. I _know_ I love you. But what matters now is how _you_ feel."

Janika grinned. "I feel the same way, Davaria," she said, throwing her arms about his neck and squeezing him. "I love you too. Of course I'll be your mate."

**~oOo~**

On Nicuria's back once again and riding toward the summer encampment, the young couple felt giddy about their decision, and nervous about confronting their camps about it. Davaria worried that his status with Oak Camp was too new to make an offer for a woman. Would Oak Camp even allow such a thing? he wondered. But he wanted Janika badly; she was all that he'd ever wanted and never thought he could have, at least not when he was living with Sumac Camp. But now that he had a decent home to offer, though he hadn't even seen it yet, things were different. He decided he'd do almost anything to procure what he wanted.

And Janika, having always been treated like a baby by the mate of her mother, was apprehensive about what the man would say and do now that she had decided something on her own. Would Jeeteria let her mate the man she had chosen? she wondered.

**~oOo~**

"There you are!" burst Travie as they couple rode up, Davaria's arms wrapped tightly around the woman. The older woman reached up to help Janika off the horse, then glared at Davaria. "You've been gone since this morning and your sister is frantic. And Jeeteria," she said, "I don't even want to go into _that_." But then she did anyway. "He's been working to put together a search party, Janika. He's been worried sick!"

Janika frowned. "I doubt that. He does not care what happens to me," she said angrily, though Davaria did see her fighting to hold back tears.

For a moment Travie looked confused. Being new to the Sungaea herself, she didn't know Janika from any other Sungaean woman at the meeting, but she did know this young one had caused at least _some_ trouble during the meeting. But not knowing the full story, she turned on Davaria, whom she didn't know well either, but whom was now part of Oak Camp, and through his adoption, was now a relative of hers. "Davaria, it might prudent to let someone know where you're going the next time you decide to wander away for half the day."

Davaria blushed, knowing the older woman was right. "Yes, Travie, you are right. I'm sorry. We didn't mean to stay away so long. It just happened. I promise that next time I'll tell someone where I'm going."

Seemingly placated, Travie nodded. "Well, let's get you two something to eat," she said as she hustled them around to the tentfire.

**~oOo~**

"Oh Davaria!" Danta screamed when she saw her brother approaching. Rising and running to him, she launched herself into his arms and hugged him tight. She didn't even take notice of Janika standing beside him. "I was so worried."

Davaria chuckled. "I'm sorry to have worried you so, Danta. We were just out for a ride," he said as he stepped back and took hold of Janika's hand. He stared then at the group surrounding them, a few brows raised questioningly, and swallowed hard. "We..._I_ really didn't mean to cause such a fuss," he said with a frown, dropping Janika's hand quickly when he saw her brother standing among those watching. He glanced around for the man of her hearth and was thankful he didn't see him.

"The day just sort of...sped by faster than..." His voice trailed off, his eyes not looking at anyone directly, especially not Jondaria. He'd have liked to grab Janika's hand and run right back to the horse to ride away again. One glance at the young woman told him she'd gladly go along with him; she'd crowded in close to him as if she was ready to bolt. But he knew that they couldn't, that they had to face their camps and, with any luck, gain permission to be together.

His eyes going through the crowd again, he searched for the headman or headwoman. He decided to make his intentions known immediately, before any more time passed. Not seeing either of them, he frowned.

"Is Tagnolia or Tiflona in camp?" he asked as they were led to the tentfire and the meal waiting for them.

"I'm afraid not," Wäglodia said as he handed out two bowls of bison stew. "They've been over with the Counsels since long before the afternoon meal. I don't expect them to return until after sunset."

Davaria frowned, then lifted a bite of stew to his mouth. He'd have to wait. He didn't like it, but there was nothing he could do about it.

**~oOo~**

Jondaria, upon seeing his sister's fingers twined with Oak Camp's newest member, cringed; the man of their hearth was not going to be happy and he didn't know what to do about it. He supposed he'd have to get her back to their tent as soon as possible and have a chat with her before Jeeteria could get a hold of her. He'd have preferred to whisk her away before she'd been seated and food put in her hands, but that would have been nearly impossible, with Travie there, mothering the way only an older woman could, and _rude_. He didn't want to appear rude, he thought as he watched his sister.

Janika avoided his gaze, though he tried to draw her dark eyes to his several times by speaking to the group. He did manage to get Davaria to look up at him, which only increased his worry; Davaria's look told him there definitely was need for concern.

Sighing, he waited until the two had finished their meal.

**~oOo~**

As they finished their meal, and people had moved off somewhat, Davaria took up Janika's hand and looked determinedly at her brother. Jondaria just stood there staring at them.

"I will need to speak to Tagnolia and Tiflona first of course, but then I intend to go to Jeeteria. I would like to mate your sister."

Jondaria frowned. "But she is only fifteen."

When Janika looked ready to argue whether she was old enough to mate or not, Davaria squeezed her hand and gave her a look that asked that he be allowed to do this, to make his intentions known without interruption.

Turning, she leaned her forehead against upper arm, and said nothing.

Jondaria's brows raised at his sister's silence and shrugged. "But I suppose it will not hurt for you to ask," he said. His words brought his sister's eyes to his; he could not help smiling down at her. "But do not think this will be easy," he said, looking at Davaria again. "My sister has always needed a firm hand to guide her." He shook his head and ignored his sister's glare. "Jeeteria will not be easily persuaded. He is convinced that no man will ever be able to handle this one." He paused, then to Janika he said, "We should get back."

Davaria reached to hug Janika one last time, then planted a kiss on her forehead. "I will see you as soon as I can."

She nodded. "I can wait," she said, then walked away with her brother.

**~oOo~**

"Hurry! He's coming!" Danie said frantically as she pushed Danta through the entrance walkway of Oak Tent to the sleeping place she shared with Ivanolia. No one had missed Davaria and Janika's handholding, but the two of women were the only ones making a point to find out what was going on - through spying.

By the time Davaria entered the tent, the two women were sitting down, in what they hoped was a casual manner, on the bed.

"Have a nice ride?" Ivanolia asked Danta's brother as he came in and plopped down on his sleeping platform.

Danta gasped and Danie flashed her mate a look of contempt, but Davaria blushed and managed a nod. The rest of those nearby groaned.

"_What_?" Ivanolia said with a shrug. "I only asked what everyone else was thinking."

Danie shook her head. "Yes, but the rest of us have a little more class than that," she said, standing and walking out of the area, a look of disgust on her pretty face.

"Oh, come on, Danie," Ivanolia said, getting up and following his mate out.

Everyone watched them go, then most tried to busy themselves. Danta took the chance to move herself to her own bed, where she sat and looked at her brother with concern.

"You did not have to take me seriously when I teased you about being with a woman, Ari."

Davaria frowned. "I did not...for the most part, Ata. But something happened. When I look at Janika, my heart feels good...at peace. I want to spend the rest of my days with her. Does that make sense?"

It was Danta's turn to frown. She'd never truly felt _at peace_ before. Their adoption was as close as she could come. But still, even that was marred by the fact that the camp of their birth had fought so hard to prevent them from being adopted. But she tried to understand, for Davaria's sake.

"You are in love with her then?" she asked with a frown.

He nodded.

"So _soon_?"

He nodded again.

"This is not like with Ayla then?" she asked, thinking of his lust for the tall blond woman who'd made possible their adoption.

Davaria shook his head. "I told you before, Ata, that I didn't love Ayla. That was just..." He didn't finish. "I do _love_ Ayla, but I feel completely different about Janika."

"I see," Danta said, though she wasn't sure that she did. She didn't understand how he could know so quickly. But if he said he loved the young woman, then she would take his word for it. "I suppose then, that you plan to speak to Tagnolia and Tiflona as soon as they return?"

He nodded vehemently. "Yes."

"And then you will go speak to Janika's camp?"

He nodded again. "Yes." Then he frowned. "Jondaria thinks it will be difficult, that Jeeteria will not agree."

Danta frowned. "She _is_ young."

"Laurana is just as young."

"But Laurana's family has known Brulenzia's family _forever_. It is not the same."

"I know. I just want this to work."

Danta tried to smile. "I want it to work too, Ari," she said as she fought to keep her tears hidden.

Davaria smiled, then reached for his sister to give her a hug. "I knew I could count on you, Ata."

"Of course you can, Ari."

**~oOo~**

Jeeteria stared at his mate's daughter, a look of shock in his eyes. Then recovering, he said, "Absolutely not! That man is a waste."

"But Jeeteria," Janika whined, "I love him."

"_Love him_!" he nearly spat. "Not forty days ago you thought yourself in love with that...that _flathead_ man!"

Janika blushed. It was true that she'd thought so, but this was different.

"Not so loud, Jeeteria," his mate put in.

"You keep out of this!" he snapped. "It is your fault that your daughter is so spoiled, you give her everything she ever asks for.

"I do not!"

Jeeteria glared at his mate, but looked back at Janika. "How do you know you will not fall in love every moon cycle for the next few cycles of seasons?"

"How does anyone know such a thing, Jeeteria?" Janika asked, her eyes filling with tears. "All I know is that I'm in love with Davaria _now_."

"You are only fifteen. You do not know what you want," he said with a shake of his head. "I absolutely forbid it!"

Janika blinked, her tears spilling down her cheeks, then she turned and fled.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Davaria had just come out of Oak Tent, excited by the fact that his new headman and headwoman had given him their blessing about making an offer for Janika. Neither seemed overly concerned about her youth or the fact that she was a troublemaker, and for that he was thankful. He had just lowered himself to a bench by the fire when a shadow fell over him.

"Where is she?" a voice demanded as he took a bite of his morning meal.

Glancing up, he saw Jeeteria glaring down at him. "What? Who?"

"You know who I'm talking about," the man snapped. "Janika!"

Davaria frowned. "How should I know where she is?" he asked. "She left here in the evening last night; I haven't seen her since." Standing, and suddenly nervous, Davaria looked to Jondaria, who stood behind the man of his hearth. "What's going on? Where's Janika?"

Jondaria shrugged. "She ran off last night after telling...us that she wanted to mate."

Davaria frowned. "But I asked her to wait."

Jondaria shrugged again. "That's my sister for you," he said. "She's not much on waiting."

"Do you mean to tell me that you _really_ don't know where she is?" Jeeteria cut in, a worried frown suddenly creasing his brow.

Davaria shook his head. "I told you, she left here last night...with Jondaria. And I haven't seen her since."

"Damn that girl!" Jeeteria cursed through gritted teeth. "She's always trying to get attention."

"She only wants to be taken seriously," said Jondaria, defending his sister.

"_Seriously_?" Jeeteria asked. "How can anyone take her seriously when she runs off in a huff every time she doesn't get her way? She's more child than woman."

"Well, maybe if you'd treat her more like a woman, then she'd act like one," Jondaria argued. "She's no longer a girl."

"Well, she's no woman!" Jeeteria came back.

Davaria frowned. "Ahhh, do you think we could discuss this later? I'd rather find Janika and discuss her womanhood later."

Jeeteria and Jondaria stopped and looked at him. Then both of them nodded.

**~oOo~**

Curled up on some moss under a tree, Janika slept. Angry and hurt, she'd run off the evening before and, finding a niche at the base of the tree, she'd tucked herself inside and cried herself to sleep. She'd been furious with Jeeteria. He wouldn't even listen to her. But part of her was upset with herself, for all the times she'd demanded something that was of no importance, because now the man of her hearth refused to take her seriously. She knew she'd done it to herself and that was the hardest part.

Coming awake as a glint of the summer sun's warm morning rays crept into the hidden hole she'd found for herself, she yawned and crawled out. Frowning, she looked around. She hadn't meant to stay away all night and knew she'd caused even more trouble for herself; Jeeteria was going to be furious with her when he discovered her missing. He was already angry with her for being gone the day before and now _this_.

Sighing, she stood up, brushed the dirt off her backside, then started back to camp.

**~oOo~**

"Well, look what we have here."

Janika started at the voice. She'd been walking pointedly toward the summer meeting, but her mind had been mountains away. She gasped when she realized who she was looking at. Zadneetsia!

"What do you want?" she asked nervously. This was the last man on Earth she'd expected to see - and the last she _wanted_ to see.

"Oh, I don't know," the man said. "I was just out..._hunting_, and happened to see you. I thought maybe you'd like some company."

Janika frowned. _Hunting_? He carried no hunting weapons. "Thank you," she said with as much politeness as she could muster. "But I was just on my way back to camp." When she moved to start walking again, he stepped in front of her.

"Whoa, not so fast," he said, his hand snaking out to grasp her arm. "I was hoping you'd sit with me for awhile."

Frowning down at the hand that held her, she felt panic setting in. His grip was not rough, but she knew she wouldn't be able to free herself. "I-I would rather not. I am...expected back at Spruce Tent. Jeeteria will be angry if I don't return quickly."

"And Davaria, does he _expect you back_ too?" Zadneetsia snarled, his fingers flexing so that his grip became more firm, almost painful.

Janika frowned, wondering how this man knew anything about Davaria waiting for her. "He...he might b-be," she stammered. "I don't know."

"I bet he is. I'd be willing to wager he's just dying to get between those skinny little legs again, isn't he Janika?" he asked, shaking her roughly.

Her eyes widened in shock. Had Zadneetsia seen them together? she wondered. She knew that he had, because how else would he have known about their time together the day before.

"How about giving me some of that too?" he asked when she just stared at him with a dumbfounded expression.

She shook her head. "No."

It was then that she began trying to get herself out of his clutches, her puny fists only bringing a laugh from the man as she pummeled his chest repeatedly. Then, realizing she was doing nothing but quickly bringing herself to exhaustion, she reached out and raked her fingernails across his face, leaving four bloody welts. Her action caused him to ball his hand and strike her. Pain exploded in her head, then she lost consciousness.

**~oOo~**

Groaning, Janika tried to move, but was prevented by something. Opening her eyes, she tried to focus, but it was difficult; her head was pounding. And then she remembered. Zadneetsia!

"No," she whined. He was on top of her and he'd removed her leggings; she was naked from the waist down.

"Oh yes," the man growled. "You should not fight me, Janika. I can make this good for you too, if only you don't fight me."

"NO!" she screamed, renewing the struggle when she felt his manhood pushing at her opening. "NO!"

Twisting around in the dirt, she only managed to scrape up her backside as she fought to keep him from taking her. But she was no match for him. Laughing caustically, Zadneetsia reached out and grabbed her by the hair, then secured her hands above her head as he pushed his swollen member into her dry well. She screamed out, tears streaming down her face as he slammed into her again.

"_Nooo_," she moaned, her insides aflame.

"Yes," he groaned. Now that he'd gained access to her body, he released both her hands and hair and now held her waist so that he could give himself leverage to push into her again and again. In his mind, her soft moans and cries were her way of showing her pleasure. He was so into what he was doing that he never saw the hand coming up to hit him, or the rock she clutched as she smashed it into the side of his face.

Tearfully, Janika rolled away from the stunned man and searched for her leggings. Pulling them on she cast a glance at the man lying in the dirt, then looked around to get her bearings. Quickly deciding which way to go, she started out. Zadneetsia was already rousing and she wanted to get as far from him as possible. She hadn't gotten very far when she heard the man scream out her name. The sound made her veer; she hoped her changed course would throw him.

**~oOo~**

"You will regret running away from me, Janika," he bellowed. He'd followed her tracks into some trees and knew she was hiding nearby. "But if you come out and let me finish, I promise not to hurt you." _Too much_, he added silently.

Zadneetsia hid behind a tree and waited for the young woman to make the mistake of running. And it turned out to be a smart move; after several moments she bolted. It took him just a few strides to catch her by the hair and swing her around to face him.

"You made a big mistake, little girl," he scolded, then looked up as the sound of thunder rolled and a strange dust cloud approached. Frowning, Zadneetsia let go of the woman to fend off the object that flew at him, seemingly out of the dusty whirlwind. Realizing too late that it was Davaria, he took the man's weight head on, being pushed off his feet and tumbling in the dirt. But he recovered quickly; he outweighed the younger man by quite a lot. Striking Davaria a heavy blow to the face, he sent him flying.

Zadneetsia watched as Janika scramble over to the fallen man, then he laughed. "So you think you've come to her rescue, Davaria. But guess what? You are too late! I have already taken your woman."

Davaria glanced up at Janika's horrorstricken face and knew that it was so, but it only made him want to renew his fight. Only her soft hands prevented him from moving.

Zadneetsia grinned, a look of triumph on his face as he watched their defeated looks. "I do not even have to beat you further, do I Davaria? I have already taken what you treasure most."

"It does not matter, Zadneetsia. Once they find out what you've done, you're done for," Davaria said with a scowl.

Zadneetsia frowned. "Not if you two are never heard from again," he said, advancing on them slowly. "No one will ever know if you two just disappear...forever."

But as he reached out to pull Janika off the man she loved, he heard a snorting noise behind him and turned around. Wide-eyed, he stared up at the four-legged creature who'd reared to stand on its hind legs. Stumbling backward, Zadneetsia tripped over some rocks and, the wind being knocked from him, he lay motionless for several moments. And then, as if in slow motion, as he tried to get away, the horse descended upon him, his hooves crashing down and then kicking him so hard that he finally passed out.

**~oOo~**

For a moment, the couple just lay there staring. Nicuria had come to their rescue, crushing their attacker viciously, then poking a nose at them, seemingly to see if they were all right. Still on the ground, Janika reached up a tentative hand to pet the muzzle nosing at her. Still shaken, the two moved to stand. And then they noticed others standing there. Jeeteria sat behind Ayla on Whinney and her mother rode with Grov.

"Mother!" she exclaimed, running quickly to the woman. The woman's arms encompassed her readily, but she was most surprised when she felt another set of arms wrap around them; Jeeteria had put his around both of them.

"Thank the Mother you're all right, Janika," he said, tears of love shining in his eyes. "We were so worried."

"We need to get Zadneetsia back to the meeting," Ayla said. They all turned to see her kneeling in front of the man. "He's lost a lot of blood." She'd removed what was left of his shredded leggings and tried to use them to staunch the bleeding. But there was blood everywhere.

"Leave him here to rot!" Jeeteria spat.

Ayla frowned and looked up at the man. "If we do that, then we are as bad as he is."

"You're right, Ayla," Janika's mother said, coming forward to help the younger woman.

"I'll make a litter," Grov said. "We'll get him back."

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

It was long after noon by the time the healers had finished working on Zadneetsia. Ayla had been the first to volunteer to help, and the last to leave the tent when it was over. She was utterly exhausted.

"Well?" a woman demanded when she saw Ayla coming out of the tent. "Will my sister's son survive?"

Ayla sighed and nodded. "I think that he will, Iyena," she responded, wondering why the mother of the man was not present. "Zadneetsia may never again be able to participate in some activities," she said, thinking it appropriate that the man who enjoyed forcing woman might never again have that pleasure. "But he will most probably survive."

Iyena didn't seem to quite understand, but her brother did. "Are you telling me that...that he can't..." Ivarsia sputtered.

"Yes, I am!" Ayla said with a clipped nod. "Do not expect Zadneetsia to be volunteering for a young woman's first rites or participating in Mother's ceremonies, because that life is over for him!" Or so she hoped.

Ivarsia only stared at her, but now Iyena understood. "This...this is all _your_ fault!" she hollered. "If you had not brought those animals here, then this would not have happened."

"How can you even say that, Iyena?" Tiflona countered. "Zadneetsia has brought this upon himself, with his own actions. _He_ has caused this to happen, no one else."

Several were nodding agreement, but it was the summer meeting's host who spoke up. "And, unfortunately, this is not over," Breidara said with a sigh. "Further allegations have been made against your sister's son, Iyena, and I'm afraid we're going to have to meet on the matter.

"This is crazy!" Iyena bit out. "Zadneetsia lies in there, maimed and fighting for his life, and you want to discuss _allegations_. I have never been so insulted!"

"Well, I'm sorry you feel that way, but the matter is urgent. We _must_ put an end to what's been going on. However," she said with a glance at the dropping sun, "considering the late hour, the matter will have to hold until tomorrow." The headwoman looked around at those gathered; nearly the entire encampment had found a place to watch the goings on. "Disperse," she called out, waving her arms to tell everyone the show was over.

**~oOo~**

"My answer is still no, Davaria," Jeeteria said firmly. "I appreciate what you've done for us by saving her from Zadneetsia, but I cannot allow this. If the two of you still desire one another next summer, then I will consider it, but I think you both need some time to grown and mature."

Davaria frowned as he held a crying Janika in his arms. She'd crumpled against him as the man of her hearth made his pronouncement. A winter was a long time to wait, but if their feelings were true, and he thought they were, then by this time the following summer Janika would be his - forever. Now he just had to convince _her_ of that.

"A year is not so long, Janika," he whispered.

"It seems like forever," she sniffed. "I wanted to go home with you now."

Davaria frowned. He wanted that as well, to take her with him and have her beside him everyday, but he didn't actually know _where_ his new home was, or how he would fit in once he got there. Maybe this _was_ better, he thought. He could move in and get settled, then bring her back the following summer. It would be a long, hard, winter without her, but he could see the benefits to waiting.

"I know, Janika," he said, using his thumb to brush her tears away. "I would have liked to take you home with me too, but I don't even know where Oak Camp is, let alone have a decent hearth to offer you."

She frowned. She hadn't thought about that, and she didn't really care. All she wanted was to be with him. But she did understand, and for once in her life she realized that no amount of tears would get her her way. But the fact that her tears would not aid her cause had no effect on the amount that fell.

Nodding sadly, she buried her face in Davaria's chest and sobbed until there were no more tears left. And then, exhausted, she fell asleep in the man's arms.

**~oOo~**

"You believe that he did force her?" Jeeteria asked.

Davaria nodded. "He admitted it to me and she did not deny it."

Jeeteria ground his teeth. "We should have left him out there to bleed to death!"

Davaria nodded. "Perhaps. But that isn't the way of our people."

"No, I suppose it is not." Jeeteria sighed as he watched the pained look on Davaria's face. Despite the man's horrid beginnings, he did seem to be decent. And this ordeal was affecting him greatly. Thinking it might help to give the man some hope, Jeeteria made a decision. "Come our next summer meeting, Davaria, Janika is yours."

Davaria's brows raised. "Truly?"

Jeeteria nodded. "With the condition that I be allowed to visit the daughter of my hearth often."

Grinning, Davaria said, "It's a deal!"

**~oOo~**

The evening around Oak Tent's fire was subdued. The entire group seemed to be completely worn out, and most went off to their furs early. Only some of the younger ones stayed out later, but mostly everyone kept to him or herself. Finally, too awkward for those sitting around, everyone shuffled off, hoping to find peace in sleep.

**NEW CHAPTER**

The meeting was short. The councils demanded that Zadneetsia be turned over to them to face immediate confinement. And, of course, Sumac Tent argued. They believed that the man's injuries were more than enough punishment for his crimes. And when the councils disagreed with them, they refused to turn him over, saying that, if the council had that much control over the people, then they would no longer recognize the council as their governing body.

In short, Sumac Camp was choosing to separate themselves from the rest of the Sungaea. And, with them, went Ash Camp and Dogwood Camp. There was a brief argument between the three leaving camps and the leaders of Cedar Camp, but in the end, Cedar Camp remained; they no longer wanted to be associated with the other three.

Everyone watched with curiosity as the now banished people packed up their belongings and started away. Most hoped they'd never see any of them again, but many believed they hadn't seen the last of the poisonous retches.

And then, as the camps left, a wail came from Belana as she watched one of her sons make the choice to go with those leaving, instead of staying with the camp of his birth.

"Danushkia, _please_," the older woman begged, running to stand in front of him. "Don't do this. Don't go with them!"

"_Them_?" he snapped. "They are my friends." He pointed at those in front of him. "_They_, are my people."

Belana shook her head. "No, Cedar Camp is your camp, Danu. You mustn't abandon them."

"Like _you_ did?" he said, a look of disgust crossing his face as he pushed past his mother and began walking, "when you left with Miko, taking Kristana and Seriana, two valuable women, away from our camp."

Belana cringed. If Danu had noticed what she'd done, then others had as well, but she'd had to get her daughters out of there; Miko's mating was the perfect opportunity. But now she realized how it must look to her youngest son. Frowning, she ran after him.

"You _could have_ come with us, Danu," she whispered, running along beside him. "I wanted you to come. I _begged_ you to come. Don't you remember?"

"I did not _want_ to go with you, old woman!" he stopped and hollered in her face. "And do not call me Danu anymore. I am not a baby."

Belana nodded. "All right." She could understand that her son was now a man and did not want to be treated like a child. "But please think about this, Danushkia...Cedar Camp will need you more than ever now. They need hunters. They need _you_. Please, _please_ don't go, my son."

Danushkia glared down at his mother. "That's enough! Do not call me son, Belana," he said stiffly. "I no longer claim you as my mother."

And with that, he turned and walked away, leaving the woman who'd given him life staring after him. He did not look back when he heard her howling wail, but could imagine that she'd crumpled to the ground. Knowing that her four remaining children would go to her, he continued on, finished with them all and that part of his life.

**~oOo~**

Davara stood with both his sister and Janika, an arm around each, on the fringes of the summer meeting as they watched the camps trudge away. Both women shuddered as they disappeared from sight.

"Come now, Janika," he said. "Let's get you back to camp." He hadn't wanted her to come watch the departure of Sumac Camp. She was still bruised and in pain. But she'd insisted, saying that it would do her good to see them leave for good.

Janika tried to smile at him, but she winced instead. Her body hurt more today than it had the day before, and her bruises had darkened, making her _look_ worse as well. "I want to stay with you," she insisted, hanging on to him with all that she had.

Davaria's eyes went to Jeeteria, who nodded his consent.

"All right," he said, then scooped her up. "But only if you let me carry you back."

Meaning to protest, Janika stiffened, but that only caused her to groan and accept what he offered. When she fell asleep, he carried her inside Spruce Tent, then lay down beside her, holding her tight and wishing he'd been able to get to her before Zadneetsia had had the chance to hurt her.

**~oOo~**

"I will return tomorrow...if that's all right," Davaria said.

Jeeteria nodded. He'd been sitting with his headman, Sardovia, discussing their coming departure, but was glad the daughter of his mate was in good hands. "She will like that."

Slowly then, Davaria shuffled back to his own tentfire and joined the others.

"Oh, Davaria," Jendoza said. "How is Janika?"

He shrugged. "She is sleeping now, but she will recover, I think."

"Yes," Ayla said. "She will, but it will take time...and love."

Laurana frowned. "It's too bad Jeeteria won't let the two of you mate now, so she will have you to lean on."

Davaria shrugged. "I don't think he thinks we are ready. We can wait."

Danta curled her hand into her brother's and leaned her head on his shoulder. Things were changing so quickly. The future seemed so unknown. Soon they'd be in a new place, with new family - _everything_ would be different. She was frightened and excited at the same time.

"This meeting sure hasn't been like any other I can remember," Ivanolia said.

Everyone nodded. Then they noticed the older adults coming to join them, Tagnolia and Tiflona still standing when everyone else found seats.

"We have decided to leave tomorrow," Tiflona informed them.

"Many camps have," Tagnolia added. "We will head southeast with Elm, Pine, Cedar and Spruce."

Tiflona squared her shoulders and stood as straight as possible, but she looked sad. "We realize that this summer meeting has been rout with complications...we can only hope that next year's goes more smoothly."

Everyone nodded. They hoped so as well.

"At dawn then," Tagnolia said, "we begin breaking down."

And with that, their headman and woman left the area.

**BREAK **(for information)

If you don't remember Belana, she is the woman at Beech Camp who snubbed Ayla because of her association with the _flatheads_ (of course). She left Cedar Camp when her oldest son, Mikolavia mated Mirra (the daughter of Beech Camp's headman's mate).

You probably know her (Belana) best as Seriana's mother (who is hugely PG and now mated to Dimia of Birch Camp).

Here's her original hearth listing:

Belana (40) - from Cedar Camp, now living with Beech Camp  
>name of mate (deceased) never given<br>* Mikolavia (25) - mated to Mirra of Beech Camp  
>* Kristana (23) - mated and living at Beech Camp (has two children)<br>* Vanechkia (21) - mated to Dashna (19), still living with Cedar Camp  
>* Danushkia (19) - left with Sumac, Ash and Dogwood Camp, no longer counts himself as Belana's son<br>* Seriana (17) - very pregnant, plans to leave with her new mate, Dimia, when Birch Camp leaves

**NEW CHAPTER**

Their tents broken down and packed, the camps leaving said their goodbyes to family and friends, whom they would not see again until the following summer, then struck out early. They would follow the north side of Big River until they got to Pine Camp, then they'd split up; Elm, Spruce and Cedar going northeast and Oak Camp turning south and then east again to get to their home. It was a long journey for some, the longest trek expected to take nearly twenty days to complete at a good pace. That camp, Spruce, had decided to detour to the place Cedar Camp called home, making their trip a few days longer than it would have been, just to make sure the other camp arrived safely. Difficult as it would be, it was agreed that, because of recent events, it might be necessary.

And so they left, a group of over one hundred and thirty people, moving as one.

**~oOo~**

"Lariska!" Levaria said, sweat trickling down his brow as he came up beside his sister. "Slow down!"

Lariska looked at her brother, but did not slow her pace. "I can't. I don't want to fall behind." She carried a full rucksack, but wasn't heavily burdened otherwise. As headwoman, she wasn't required to carry anything, but she didn't see fit to walk unfettered when so many were weighed down. She did have her twin daughters walking beside her, both just as hot and sweaty as she, but not complaining.

Levaria looked past her and scowled; the closest person ahead of them was a good forty or so paces. "Look at them. They are practically running. What in the Mother's name is their hurry?"

Lariska shrugged. "Who knows, but I don't want to fall behind."

Levaria frowned. "Maybe we should have left with the others," he said. "We'd have stopped for the day by now and would be relaxing."

Trudging along, Lariska glanced up at her brother and shook her head. "We made the right decision, Levar. Those camps were bringing us down."

"Our life was not so bad," he said with a shake of his head. "We should have gone with them!"

"That is easy for you to say, brother, you are a man whose mate only has sons. Some of us have more to consider."

Levaria looked confused. "And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Lariska sighed, then spoke to her daughters. "Girls, wait for Raisa, see if she needs help with Pavlovia." Her daughters nodded and slowed their steps. Only then did Lariska address her brother's question.

"Do you not see how the men, even _our_ men, treat the women?" she asked.

Levaria frowned. "You are not treated poorly."

"I'm the headwoman. The position usually receives a generous amount of respect. But I am not treated the same as, say...Bidena."

Levaria shook his head. "You cannot compare yourself to the first ranked camp's headwoman. Besides, she is no better than you."

Lariska raised a brow. "Fine then, how about Sarasha? Spruce Camp holds her in very high regard."

"Where are you going with this, Lari?"

"Where I am _going_ is that the men of Cedar Camp do not revere our women as the chosen of Sumata, as they do in other camps. _Our men_ treat women as if we are less, as if we are here to serve you."

Levaria scoffed. "This is crazy talk, woman!"

"Is it now?"

Levaria nodded.

"Then tell me, why is your mate carrying Pavlovia and herding Yakovia, _and_ carrying a rucksack, when you carry no burden whatsoever?"

Levaria glanced back at his mate, then down at his sister. "Because she is an obedient woman and I am headman," he said with a grin.

Lariska scowled. "Do you hear what you just said, Levar? that your _woman_ is expected to obey." She shook her head. "If Deniskia treated me in such a way, I would sever the knot..._yesterday_."

"I don't understand what you're so upset about, Lariska. You are not treated badly."

She sighed. "Not yet. But with the way things were going..." She shook her head. "It is a good thing we did not leave with Sumac, Ash and Dogwood; they are bad news!"

With those words, Lariska quickened her step and sped away from her brother. If she had to exchange even one more word with the man, she might just have to whack him over the head with her pack. Sometimes he could be very dense.

**~oOo~**

When the day's trek was finally called to a close, Cedar Camp all but collapsed; they were not used to the speed at which they were being pushed, but they'd kept up, for the most part.

Frowning, Lariska scanned the group of Cedar men, lazing around on rocks while the women scurried to get water, build a fire and provide them a meal. When she caught her brother's eye, she mouthed, "_See_?" and hurriedly went to assist.

His expression matching hers, Levaria got up and did what he could to help.

"Pavlovia has blisters on his feet," Raisa said, coming up beside her mate. "I tried to carry him as much as possible, but I grew tired. He is small, but...so am I."

Levaria frowned. His mate only came to about midway on his upper arm. "I will carry him tomorrow, Raisa," he said. Looking his mate over and, seeing the exhaustion lining her face, he took her shoulders and made her sit down. "I will speak to Hetara about seeing to his blisters."

Raisa smiled up at him, tears in her eyes, then reached out to hug him. It had been a long time since she'd done that; it made him consider even more what his sister had said to him. Was their camp becoming complacent where their women were concerned?

Quickly, he hugged her back, then went to find their healer.

**~oOo~**

Seeing those struggling from the long day's hike, Ayla grabbed her medicine bag and went to their aid. Finding the woman, Hetara, sitting in front of a small child, she knelt down with them.

"Is there anything I can do?" she asked.

"You are a healer?" the older woman asked.

Ayla nodded. "More or less. My people call me a medicine woman."

Hetara stared at her for a moment, then nodded. "I am a healer, but not so good with young ones. I would be grateful for any help you might be able to give."

Ayla smiled. She had expected to be told no, as she was so often when people did not know her.

"I have washed and soaked Pavlovia's feet. He has blisters. But I can't decide whether I should drain them or not."

Ayla nodded, then examined the boy's feet. "I would probably lance this one, but not the other," she said, carefully considering the two. "This one is too large to leave it as is, and it will probably continue to fill, making the skin feel tight and uncomfortable."

Hetara nodded. "That is what I thought too. Dakara," she said, turning to a young woman stirring something over a fire. "Bring me my sewing awl."

With a frown, the girl-woman got up and did what her mother asked. When she arrived with the sharp object the boy's eyes rounded and he began to cry. That brought his mother and his mother's mate over to them.

"What is going on here?" asked Levaria when he saw the pointed instrument in the healer's hand and the strange blond woman who'd birthed flatheads kneeling beside the son of his mate.

"We are going to drain Pavlovia's blister," the healer said. "He will not be able to walk tomorrow if we do not."

"It is not necessary," Levaria said. "I plan on carrying him tomorrow."

Ayla frowned. "That would be most helpful...but...the blister is very large. It would be better punctured and drained." She glanced at the boy, then back at the man. "He won't feel it, I promise."

Raisa, kneeling next to her boy, caught her mate's eye, her eyes begging him to agree. Finally, he nodded.

Ayla smiled and looked at Pavlovia. The boy was holding his mother's hand and trying to look brave, but she knew that he was scared. "Look, Pavlovia, will you hold this for me?" she asked as she held out an instrument that looked similar to the one Hetara was holding.

The boy frowned, then nodded and reached to take it.

"I want you to touch the end of that and tell me what you feel."

The boy tentatively ran a finger over the blunted end of Ayla's awl. It was one she didn't use any longer because time and use had worn it down to a nub.

"It is smooth...like the end of Levaria's antler hammer...but smaller."

Ayla smiled and nodded. She'd picked up the boy's foot while he was talking and he didn't realize. "Tell me," she said, "when you push it into your palm, what does it feel like?"

Pavlovia did as she asked, then shrugged. "I don't know."

"Do you feel pressure?"

The boy again pushed the blunt end of the spent tool into his hand, then nodded.

Ayla smiled. "Now let your mother try it."

Pavlovia quickly handed the awl to Raisa. "You do it too, Mother. It doesn't hurt at all, does it?" he asked, grinning when she poked it into her hand and shook her head.

"Not at all," she said, handing it back to him, then looking to Ayla.

"All right," Ayla said. "Now I want you to tell me how it feels when you use your other hand."

Pavlovia shrugged and moved to do what the woman asked of him. He'd completely forgotten why she was there and what she was going to do and therefore was not watching her when she pulled out another awl, a much sharper one, and quickly poked a tiny hole in his blister, then used a small piece of wet leather to wrap his foot. It was done so fast and clean that he was not aware of it, until she told him.

"All finished," she said.

The boy blinked. "But...my blister."

Ayla smiled. "It has been punctured."

"But...I didn't feel anything."

"That is because I did not _want_ you to feel anything," Ayla told him. "Hurting isn't fun, is it?"

Pavlovia shook his head. "I don't like hurting."

"Neither do I. Now, I'd better go see to some others," she said. "Would you like to keep my awl?"

Pavlovia grinned and nodded. "Oh, could I?"

Ayla chuckled. "Of course. It's yours!" Standing, she started to move away, only to find a hand preventing it. It was Levaria.

"Thank you, Ayla," he said. "My mate's son is often hard to heal. He is afraid of _everything_ and...I'm afraid we tend to baby him." He grinned at her. "I am very grateful for what you have done."

Ayla placed her hand on the man's arm and smiled up at him. "You are most welcome, but there is no need to thank me; I am doing my duty. And Pavlovia is a good boy. He _is_ small, as his name suggests, and fearful, but he is also strong and brave." She paused to let her words sink in, then she continued. "I gave Hetara a salve to put on his blister, but I will look in on him when I can."

Levaria nodded and watched the woman go to assist others. Then later, when she'd seen to all those requiring assistance, he noticed her sitting with her family and couldn't help watching her. She was smiling and laughing with the rest, her youngest at her breast as she patted her sleeping three-year-old lovingly. And then, when her mate came to take the child, she got up and went with him to their sleeping place, taking her little mixed boy with her.

In all of the man's days, he'd always rejected that the ones they called flatheads were human. But as he watched Ayla and her family interact, the same as anyone else, he could not help but feel that he'd been lied to; her boy did not seem any different from Raisa's son.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Over the next several days, the people from Cedar Camp continued to struggle, finding that it was becoming more and more difficult to keep up the pace set by those they followed. But they pushed on, determined to stay with their people, because the alternative was to quit and be alone, or to join the others in exile.

Each day of the journey began with Levaria carrying his mate's youngest son, only to have Ayla come back and offer the boy a ride on one of her horses. At first, Raisa had objected. The beasts were so large and strong, and the one called Nicuria had kicked the Sumac man to a bloody pulp. But soon she'd relented, convinced that Ayla and her horses were a sign from the Mother that they'd done the right thing by staying with the Sungaea. There had been talk that those who left planned to start their own group. Some had even given them a name; the Kazahskia.

But they were better left unthought of, Raisa thought as she hefted her pack after a noon day meal. The headwoman, Bidena, said they'd arrive at Pine Camp before the day was through, and she was glad; they needed the rest.

**~oOo~**

"How is Pavlovia?" Ayla asked, coming up beside Levaria, who walked beside Nicuria.

Levaria smiled. "He is well. I have to admit I'll miss your horses when we split up."

Ayla nodded. After reaching Pine Camp, Cedar would continue on with the other two camps, but Oak Camp had to turn south. "I am sorry that he will be forced to walk." She glanced up at the boy, sitting behind Durc and Brenevia, and smiled. They were chattering away as if they'd always been friends.

Levaria shrugged. "He is much better now, and I will carry him as much as possible." He too looked at the boys. The woman's son might be ugly, but his sense of humor was entertaining. Many times the child had said things that had him grinning. Who would have imagined?

"Ayla," interrupted Ivanolia, "Grov is looking for you. There is something he wants to you to see, I think."

Ayla nodded, then looked at Levaria. "If you will excuse me?"

"Oh yes...yes, of course."

**~oOo~**

When Ayla reached her mate, Grov turned and pointed. "Pine Camp hunts by driving herds off that cliff."

Ayla turned and looked and, squinting into the dropping sun, shielded her eyes. "How do they get up there?"

"Where we crossed the last river, we would have veered right," one of the men with Grov said. "Or rather, since we're usually going the other way when we set out to hunt there, we cross that river, then make a sharp left."

Ayla nodded. She'd noticed the gradual ascent of the land to the southwest, but hadn't given it a thought. Now her mind was thinking hunting. "And then you _stampede_ the animals over the edge?"

The man nodded. "We call it Hunting Cliff."

"That is brilliant!" she exclaimed, her face radiant as she envisioned a group of hunters doing what they do best. Wishing that she could join such a hunt, she looked at the man and grinned. "I once saw a hunt reenactment where the man told of digging a pit trap in the usual path of a rhinoceros, but I have not ever heard of such a thing as _this_."

"That is what Grov said too," he said with a grin. "He also says that you like to hunt, so we," he said, gesturing at the other men with him, "thought you might like to hear about Hunting Cliff."

Ayla looked at Jondaria and the man of his hearth, then smiled her gratitude. Nodding, she said, "Yes, I _love_ hunting." Then looking back at the man she'd never met before, she said, "Is it dangerous?"

The man shrugged. "It can be. Recently, one of our hunters went over the edge...but she managed to grab hold of some of those roots. Can you see them growing out of the face of the cliff?"

Ayla nodded.

"She held on there until someone was able to reach her, which was quite difficult...both holding on and reaching her," he clarified. "It didn't help that her terrified sister was standing below. She was supposed to be butchering bison, but she wasn't much help _that_ day."

Ayla smiled. "Can you blame her?"

He shook his head and chuckled. "Certainly not. If it had been my sister up there, I'd have gone insane with worry." He paused, then went on. "So yes, it _is_ dangerous. But then, hunting always is."

Ayla nodded, thinking about all the dangers of the hunt. She'd never considered falling off a cliff while doing it. "Yes, it is, isn't it," she said, not expecting an answer, though all four men nodded. Then looking at the Pine man, she gave him her most winning smile. "Thank you for telling me of the way Pine Camp hunts."

"Oh, we hunt the same way you do, Ayla," he said. "This is just one other way of doing it."

Ayla glanced at her mate with a frown. "You have not talked about the Clan's hunting?"

Grov shook his head. "No, actually. I have just been listening to Gadoloria here," he said, introducing the man for the first time, "and Pine Camp's Hunting Cliff."

Ayla nodded, still impressed by their hunting method, then looked at Gadoloria. "It is good to meet you, Gadoloria of Pine Camp," she said.

The man smiled. "And you, Ayla...originally of Oak Camp, but whom now resides with those who live on the peninsula."

Ayla returned his smile. There was no contempt within his tone, just curiosity, so rare among the Others when it came to the Clan. "The Clan's...approach to hunting is far different," she said, carrying on the conversation they'd been having. "We do not throw our spears, but thrust them instead."

Gadoloria frowned. "That is _very_ dangerous. A hunter must get up close and personal with his prey. No measure for error."

Ayla nodded. "Yes, that is correct. But I...I do not do much hunting."

The Pine man frowned, but Grov spoke to fill him in. "The Clan does not allow women to hunt, so she really has not been given the chance to perform on such a hunt."

"That is too bad...unfortunate, really," Gadoloria said. "The Sungaea need every able body to keep the people fed. How does the Clan manage without allowing the women to hunt?"

Grov shrugged. "We must hunt a lot, many times we go out everyday. And sometimes, by the end of the winter, stores _are_ low, but I cannot recall anyone going hungry. Can you, Ayla?"

She shook her head.

"The Clan way is difficult, I think," Gadoloria interjected.

"Perhaps, but it is all that we know. You see, it is more than women not being allowed to hunt; they are _unable_ to hunt."

Gadoloria frowned. "Unable?" he asked disbelievingly.

Both Grov and Ayla nodded. "A Clan woman is no more able to hunt than any man could give birth to a child," Grov said.

"Interesting."

"But Ayla holds a rare position among us; she is called, _the woman who hunts_. She is the only woman who's allowed to hunt." He paused. "But mostly...the men do not want her to join their hunts. They think it will bring them bad luck," he admitted.

"That is also unfortunate," Gadoloria said. "I can see that she has a passion for it."

Grov nodded. "Yes, she does, but that is the way of our people. And Ayla has many other duties," he went on. "She must gather with the other women, and take care of her children. And she is the Clan's first-ranked medicine woman; she is required to take care of our cave's medical emergencies first."

Gadoloria nodded. "Yes, healing is very important. I had heard that she was a healer too."

"The best of the Clan," Grov repeated proudly. His eyes sought hers briefly, but then he looked back at the Pine Camp man and went on about her responsibilities.

Ayla watched the men discuss her as if she wasn't there and smiled; it was always the same, open it up for men to discuss anything, _even their mates_, and they'd make it a conversation for males alone. Usually she didn't lump her mate in with other men, preferring instead to think him his own person, but while traveling with the people of her birth she couldn't help but notice that he very much fit in with men of the Others.

"Well again, thank you," she interrupted when an opening presented itself. "I am most grateful for...Pine Camp's knowledge of hunting."

Gadoloria looked at her and grinned. "And Pine Camp is happy to oblige."

**~oOo~**

That evening, after first waiting while Junlovia and his mate Tanluda to verify that the trails up to their caves were safe, many of Pine Camp's members went up to their home. It had been a long summer away and most were eager to get back to their permanent space, to check on left behind belongings and to sleep in their own beds. The other camps set up a temporary camp below, at the base of Pine's cavernous mountain home, and quickly built fires for meals and warmth.

"Ayla," Danta said, coming up quickly, a worried frown on her face. "I can't find Danara."

"Davaria has her. They are with Janika at Spruce Camp's fire."

Danta frowned, thinking her brother should have at least told her he was taking Danara with him. But Ayla spoke again before she could complain.

"She is fine, Danta, no need to worry."

Danta nodded. "I know. I guess...it is just that...I don't know. I suppose I feel...alone," she finished, thinking her response lame.

Ayla immediately stopped what she was doing and faced her friend. "Why?"

Danta shrugged. "I guess I never thought my brother would find someone before I did." She frowned again then. "To be honest, I never expected that either of us would. This whole thing...our adoption, the move, Sumac Camp leaving the Sungaea..." She shook her head. "I am just confused, I think."

Ayla nodded. She could understand that. "But you have people now...a camp to call your own. You are not alone. And Janika will be leaving with Spruce Camp tomorrow. You have an entire year before Davaria will make his own hearth."

Danta sighed. "I suppose you're right. I don't know what's wrong with me," she said, tears welling.

"It is all such a big change," Ayla said, going to her friend and putting an arm around her. "I understand. I once thought I'd be alone forever, but now I have Grov and the children."

Danta dropped her head on her friend's shoulder. "I wish you and Grov were spending the winter at Oak Camp. At least then I'd feel as if I knew people."

"Do you feel _that_ uncomfortable?"

Danta shrugged.

"Where did you set up tonight's sleeping place?"

Danta turned and pointed. "Over there. But I think Davaria plans on staying with Janika."

Ayla nodded. "Yes, I think so." Then pausing for a moment, she made a decision. "You could always stay with us."

Danta immediately shook her head. "Oh no, I couldn't."

"Yes," Ayla said firmly. "I insist."

"But Grov...he will not want me there."

"He will not object, I promise you. I will go make sure." And before Danta could protest further, Ayla got up and went out in search of her mate.

**~oOo~**

Grov frowned at Ayla. "I do not object to sharing my furs with Danta, Ayla, you know that. But what I worry about is that you do not ever choose to go with anyone else."

Ayla frowned. "But..._you_ are my mate."

"And I am yours. Why is it all right for me to take someone else while you do not?"

"Because...you are a man."

Grov shook his head. "That is not acceptable. I think that either you need to choose someone...or I will choose someone for you."

Ayla's eyes rounded in surprise. "You wouldn't," she said, obviously disbelieving his words.

He nodded. "Who shall it be?" he asked, scanning the area. "How about...?"

Mortified, Ayla's jaw dropped open. "No, please...I can...do it?"

"Are you sure?"

Ayla looked at him and nodded, but shuffled away, fearful of the coming night.

**~oOo~**

Danta began laughing when Ayla came back and told her what Grov had said. "Are you telling me that you've never shared pleasures with anyone but your mate?"

Ayla frowned, wondering if Broud counted. In the way that Danta meant, she supposed he did not. She nodded.

"Well, Ayla, who do you want?"

"It is not for me to say, Danta?"

"And why is that?"

"Because...I-I am a _woman_," she sputtered.

Danta laughed again. "So, you would rather your mate make this decision for you?"

Ayla nodded.

"But what if you do not like the man he chooses?"

Ayla shrugged. "It is not for me to say."

Danta frowned. "You do not think you should have a choice where your own body is concerned?"

Ayla frowned. "It is the way I was raised, Danta," she said in confusion. "What would you do?"

"I would choose someone, and fast, so that he couldn't."

**~oOo~**

Grov's eyes followed his mate as she fled his presence. He knew she was going to talk to Danta about the stipulation he'd just given her, and he could not help the chuckle that escaped as he watched his mate speak to the other woman about it. And then Jondaria came up and sat down.

"Want some wine?" the Spruce man asked, offering him a full cup.

Grov looked up as his friend sat down and nodded. "I think I'm going to need some." Then, when Jondaria looked at him in confusion, he explained, staring with Danta spending the night with him. "I just told Ayla that she has to select a man to share pleasures with...or I'm going to choose for her."

Jondaria raised a brow. "And how well did that go over?"

Grov put the cup to his lips and downed the liquid before speaking. "She ran off," he finally said.

Jondaria laughed, but lifted the skin of wine to his lips, determined not to say anything about wanting his friend's woman; he'd wanted her since the first night he'd met her, and now she was being made available to him. _Almost_. She'd never shown any interest in him, other than friendship, but he wanted her badly.

Jondaria reached out and refilled the man's cup. "So, does that mean you will take Danta to your furs?"

Grov nodded. "Apparently they've been offered to her."

Jondaria laughed again, but shook his head. "That is not what I meant and you know it. But I will spell it out...will you _honor the Mother_ with Danta tonight?"

Grov shrugged. "I suppose that will be up to her."

"And who will you choose for Ayla?"

"I would rather she chose for herself, but knowing Ayla..." He shrugged again. "Maybe...maybe _you_ could do it," he suggested.

Jondaria had just taken a mouthful of wine, but choked on it. There was nothing he wanted more than to bed Grov's beautiful mate. "I-I couldn't...not unless she chose me on her own," he said.

Grov sighed, then nodded in the direction of his woman. "Then you better get yourself over there...unless you want me to choose someone else."

**~oOo~**

Jondaria made a point of sitting next to Ayla for the evening, but his gaze kept straying to Grov, where the Clan man sat with those who had joined them. The young adults of Oak Camp, as well as the young adults from the other camps, now sat around a large fire, drinking wine that Spruce Camp provided and enjoying their last night of summer meeting.

But he was never able make eye contact with the man and wondered whether he was doing the right thing by pursuing the man's mate so openly.

"Would you like more wine?" he asked Ayla.

Her eyes went to her mate as well, then she looked at the man sitting beside her and extended her cup. "I suppose."

Jondaria frowned. "You do not look so interested."

"Oh no, I am," she said.

"Are you really?" Jondaria asked, his dark eyes grabbing her lighter ones as he poured wine into her cup.

Ayla frowned at his intended double meaning. Jondaria was an obvious choice for her; she really did not know anyone else, except perhaps some of the men from Oak Camp, but the whole _choosing_ for herself thing was difficult to process. But Jondaria was making it easy on her - sort of.

In response, Ayla nodded, then quickly took a sip, hoping to avoid his other meaning. But she could not seem to take her eyes from the man's as she drank. And then, when he reached out and grasped her free hand, she had to force herself to relax.

"Come to my furs, Ayla," he said.

It was but a request, but she felt it more as a command. That, in itself, made it hard to refuse; she was supposed to obey. She'd spent her entire life being told she must do as a man said, _any man_, and now that she'd been told to choose, she didn't know what to do. But the mere fact that she'd been _told_ to choose made her decision easier; she nodded.

Jondaria grinned. "Really?"

"I said yes."

Jondaria frowned. "But...are you sure." He'd never before questioned a woman who'd agreed to share his bed, but he wanted to make sure that _she_ was sure about her decision.

Nodding, Ayla handed him her cup and stood up. "Yes, I am sure. But I must go see to my children first."

Jondaria nodded, then watched as she headed over to her family.

**~oOo~**

Slowly, Ayla approached her mate; he was sitting at the fire with the rest, laughing at something that someone had said. Nervously, she said down beside him, but she could not seem to look at him. Instead she stared only at the hands twisting in her lap; they seemed to belong to someone else.

"I see that you have chosen," he said so that only she could hear.

Her eyes snapped up to meet his. "I think so...yes."

Grov nodded. "Jondaria is a good man."

Ayla glanced over at Jondaria and saw him talking to his sister and Davaria. "Yes, he _is_ a good man. But he is...not my mate," she finished, feeling completely awkward about this.

"Ayla, this is the world you were born to," he said, gesturing about.

"But not the one that raised me," she protested.

He shook his head. "No, you are right about that." He paused, then continued on. "But if we were with the Clan, then you would have no choice in such a matter. I am just trying to show you that you are free to choose."

"By _making me_ choose someone else?"

He frowned, realizing how it must look to her. He'd thought on this for much of the summer, and even before, when he'd been forced to use Oga. He'd been confused by Broud's anger over it and had mentally put himself in the other man's place. He'd come to the conclusion that he could and would share his mate with others if necessary. And, at this moment, he truly believed that it was necessary -that she needed to do this to understand where she'd come from. But how did he explain such a thing to her?

"This is truly what you want?" she asked after a few moments of him saying nothing.

Grov continued to frown, not truly sure _what_ he wanted. But the confusion so clear in her eyes made his heart go out to her. "I...do not know, Ayla. This is all new to me too." He grabbed her hand then and squeezed. "All I know is that I love you and I want you to be able to do anything you want...including going to someone else's bed. You do not have to go with Jondaria or anyone else...tonight or any other night, if you do not want to. But I think you should consider it...if only to understand the ways of your people more fully."

"How will sharing pleasures with a man who is not _you_ make me understand the Others?"

He shrugged. "I cannot say. I only hope that it will."

Sighing, Ayla nodded and leaned to kiss him. She would do anything for him, including this. She had to admit, if only to herself, that she was curious. But she did not tell him this. Instead, suddenly realizing that she hadn't seen them since she'd fed them, she said, "But what of the children?"

"Durc left with Brenevia. Darvie wanted her son in bed early. And the girls have gone with Danta."

Nodding again, she put her head on her mate's shoulder and just sat there clinging to him. She did not want to move, afraid she would choose incorrectly.

"So?"

Sighing, she looked at him with love in her eyes, then said, "I am going now."

**~oOo~**

Fully expecting that Ayla would not come back, Jondaria watched her, sitting with and talking to her mate, and therefore was utterly surprised to see her walking back to him. Standing up as she reached him, he half expected her to tell him she'd changed her mind, but grinned with pleasure when she smiled and tentatively took is hand.

"I have not ever gone with a man who is not my mate, Jondaria," she admitted. "So this is..." She bit her lip. "_Difficult_, for me."

Jondaria frowned, then shook his head. "Then you should not come to my furs, Ayla, if you are not ready." He knew that Grov was pushing this on her and he didn't want to feel like he was forcing her. There had already been too much of that during the summer and it had disgusted him. First Davaria's sister, then the young Cedar woman Dakara, and then his own sister. The last thing he wanted to do was take a woman who didn't want him.

"No," she said with a quick shake of her head. "It is not that." She stopped, confused, then laying her a hand on his chest and looking up at him, she decided to be brutally honest with him. "Earlier, Grov told me to pick someone, or he would pick someone for me," she admitted, unaware that the man already knew. "But just now, he said I did not have to. He said that it is my choice."

Jondaria sighed, relieved by her words, but waited for her to continue.

"And I choose _you_ tonight, Jondaria...if you want me." Her faced tinged pink, embarrassed about speaking so freely, but she fought to keep her eyes on his.

The man grinned, then he nodded and pulled her toward the place he'd set out his furs.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Ayla came awake early, before others started to rise to make ready to leave. At first she felt groggy, but knowing the side effects of wine, she shrugged it off and tried to focus. But when she turned her head and saw Jondaria's nearly black hair splayed on the furs beside her, her eyes widened and she remembered going with the man the night before. He'd been good to her, had pleasured her well, and she had reciprocated, but now she only wanted to get back to her mate.

Careful, so as not to wake the man, she peeled back the furs and got up. Pulling on her tunic first, then quickly slipping into her footwear, she turned to go.

"Leaving so soon?"

Stopping in her tracks, she cringed, then turned around and knelt down in front of him. "I was...I...ahhh." She stopped talking and nodded dumbly, staring at his bare chest. "Yes, I was leaving."

Jondaria chuckled, his dark eyes twinkling. "It's not necessary to explain, Ayla," he said, taking her hand and bringing it up to his mouth for a kiss. "I had a wonderful night. I just hope it wasn't so bad for you." Her reactions to his pleasures left no doubt that he'd pleased her, but he still worried that she hadn't wanted to be there.

Ayla frowned then. "No, it was not _bad_."

He chuckled again. "Well, _that's_ something, isn't it?"

She only looked at him in confusion.

"What I meant was, I hope last night was as good for you as it was for me."

Ayla shrugged. "I do not know how it was for you. For me...it was...nice."

Jondaria winced. "Well, that's a step up from bad, I suppose."

Again her eyes showed confusion.

"I'm sorry, Ayla. I don't usually ask for a critique. I just hoped you'd enjoyed yourself."

She smiled then. "Oh yes. I enjoyed myself fine. But...I should go."

He grinned up at her, then nodded. "I understand."

**~oOo~**

Ayla first went to the place where she and Grov had set up their small traveling tent. Lack of movement there told her everyone inside was still asleep. Relieved, she stoked the coals from the previous night's fire, added a log, then grabbed a water tight basket and headed for the river.

Meaning only to rinse her hands and face, then get water to make tea, Ayla knelt and splashed water on herself. It was refreshing and managed to wake her up some. Deciding then that she wanted to be completely clean, she peeled off her tunic and kicked her shoes from her feet, then stepped into the water. The river water was cold. Colder than she thought it would be, but it didn't bother her; cleansing herself was much too important to worry about something as trivial as water temperature and the little bit of discomfort caused by it. Shivering, she dove into the river.

Sputtering, she came up quickly, then waded out and, with fumbling fingers, pulled her tunic back on. Wishing now that she'd brought a clean one with her, she rushed to fill her basket, then hurried back to camp to change. When she returned, the group was stirring, though not many were actually up. After putting the water over the fire to warm, Ayla went to her pack and pulled out clean clothing and a brush. She was still sitting by the fire working knots out of her hair while she waited for the water to boil when someone lifted the brush from her hand.

"Here, let me help you."

Recognizing her mate's voice, Ayla's heartbeat quickened. Turning slightly, to give him access to her hair, she closed her eyes and let him take over. The sensation of his gentle strokes through her hair and down her back, with the brush and his fingertips, caused gooseflesh to rise. He did not often brush her hair for her, but she enjoyed it immensely.

When he was finished, he pushed her hair aside and kissed her neck, then stood up. "I will be right back," he said, moving away from her before she could respond.

Ayla watched him leave, knowing he went to make his morning stream, then turned to prepare them each a cup of tea. When he returned, she handed it to him, then silently sipped her own.

"Others will be up soon," he finally said, when the silence had stretched on for awhile. "Would you like to talk?"

Her expression pained, she glanced at him. "Must we?"

"Was it _that_ unpleasant?" he asked, ignoring her question.

Frowning, she shook her head. It hadn't been - not at all. But discussing it would be. He must have seen it in her eyes, because instead of questioning her further, he just reached out, wrapped his arms around her and held her. They were still sitting that way when others started arriving.

**~oOo~**

"Davaria, it is time to go," Danta said, coming up beside her brother where he stood with the woman he wanted to mate. The young woman had been clinging to him all morning and now sobbed in his arms. Danta felt horrible for them.

Davaria looked over his woman's head at his sister and nodded slightly, then watched her walk away before putting Janika from him. Wiping her tears, he kissed her again, then saw the man of her hearth coming for her.

"Janika, you must let Davaria go now," Jeeteria said sternly. "Oak Camp is ready to leave and we will be leaving soon as well."

Turning angry, tear-filled eyes on the man of her hearth, Janika said, "Why do you have to do this? Can't you see that I love this man?"

Jeeteria winced, but he held his ground. She definitely appeared to love Davaria, and he her, but the daughter of his hearth had wavered too many times in matters which she called _love_. He would not give in; she would have to wait a year. "It is for the best. As I said, if you still love him when next summer comes, then I will give my blessing."

Janika glared at him, but threw herself into Davaria's arms again. "Take me with you," she begged. "I can't go back to Spruce Camp with _him_.

Davaria held her for a moment, then forced himself to pull away from her. "It is time for me to go, Janika," he said. "And I can't take you with me."

Tears streaming down her face, she tried to go back into his arms, but he held her firmly away from him.

"Don't you want me?" she whined when she couldn't maneuver herself back into his embrace.

"You know that I do, but I can't just take you from Spruce Camp without Jeeteria allowing it. I _can't_."

"But you _can_. He can't stop us." She threw her arms around him and buried her head in his chest. This time he allowed it - for a moment.

Shaking his head, he pushed her back and held her face between his palms. "No, you're right, Janika, he can't stop you from leaving Spruce Camp. But I will not take you with me to Oak Camp without his permission. It wouldn't be right. Please _try_ to understand."

"All I understand is that I won't see you for a year. A _year_," she choked. "That is so long." Then, turning on Jeeteria again, she whispered, "How can you do this to me?"

The man of her hearth didn't answer her, but looked at Davaria instead. "I'll leave you two to say your final goodbyes." And with that he walked away.

"I _hate_ him!" she said through clenched teeth as she watched the man of her hearth walk away. And she knew that he'd heard her too because his shoulders dropped at her words.

"Don't say that, Janika," Davaria said as he leaned to kiss. "The time will go quickly, I promise you." He kissed her again. "Next summer will come fast enough and we will be together again." Then he gave her another kiss and took a step away from her. "I love you," he said.

She folded her arms over her chest and, pouting, refused to look at him.

He would have laughed if the thought of not seeing her for a year wasn't so painful, but instead he repeated his last declaration. "I love you, Janika."

Sighing, she looked back at him, her lips trembling as she said, "I love you too, Davaria."

He smiled. "Now...please smile so that I can remember you happy."

She tried. For him she tried, but her face only screwed up into a frown. Biting her lip, she tried again, this time managing a weak one.

Davaria reached out and took her chin, then kissed her one final time before turning to join Oak Camp. He did not look back. It would have been too painful.

**~oOo~**

"Are you sure about this, Ayla?" Tagnolia asked. Pine Camp had offered Oak Camp a couple of their boats, to make the journey faster, but he was concerned about leaving Grov and Ayla behind.

Ayla nodded. "The horses cannot ride in the boats, but Oak Camp should not be slowed down because of it. We will only be a day or so behind."

They'd packed all of their belongings, including their children, to be carried downriver in the boats, minus the supplies they'd need while being separated. They would travel light and believed they could make good time.

"You will have the harder work, I think," she said, referring to her three children, who were sitting in one of the boats next to Darvie. Ora was fussing and Durc was trying to keep her still. Only Annaliza sat still, sucking her fingers and enjoying the gentle sway of the boat.

Vincenzia chuckled. "Don't worry, they will be fine."

"I am not worried for them," Ayla said with a shake of her head. "I worry that by the time we meet up with you again, you will not want us to visit again."

Vinceniza laughed. "Impossible!" he exclaimed. "That could _never_ happen! Now, you two should go." He gave Ayla a hug, then slapped Grov on the shoulder. "Remember to follow the river, but keep to the base of the hills. We will wait for you where Big River begins to bend west. You won't be able to miss us."

"How long should it take us?"

Vincenzia frowned then. "Walking at a good speed, two to three days, but a decent runner can do it in under two. But on the horses?" He shrugged. "I don't know. They're clearly faster than walking alone."

Grov and Ayla nodded agreement. "All right," Grov said. "We'll see you, when we see you."

Vincenzia grinned, then kissed Ayla and climbed into a boat. "Safe journey."

**~oOo~**

Traveling south through Big River's narrow river valley, Grov and Ayla rode in near silence for a long time. It was neither awkward nor strained and she seemed to need the time, so he was willing to give it to her. He'd always been willing to give what she needed, even when she didn't know she needed it. For most of the day, she seemed to need quiet, so she could think. The night before, she'd needed something that he could not give. Not because he wasn't able to please her. Pleasing her was easy, especially within their furs.

But now she was so quiet that it had him worried. Had he given her more than she could handle? he wondered.

The sun was a good distance past its zenith when the man glanced back to see her frowning. Halting his horse, he waited for her to catch up.

"What is wrong?" he asked when she stopped Whinney beside him.

Ayla looked up at the sky, then at her mate. "I have not seen Shriek in a very long time. It has been many, _many_ days."

He nodded, relieved that her thoughts were on the bird and not on the previous night. "I have thought about him a lot, but feared bringing it up."

With a frown, she shrugged. "I guess there is nothing I can do, but I miss him." Her eyes continued to scan the sky, as if hoping her friend would appear.

Grov felt bad for her; he knew how much she loved the bird. But she was right, there was _nothing_ they could do to keep him with them. Unlike the horses, who stayed on the ground and could be made to stay near, the raptor had the entire sky to venture into. With an equally hopeful glance at the sky, Grov shook his head. "I'm sorry, Ayla."

Ayla's eyes met his, then she pushed her sadness aside and smiled at him. "Are you hungry?" she asked; they hadn't eaten since their morning meal.

Grov shrugged. "I could eat."

Ayla continued to smile. "But do you _want_ to eat?"

"Sure." Quickly dismounting, he went to her and lifted her off Whinney's back.

"You did not have to do that," she said with a slight giggle.

"I know...but I wanted to," he said, leaning to nuzzle her neck. Then before she could respond, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "I think I want to stop for the day."

"_For the day_? But we could travel so much more today," she said, glancing up at the sun. "There is much light left."

"We _could_," he said with a mischievous grin. "Or we could stop and swim, and enjoy some time alone. We don't get much of _that_."

She grinned, then gave him a shove and started running away from him. "Last one in the river cooks our meal," she said over her shoulder as she tugged at her tunic.

It took Grov a few moments to react to her wager, and then he was fast on her heels. When she would have beat him into the river, he grabbed her and restrained her, untied his waist thong and used his foot to pull off his leggings, then hefted her into his arms.

"And who cooks if it is a tie?" he asked as he jumped into the water and, taking her with him, left no room for a response.

Releasing her immediately as they plunged into the water, they separated. When they surfaced, they were gasping for breath, then a game of splash ensued. Finally, they started for the shore. A stronger swimmer, she arrived there first, picked up her clothing and headed back to the horses.

"Where are you going?" he asked when he finally caught up with her.

"You won, I suppose," she said as she pulled her pack out of Whinney's pannier, then knelt to rummage through it. "Your feet did touch the water first."

He grinned as he watched her work - naked.

"Even if it _was_ because you _cheated_, she added, pulling her sling out of her pack.

His smile evaporated. "_Cheated_?"

"Yes," she said, looking up at him. "It's not fair to use your superior strength against me."

He chuckled. "Well, since I _cheated_, I'll help you. I'll get a fire going and get our camp set up, while you make some magic with that sling."

Ayla looked at her weapon, then nodded. "It's a deal."

**~oOo~**

Lying in her mate's arms and looking up at the stars, Ayla yawned. "Do you think they've arrived where we will meet them?"

Grov shrugged. "I'd guess that they have. Vincenzia seemed to think that it would only take half the day."

"I hope the girls don't miss us too much."

"I'm sure they're fine, Ayla. Darvie knows how to take care of children."

Ayla frowned. "But Darvie does not have milk to feed Annaliza."

"But Jendoza and Laurana do. And she'd rather have solid food anyway." He paused. "Stop worrying."

Sighing, she rolled and looked down at him. "What if...what if a baby was started last night?" she asked worriedly.

Grov frowned. Apparently she was still bothered by the night before. "You cannot be sure that is how babies are started, Ayla."

"But what if I _am_ right? And what if one has started in me," she asked, her hand going to her belly.

He shrugged. "Then we will have another baby at our hearth. Would that be so bad?"

Ayla's brow wrinkled with consternation and she sat up. "But it would not be _your_ baby," she objected, frustrated that he was so unconcerned.

"Ayla," he said, sitting up and grabbing her before she could bolt, because that's what it looked like she was going to do. "Any baby of yours, born to my hearth, is my baby. It does not matter whose spirit is used." Then he leaned to kiss her, hoping to distract her from her worry.

"But..." she started to protest again, but was silenced when he pushed his tongue into her mouth.

Grov kissed her until she was breathless, just the way he wanted her, then he kissed her some more for good measure as he pushed up her tunic and let his hands roam. He sought her breasts first, baring them and suckling them, even getting a little of her Mother's milk as he did so. Then running them down her stomach and over her mound, he pushed her legs apart and found her wet center.

Moaning, Ayla arched her back and wove her fingers into his hair, but stiffened when she realized he was attempting to untie his leggings.

"Wait!" she said in a panic, pushing away from him and trying to sit up. "We can't."

Frowning, he held onto her, not letting her get away from him. "What? _Why_?"

"Because...we have to make sure no babies were started last night."

He groaned. "But I told you that I don't care about that, Ayla," he said.

"But _I_ do," she said as she frantically tugged at her tunic to cover herself. Then she tried desperately to get out from under him, but he wouldn't let her budge.

"Ayla, stop!" he commanded. And she immediately ceased moving and stared up at him.

"So...what if a baby _has been_ started? What does that mean? To me it means my mate is bringing another child to my hearth. It would be wonderful news. It makes no difference to me if it was started by me or another man."

She frowned. "But it matters to _me_."

He was confused. "Would you love the child any less?"

"Of course not!" she burst. "I could not love one of my children more or less than another."

"And neither could I," he said. "Don't you understand? Your children _are_ my children."

"But I would want to know...for sure, if I carried your child or another's."

He stared at her for several moments. Her eyes begged him to understand. Finally, he sighed and nodded. "Very well, Ayla," he said, rolling off of her. "If that is what you want. But I promise you that it wouldn't change anything."

She watched him, worried that he was angry with her. She could see his need; his manhood tented his leggings, and she knew it pained him to not be allowed release. It suddenly became obvious to her that he had not shared pleasures with Danta the night before, because if he had, his need now would not be so great. Feeling worse about the night before, she dropped her head to his chest and started to cry. "I'm sorry."

His hands came up to comb through her long hair. "What are you sorry about, Ayla? I'm the one who pushed you to share another man's bed." Then feeling her tears wet his chest, he lifted her head so that he could look into her eyes. "Stop crying," he said as he wiped her tears away with his thumbs. "I am not angry."

"You're not?"

He chuckled. "Of course not. How could I be? It is not just that part of your body that pleases me. You make me happy in many ways."

She smiled then. "_In many ways_?"

He nodded, then frowned when she reached for his drawstring. "What are you doing?"

"I am going to please you...with another part of my body," she said with a grin he'd not seen in a while.

**NEW CHAPTER**

Ayla groaned as she started to come awake. She'd been having such a good dream and hated being ripped from it. Her entire body tingled; the most blissful languor drifting through her limbs, her center throbbing. Though she hadn't a clue as to what her dream had been about, it wasn't difficult to hazard a guess.

Stretching lazily, then tucking her arms under the back of her head, she yawned and opened her eyes. She was lying on her back in the middle of the furs she shared with her mate, but the furs that should have been covering her had been cast aside. She noticed then that her tunic was pushed up so that it bunched just over her breasts and that her legs lay open. With a frown, she started to sit up and was surprised to see her mate between her thighs.

"_Grov_!"

"It's about time you woke up," he said, nipping at her womanhood. "I've been trying to wake you for _forever_.

Ayla stared at him as the realization of what he'd been doing hit her, then she dropped her head back down on the furs and closed her eyes again. As she did so, he crawled up and covered her body with his. She felt his desire pressing into her belly immediately and opened her eyes.

"We must wait," she reminded him.

He nodded. "Yes, I do remember that," he said. "But, for how long?"

"Until my time comes...or doesn't come."

"Yes, I know that, but how long will that be?" He knew that she kept track of her cycle, though she wasn't supposed to. He usually knew when it would come too, when they were with the Clan. But here with the Others, with no forced isolation, he'd not been paying attention.

She thought for a moment, mentally counting the days since the end of her last cycle, then said, "Five or so days."

"_Five days_!" That meant almost double that before he could share pleasures with her again.

She cringed. "It _could be_ double that or more," she said apologetically, thinking about the many days in between her moontimes.

"It _is_ double that," he groaned, knowing she wouldn't let him touch her until her menses had stopped. He'd never understood that about the Clan. What was a little blood? he'd always wondered, thinking they saw so much of it as hunters that it shouldn't matter. Blood was blood, wasn't it?

"I'm sorry." She didn't know what else to say. She knew that it was within his rights to just give her the signal and be done with her silly fears and objections, and the fact that she knew he would never do that made her question her desire to know if she carried a child of someone else's spirit. After all, she _had_ shared pleasures with her mate over the last few weeks. Because of their traveling, it had been infrequent, in fact, only once, she realized, but it wasn't as if they'd abstained completely. She could have had a child of his growing in her belly when she shared pleasures with Jondaria, though she didn't believe so.

"It might be less," she whispered, feeling that she was just thinking about what _she_ wanted and not what her mate _needed_. If only she'd been using Iza's secret magic to prevent pregnancy, she scolded herself. Then they wouldn't even be talking about this. But she hadn't been, so there was no use thinking about it.

Lying there, her brows drawn together in frustration and tears beginning to form, she bolted upright as he moved between her legs, his tongue flicking over the sensitive bud there.

"Grov! What are you doing?"

He stopped and frowned at her. "I'd think it was obvious what I'm doing, Ayla," he said, gripping her spread legs and dipping into her again. Then, when she didn't lie back, he used some force, pulling on her until her elbows collapsed and she fell backward. "Just relax."

"How can I relax when I am not giving _you_ pleasure?" she asked, staring at the sky.

"What makes you think...that I'm feeling…no pleasure?"

She moaned, then shuddered as he entered her with gentle fingers, as his tongue continued to dance over her sensitive flesh. She tried to concentrate. He'd asked her a question, she knew. And she'd intended to answer him, but... _What was it that he'd asked_? Then her mind went blank as she fell over a precipice and into nothingness.

Grov stared at her. She'd passed out. Running the back of his hand over his mouth, he moved to lie beside her, to watch the look of pure bliss spread over her lovely face as she lay there in unconsciousness. In all the times he'd looked at her, he'd never seen such a look. But then, he'd never given her such pleasure that she'd passed out before either. Smiling, he thought he could stay there forever, just looking down at her.

**~oOo~**

Ayla came awake this time in the arms of her mate and nestled into their furs. Snuggling close, she buried her face in his chest and began kissing him. She knew he was awake, though he feigned asleep. Only when she nibbled on his nipple did he stop pretending.

"Stop, woman! Or we will never leave here today."

She grinned. "Maybe I do not _want_ to leave here."

He laughed and squeezed her tight. "Neither do I, but we have to." Without opening his eyes, he went on. "It is already late. We should have left a long time ago."

She sighed. He was right, of course. They needed to hurry up and join the others. "I will fix you some food," she said, pushing up and away from him.

Her absence made him shiver. "No food," he said. "But maybe some tea."

Nodding, she made them both their morning tea, then started to pack up their meager belongings. It didn't take long to be on their way.

**~oOo~**

"You know," Ayla said, coming up beside her mate, "we're going to be closer to Brun's cave than Oak Camp when we meet up with everyone. Maybe we should think about going home instead of going so far out of our way."

Grov frowned. "Do you really want to do that?" he asked. Her suggestion made a lot of sense, but he knew she'd be sad to leave the man of her hearth and his people.

Ayla frowned, then shook her head. "No, but we should at least consider it, don't you think?"

"It's a good idea, Ayla. And we probably should do it, but..." He shook his head. "I think you'd regret it."

She nodded. The mere mention of leaving caused an ache to form in her heart. "Yes, leaving Oak Camp is going to be very sad for me."

"And for me," he admitted. "I have grown to love them."

She smiled. "Then I guess we go out of our way."

"I guess so."

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

With a frown, Danta sat at the small fire, nervously waiting and hoping that Grov and Ayla would soon arrive. She'd been so sure they would show up the evening before. After all, she knew the speed at which the horses could carry them - even walking fully loaded, which they weren't. Now she was disappointed, and worried, that they weren't there already. And Davaria telling her he'd told her so hadn't helped, not at all.

"I wanted to go with the hunters," Davaria said as he plopped down beside her.

Not taking her eyes off the horizon, Danta shook her head. "There will be plenty of time for hunting later, Ari. We have all our gifts to take care of. I can't carry this stuff alone," she said, gesturing at the heap of things she'd so carefully laid out once everything was unloaded from the boats and carried a safe distance from the river.

He sighed. "But once Grov and Ayla return with the horses, you won't _need_ my help any longer. I could be out hunting, to help get Oak Camp stocked with food for the winter."

She smiled at him, proud that he was so eager to be a part of things at their new camp. He hadn't always been willing to contribute in the past, at least not to their camp as a whole. Neither had she - not really. Both of them had taught themselves to hunt and did it regularly, but only so that they did not starve to death.

"We will have many chances to join hunts. Just enjoy this time of rest. It won't last long," she predicted. "Tell me now...how was Janika when we left her?"

Davaria frowned, then shook his head. "She begged me to bring her along with us...but I couldn't do it."

"Why not? I thought you loved her."

"I do...but Jeeteria doesn't think we are ready."

Danta nodded. "I can understand that," she said. "You two _did_ only just meet. Then between our adoption and things being so touchy for the Sungaea." She shrugged. "Maybe it's best this way."

Davaria frowned. "How can you say that? I love her."

Danta bit her lip. "I know...it's just...well, it happened so quickly. Don't you think?"

"I suppose so."

"I mean, you meet her one evening and then the next day you're sharing pleasures with her and wanting to mate her."

Davaria raised a brow. "I know the order of things, Danta, I _was_ there, remember?"

She blushed. "It's just...so _fast_."

For a few moments Davaria stared at his sister; she sure was acting strangely. Then he figured it out. She was worried that he'd abandon her like everyone else had - that, as soon as he was settled, his use for her would be gone and that would be that.

"Ata," he said, draping his arm around her slender shoulders and pulling her close. "I'm not going to leave you, do you understand me?"

Tears filled her eyes as she looked at him, then they coursed down her cheeks. "But how can you be so sure?"

He laughed. "Because, you are my twin sister, remember?" he said, wiping at her tears. "We're all we have left."

"But not if you get mated. If you do that you'll make a hearth of your own and I'll have nobody." Again her tears fell. Of all the pain she'd lived through, at least he'd never left her alone in their mother's hearth. She'd always been grateful, but now she might have to face abandonment.

"Oh, Danta," he said, hugging her. "Next year when Janika comes to Oak Camp we'll all live together if you want that."

Danta frowned. What woman would agree to that? To be mated, but not be the first woman of her domain.

"But I suspect that you'll find someone too. And you won't even want me there."

"Yeah...right, because I have _so many_ men just jumping to be with me," she said sarcastically. "Maybe I should have accepted Igorvia's proposal. I'd have someone's drunken hands pawing at me all night, but at least I'd _never_ be alone."

Davaria shuddered. "Are you _crazy_?"

"You're the one who wanted me to be with him," she accused. _Why won't you just accept him?_" she mimicked in a voice so like his own that it was scary. "_I'm sure he'd give up Laska if you'd go to his bed again_."

Davaria grimaced then. "I can't believe I said that."

"Well you did."

"I know that I did, Ata...I just mean...I must have been out of my head when I said that."

She snorted. "You sure were, out of your head with bouza."

He blushed. "I've stopped drinking it...mostly." He almost whispered the last word.

"_Mostly_!" she burst, scowling at his red face.

"Well, _everyone_ drinks _some_."

"_I_ don't."

"You did," he corrected her.

Danta took a deep sigh and stood up. "Fine, drink _some_. I don't care," she snapped, then stomped away.

**~oOo~**

Danie watched Danta walk off, nervous about the woman going off alone. She'd headed for a small outcropping of rocks and Danie worried about her safety, until she saw the woman climb up on top of them and sit down.

"Everything okay, Davaria?" she asked.

"What?" he said as he looked up at her. "Oh yes, everything's _just_ fine."

His tone was sarcastic, but Danie smiled anyway, knowing he didn't intend to snap at her. "Do I need worry about your sister," she asked, allowing her Sungaea to slip a bit now that they were no longer around all the camps who seemed to enjoy finding fault in her. "She seem angry."

Davaria shook his head. "Only at me. No, she'll be fine...especially with Fraylora looking after her," he said, nodding his head at the Bison Hearth woman who'd climbed up to sit beside Danta on the rocks. "She wanted a mother, now she's got one."

Danie glanced over at the two women and smiled. "And a good one too. This will be good for both, I think. My sister tells me that Fraylora's never recovered from losing her oldest daughter, and Danta needs a mother more than anyone I know."

Davaria nodded. "My sister's never really had a mother. Trata always resented her."

Danie had turned to look at him again, a frown on her face. "I really don't understand that. How could she possibly blame her own daughter for existing?"

Davaria shrugged. "I certainly couldn't tell you that," he said. "But she did. Trata blamed _everything_ on Danta, from the most simple things, like a missing camp shoe, to the life's tragedies...like the deaths of our family and friends." He shook his head then. "And...I'm afraid I wasn't so good to her either," he admitted. "I should have stood up for her long before now."

"That doesn't matter anymore, Davaria," the woman said. "You can't change the past. What matters now is that you've seen the error of your ways, and that Danta knows she can count on you."

Frowning, Davaria shook his head. "But she doesn't _think_ she can count on me."

"Is that what's upset her?"

With a pained expression, the man nodded. "And I don't blame her. I deserve her doubt. Of all the people at Sumac Camp, _I_ should have been the one to stand up and protest her treatment."

"Maybe."

"There is no _maybe_ about it, Danie," he said, full of self-loathing. "I have failed my sister and wouldn't blame her if she never trusted me again."

Danie looked over at Danta, then back at the man. "Just give her time, Davaria," she said as she reached out and touched his arm. "Danta will soon learn that Oak Camp is _nothing_ like Sumac Camp; you both will. You will both learn to trust in that, and she _will_ learn to trust you again. We all make mistake, you know."

He tried to smile at her, but he had to clench his jaw to keep from tearing up. And she glanced away in an effort to afford him some privacy.

"I like Oak Camp very much," she said. "Of course, I haven't been with them very long, but my sister has. We were both kidnapped."

Davaria frowned. He'd never heard of such a thing.

Danie laughed. "Well, sort of. It was all arranged, of course. With Darvie it was more severe. It took long negotiations to work it out, and even then Vincenzia had to _kidnap_ her to get around a few Mamutoi customs. But there was nothing either of our peoples could have done to keep them apart. My sister would have jumped off a cliff for that man and everyone knew it."

Davaria glanced over at Vincenzia, where he sat with the children, and chuckled.

"_My_ kidnapping was much less formal since it had happened before. My sister was the first, but other Mamutoi women have since been involved in similar matings. I know of a woman named Tholie, who went to live with some people who live quite a distance to the west. I forgot the name of their people though." She shrugged. "My kidnapping was slightly different in that my mother came along too. Which, Darvie was thrilled about. Sometimes I still think they orchestrated my meeting Ivanolia."

"How _did_ you meet him?" Davaria asked curiously.

"He came with Vilognia to last year's summer meeting. They needed to find Vincenzia, to tell him about Ayla...that she had been found."

Davaria nodded. Everyone had heard the story of the lost child of Vincenzia's hearth. Mostly, no one cared, but obviously Oak Camp did.

"Anyway," she went on. "When they came, it was like I saw no one else anymore." She grinned at the memory. "We couldn't even understand each other, but still we wanted to be together. And when it was time for him to leave, he asked me to join with him. Of course, at the time I thought he was perfect. Now...not so much. But he is a good man," she said with a grin.

"So why'd you stay here to wait for Grov and Ayla?" he asked. "I'd have thought you'd rather have gone back to Oak Camp with Ivanolia."

"I stay because Ivan _make_ me. He said he'd feel better if I wait for Ayla." She shrugged. "So that is what I'm doing. That is what we are all doing." She smiled at him again, but he scowled.

"What is wrong?"

"I wanted to go with the others, to hunt."

She nodded. "I used to hunt, but not so much anymore," she said, patting her burgeoning belly. "But I don't mind so much, not hunting _and_ staying here to wait. I needed this break."

**~oOo~**

Grov and Ayla reached the others just as they were finishing their midday meal. Danta, once again sitting on her rock, was the first to see their approach. But it was Vincenzia and Davaria who went to assist them across the small tributary that flowed west and into Big River at the bend. It was small though, barely reaching the horses' underbellies as they crossed, and easily fordable.

Once they'd rejoined the group, and were told most had gone on ahead, it was decided that they'd remain where they were for another night. Getting back to Oak Camp from summer meetings always took just a little longer than the journey out. On the way to a summer meeting everyone was just bursting to get out after being cooped up all winter and excited about seeing longtime friends and relatives. But on the way home they were exhausted, from traveling and visiting and hunting, and their thoughts were on the long winter ahead and what they needed to do to be prepared for it. It was always the same; everyone wanted to be home, but no one seemed able to hurry too much.

Only Davaria objected to the idea of staying there an extra night. He wanted desperately to arrive at Oak Camp, to see his new home and get settled there. But he was outvoted by those who wanted the more leisurely trek.

**Listing**

Those left behind to wait at the bend in Big River:

Vincenzia (37)  
>Ora(3)<br>Annalisa(1)

Fraylora (36)

Danie (21)

Davaria (19)  
>Danta (19)<br>Danara (4)

Jendoza (18)  
>Teglodia<p>

Laurana (15)  
>Bruana<p>

And Grov and Ayla, of course, since it's them that those above wait for.

Those going on ahead to Oak Camp:

Tagnolia (41) – headman  
>Zarina (39)<br>Frala (14)  
>Morina (12)<p>

Tiflona (39) – headwoman  
>Wäglodia (40)<br>Tabita (16)  
>Torina (13)<br>Talneezia (10)  
>Tena (7)<p>

Gredenzia (36) – Shogur  
>Fürlasa (16)<br>Fräubita (14)  
>Gildenozia (10)<p>

Darvie (26) – Mamutoi born  
>Crisana (Crisanie) (8)<br>Brenevia (Brenev) (5)  
>Durc (5)<p>

Travie (44)  
>Serana (41)<br>Vilognia (41)  
>Vegodia (12)<br>Serlona (9)

Donzolnia (22)

Ivanolia (22)  
>Braydalana (8)<p>

Brulenzia (20)

**NEW CHAPTER**

The next morning came quickly and they moved out. But, before anyone knew it, it was time to stop for a midday meal. They didn't bother with a fire to cook the meal, or for tea, because they wanted to make it a short stop. Instead, the chewed on the dried meat they'd prepared for traveling and drank water. The only thing they did do that took time was unburden the horses, so that they could rest properly.

Ayla, with Danta assistance, was just putting everything back on them when Davaria came over to tell her Grov needed her. Smiling at them, she excused herself to find out what her mate wanted. When she got there, she saw the problem immediately; Ora had removed her clothing, complaining that she was hot and Grov was trying to put them back on the wiggling child.

Scooping up the struggling little girl, Ayla swung her up into her arms and tickled her.

"Do you want to ride Whinney while we travel?" she asked.

Ora nodded.

"Then you have to have something on your bottom," she said, patting her daughter's backside. "Or it will be rubbed raw."

Ora frowned, then stopped struggling so that Ayla could put her tiny leggings back on. Afterward, the woman lifted the child to the horse, then turned to finish her own work.

Grov shook his head. "You make that look so easy."

"It _is_ easy," Ayla said. "You just have to speak child." She grinned at him.

"Well, that leaves me out, I think. I don't know that language."

Ayla laughed. "What are you talking about? You seemed to be doing just fine before I came along. Or have you forgotten that I haven't always been your mate."

He frowned. "No, I have not forgotten. I guess I did okay before you came along. But...I am much happier now."

She grinned. "I am too," she said. "How are the others faring?" Ayla asked him, nodded at those getting ready to move on again.

He shrugged. "They are doing well, I think. Jendoza and Laurana look to be tiring a little."

Ayla nodded. "Carrying babies is more difficult that it appears. How about Danie? Having a baby in her belly is not so easy either."

"She isn't complaining."

"How about the others?"

Grov smiled. "Everyone is _fine_, Ayla. You worry too much."

She nodded, knowing her mate spoke the truth. "I cannot help myself, I guess."

Grov grinned. "That's what makes you such a good medicine woman, my mate," he said, leaning to kiss her.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

On the evening before the main group of Oak members would arrive home, they sat down to discuss the hunt, where it would take place and who would participate. What they'd gleaned from the summer meeting hunts was so minimal that they needed to start preparing for winter immediately.

"Well, _I'm_ going," Ivanolia said before anyone else could comment. Even though Oak Camp had, through Ayla, been awarded his share of the bison meat from the first summer hunt, he still felt guilty about losing it in the first place and wanted to make up for it.

Tiflona nodded. "Of course, Ivan. We would never leave you out." She smiled at him. She knew what the man was thinking - but first things first. "We must talk about _where_ we're going before we discuss _who_ is going." She looked then at Gredenzia. "Have you had any luck?" she asked their Shogur.

The man nodded. "I have Searched and the signs are good. I believe we will find a herd in our usual hunting valley...but I can't say what kind."

Tiflona nodded. "That is a good place to begin. We have always had good luck there."

Everyone nodded. That valley was the favored place at this time of year.

"Now, who would like to go?"

All the men except her mate and their Shogur raised their hands, as did Darvie, Tabita, Fürlasa and, of course, herself. Tiflona wasn't surprised that those two men wished to stay behind. Gredenzia rarely hunted, and everyone knew Wäglodia was more suited to the domestic things of their lodge - mostly the cooking.

"Nine," she said, counting the hands. "That is good. We will leave before dawn."

**~oOo~**

By noon the following day, Oak Camp's earthlodge came into view for those traveling there. It had been a long time since they'd seen their home - almost an entire summer. But they had arrived and were eager to be there.

But first, to make sure it was safe, Gredenzia and Wäglodia entered while everyone else waited outside. This was always a nervous time for the people; no one knew what they'd find. Sometimes they came home to nothing, no problems at all, but that was not often the case. Usually there was at least _some sort_ of damage, from minor problems such as a few missing or broken items and animal droppings, to utter destruction and devastating loss of food stores and personal belongings. And sometimes, the critters who'd committed the crimes against them were still there, creeping about and ready to attack as they entered. For the most part, Oak Camp had been lucky, but one could never be too sure as to what would be found upon returning from such a long time away. They were always cautious and that is why they had survived for so long.

"It's clear," their Shogur called out from the main entranceway after the two men had done a thorough search of their home. "It's needs a cleaning, but it's safe."

Relieved, the others entered, discarding their traveling gear in the entry hearth, then going back out to remove fire-hole coverings. Afterward, they went to their own personal hearths to unpack and clean up. They were home and their home was no longer empty.

**~oOo~**

"All right," Travie said with a clap of her hands. "We need to make this hearth ready for Davaria, Danta and Danara."

It had been discussed by Vincenzia, Darvie and herself, that their new members should have the hearth closest to the other young adults, and that Snow Leopard hearth, _theirs_, would move across the hall to the empty hearth there. The move was done quickly; it was little hassle with so many helping hands.

"You really should move into the healer's hearth, Travie," Zarina said as she carried a bundle of the older woman's belongings. "You really are our healer now...since we weren't able to convince anyone to come back with us."

Travie frowned. "As I said before, I only have rudimentary knowledge."

Zarina shrugged. "That is better than nothing. You should take the hearth."

"Yes, Travie," Wäglodia said. He come up beside Zarina but, taking the bundles from the woman, started down the hallway. "We've discussed it. We think you're a wonderful healer."

"Besides," Serana interjected, "don't you think Vincenzia and Darvie should have their own hearth again?"

Travie frowned. "I have often wondered about that. They tell me I am no bother, but it _is_ hard to have others under foot."

"Well then, it's settled," Zarina said happily.

"But what about Tagnolia and Tiflona? We should discuss it with them. They _are_ the leaders."

"Nonsense!" burst Serana. "They have been talking about making changes for a long time."

Zarina and Wäglodia nodded. "That is true," they said in unison.

Travie sighed. "Well then...if you're sure."

"We are!" they all said.

**~oOo~~oOo~~oOo~**

"But _when_ will we get there?" Danara asked for probably the tenth time. She wanted desperately to see her new home, to know that they really did have a home to go to.

"We be there soon," Ora said, as if she knew. She'd been there once and thought she knew it all.

Ayla rolled her eyes, then glanced at Vincenzia, hoping he'd tell give Danara something more than just _soon_. After all, children rarely understood such ambiguous terms.

"Ora is right, Danara," he said. "We should be there before the sun reaches _there_." He pointed at the sky and the little girl looked up.

"Really?"

He nodded, then smiled as they kept on, because Danara checked the placement of the sun often.

**~oOo~**

"See there?" Vincenzia asked suddenly. It hadn't been too long, but long enough that the child was growing impatient again. She squinted, then nodded. "That is it, Oak Camp. We are home!"

Squealing, Danara clapped her hands excitedly. The act caused her mother to smile. She too was excited - but nervous as well. Yes, they were _home_, but what did that mean? And it looks _huge_, this Oak Camp, Danta thought. She couldn't remember ever seeing such a large earthlodge in her life.

As they approached, Danta realized her brother had the same nervous energy; he'd moved closer to her and had slipped his hand into hers without knowing it. Squeezing it, she smiled at him, and willed them both to relax.

"Your horses should be all right out here, Ayla," Vincenzia said, gesturing about. "What do you think?"

She nodded. "I think so, yes," she said as she lifted her daughters and then Danara off Whinney's back.

The man of her hearth nodded, then hurried toward the lodge. "_Hallo_, he called out as he entered. "We're here!" He dropped his main pack in the entry, then walked into the main communal hearth.

"Oh, you are here," Serana said, reaching up to hug her mate's brother. "I thought I heard voices out there. I'm so glad you got back early. We wondered how long you'd be. Zarina was getting worried...did every thing go okay?"

Vincenzia nodded. "Yes, Grov and Ayla reached us without incident and we left the morning after you did."

Serana nodded, then frowned. "Where is everyone?"

"Outside unloading the horses."

"Oh, well we've got everything all set up in here, but let's go out and help."

**~oOo~**

The horses quickly unloaded, everyone came inside, including Oak Camp's anxious new members. For a few moments, everyone just stood around talking, those that had arrived the day before wanted to hear about Grov and Ayla's short, but separate trek beside Big River. It was quickly told, as there was nothing too interesting to tell, then the couple excused themselves and went to the visitor's hearth, which somehow seemed wrong to Danta. As she was led through the main gathering place and down the long wide hallway to what was now going to be called Red Fox hearth, with Davaria holding Danara just behind her, all she could think about was Ayla and her family in the visitor's hearth. Why should _they_ be given a hearth the moment they arrived, when Ayla, who'd been born to Oak Camp, slept in the _visitor's hearth_?

"It _is_ finished, right?" Fraylora asked to no one in particular as they walked.

Travie scowled. "Of course! We would not let you return with new members without being ready."

Fraylora chuckled at the tone of voice the woman eight years her senior used; it sounded harsh to those who didn't know her well, but Oak Camp had had a year to get used to her, and her usual Mamutoi forwardness.

"Mother!" Danie said, from behind when she noticed Danta stiffen. Obviously the young woman was nervous; she thought her mother should take that into consideration. "It was _just_ a question."

Suddenly seeming to see the newcomer's nervousness, she realized her mistake and sighed; she did not want to frighten the poor woman. "Of course it is," she said, turning to look at Fraylora and going on. "We moved the entrance to the side passage, so they will be closer to the other young adults...that was Danie's idea," she informed them, then went on. "And I just finished moving things around...and their beds are all made. Go on...take a look."

Fraylora smiled, then took Danta's hand. "Come."

Danta glanced back at Davaria and tried to smile, then followed Fraylora. She stopped suddenly however, when she got to the doorway of their new hearth; there was a fox skull hanging over it.

"Oh! You _did_ find it," Danie said with excitement when she figured out why Danta had stopped. "I wondered if you would, with the mess I left in Snow Leopard hearth."

"Well, I probably would not have, had we not been moving out of _this_ hearth," Travie complained. "But I stumbled upon it while packing. You really did leave a mess," her mother accused.

Danie blushed. "I'm sorry. I sort of left in a hurry."

Travie rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything disparaging, as her daughter's mate's mother was standing right there. "We moved you back in with Ivan...that is what you wanted, right?" Overall, she had nothing against her daughter's mate, but she loathed his practical jokes the winter before and hoped this winter they would not see a repeat performance. Then she remembered that her daughter and Ivanolia wouldn't even be present during the winter, that she wouldn't even get to see her grandchild until the cold season had ended, and wondered which was worse, the man's jokes or her daughter's absence.

Danie grinned and nodded. "Of course!" And then to Danta she said, "I hope you don't mind getting your adoption gift from me early. When Ayla told me your hearth would be the Red Fox, I asked mother to pull this out." She touched the fox skull lovingly and then smiled at Danta. "It's actually the skull of an artic fox, but I thought it would work. _This_," she said, "was my first kill."

Danta grinned and hugged Danie. "Thank you. It's perfect."

Danie smiled. "Well, you get settled...I need to go lie down. This one was very active last night and I didn't sleep well," she said with a pat to her belly as she walked away.

**~oOo~**

Inside the hearth, Danta and Davaria looked around with amazement. It was bare, but for three beds, but it was clean, and it was more spacious than they'd ever dreamed it could be; they were used to sharing nearly half the space with their mother, who'd always managed to take up most of the area.

Both were silent, their emotions getting the better of them. Danta's eyes filled and overflowed while Davaria struggled to hold his back. Danara, on the other hand, was not so quiet.

"This is _our_ space?" she asked as she peeked around her mother at the other woman.

"Ah-huh," Fraylora said with a nod. "All yours."

Running her hand over the furs of one of the beds, then walking further into the hearth and over to the other two sleeping places, she crouched down and looked under one of them. Turning, she smiled. "I have my _own_ sleeping place?"

Fraylora smiled back at her, as did the child's mother and uncle.

"At Sumac Camp I never slept alone," she said with a slight frown on her face.

Fraylora shrugged. "Well, I'm sure your mother will share her bed with you, if you want her to."

Danara looked at her mother for confirmation. When she got it she shrugged. "I can sleep alone; I'm a big girl."

"Of course you are," Fraylora said. Then to Danta and Davaria she said, "You two get settled and I'll have the others bring in all your belongings."

"I can help with that," Davaria protested. He was used to having to depend on only himself.

Fraylora shook her head. "Just rest, Davaria," she said. "Let someone take care of you for a change. You too, Danta. Sit down and take a breather."

With a sigh, both Danta and Davaria nodded, then watched the other woman leave. They had to admit that they _were_ tired, and not just physically. The whole ordeal of the summer meeting had them emotionally exhausted as well. Dropping their packs and plopping down on the beds, they closed their eyes.

It was good to have a new home, and a hearth with a name - Red Fox hearth. It had a nice ring to it, and it was a place of their own, not to be shared with their mean and vindictive mother. Both sensed, as they drifted off to sleep, that it was a place their protective spirits would be happy.

**~oOo~**

"That's the last of it," Vincenzia said as he and Gredenzia arrived back at the cooking hearth.

"You didn't wake them, did you?" Fraylora asked worriedly. On her last trip to Red Fox hearth, she'd covered the three sleeping people, then told everyone not to disturb them.

Vincenzia shook his head. "No, they're sleeping like babies."

"Humph!" Laurana burst. "I wish _my_ baby would sleep."

Jendoza laughed. "It'll get better."

"I sure hope so."

"So, should we wake them when the evening meal is ready?" Zarina asked. She and Wäglodia had been cooking since everyone arrived; the meal would be ready soon, but she didn't know what to do about their newcomers.

Fraylora frowned, then shook her head. "No, let's let them sleep. They need rest more than food, I think."

Everyone nodded their agreement.

**~oOo~**

It was the middle of the night when Danta came awake. At first, she didn't remember where she was and sat up in a panic. The space she was in was nearly dark, only a low fire burned nearby, making it hard to see. Then her eyes adjusted and she remembered - they were at Oak Camp. Looking around, she saw that both her daughter and Davaria slept soundly, each in their own beds. Smiling, she pushed her furs off and stood up; she desperately needed to relieve herself. Glancing down at the night basket, she grimaced. She didn't want to use it, but was forced to because she did not know the area yet and therefore could not go wandering off alone at night. Afterward, she covered the basket, making sure the lid was secure, then put a piece of wood on the fire. It wasn't cold, but she wanted a little more light. After a short time of staring at the fire, she realized she was sleepy again. She turned first to get into her bed, then changed her mind and went to Davaria's. It had always been a habit of theirs when they were younger, to go to each other when they were upset or frightened about something, but this was the first time she'd gone to him when she felt content.

"What are you doing, Ata?" he mumbled, half asleep.

"I...I just didn't want to be alone." He was on his back and she, curled up on her side, leaned her forehead on his shoulder and gripped his forearm in her hands.

"Are you okay?" he asked, opening his eyes and blinking a few times.

"Ah-huh."

"Are you _sure_?"

"Yes...I just... That bed is so big and..."

"_Empty_?" he finished for her with a grin.

She nodded. "I'm sorry I woke you."

"That's okay, but now I think I'm hungry."

"Me too. But I don't want to go wandering around looking for food."

Davaria sighed. "Neither do I," he said.

For quite a while they lay there in silence, then Danta sighed and started to get up. "I suppose I should go back now."

"No! I want you to stay," he admitted, grabbing her hand before she could move away from him. "I guess...I feel lonely too."

Danta lay back down, this time on her back beside him. Holding hands, they stared at the ceiling until they both fell asleep again. By morning there was a third body in the bed.


End file.
